The Origins of Humankind
Where do we really come from?
Science has developed unprecedented tools to explore this timeless question. From carbon isotopes to ancient DNA, we keep finding new ways to study human origins. But as the data piles up, it’s easy to miss the forest for the trees.
To help us see the big picture, On Humans partnered with CARTA, a research unit at UC San Diego and the Salk Institute.
For three decades now, CARTA has operated as a discussion hub where scholars from around the world gather to discuss new advances in the study of human origins. In early 2025, they partnered with On Humans to craft a podcast series that would connect the dots.
This is the outcome.
The five-episode series was released in March 2025. It gained wide-spread attention from both scholars and media, and was featured on the front page of Apple Podcast US.
You can enjoy each episode in full audio or as written summaries.
Enjoy!
#1 The Big Picture
Listen (1h04): Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Other Players
Read (10min): Substack essay
The journey has begun! The first episode offers a sweeping take on the history of life on Earth, from the origin of life to the rise of humans.
Key questions: What is life? Who were our ancestors during the dinosaurs? What led to the rise of primates? And what kind of a primate are we?
Your guide: Tim Coulson is the Head of the Department of Biology at the University of Oxford. He recently released a breathtaking overview of the history of life and the universe titled A Universal History of Us.
#2 An Unusual Ape
Listen (55min): Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Other Players
Read (11min): Substack essay
In episode two, we follow the first steps on the human line, exploring how abandoning life in the trees paved the way for many of our human oddities.
Key questions: Why was upright posture so important? What did it do to parents and children? When did the brains of our ancestors start to show human oddities?
Your guide: Dean Falk, a leading expert on brain evolution at the University of Florida. She recently published a book titled A Botanic Age, looking at human evolution before the Stone Age.
#3 Why Humans?
Listen (1h06): Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Other Players
Read (15 min): Substack essay
The story is about to get personal... The third episode tackles humanity head-on, focusing on the new scientific discoveries around the origins and spread of the genus Homo.
Key questions: What is a human? Why did we evolve? And how do modern humans differ from Neanderthals or other extinct humans?
Your guide: Chris Stringer is an iconic figure in the field, best known for his groundbreaking work towards the widely accepted ‘Out of Africa’ model of human evolution. His career at London’s Natural History Museum stretches across five decades.
#4 The Story of Sapiens
Listen (1h06): Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Other Players
Read (13min): Substack essay
This is where our story truly begins. In the fourth episode , we zoom into the rise and spread of our Homo sapiens ancestors.
Key questions: How did Homo sapiens spread over the globe? How did climate change shape these journeys? And what was life like during the Palaeolithic?
Your guide: Johannes Krause was the first scholar to discover a new species of humans by DNA alone. Co-author of Hubris, and A Short History of Humanity, he is now the Director of the Max Planck Institute of Evolutionary Anthropology.
#5 Epilogue: The Rest is History
Listen (1h06): Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Other Players
Read: Substack essay
The series finishes with another episodes on the story of Homo sapiens, using the magic of ancient DNA to tell a genuinely global history of the the Holocene epoch, taking us from the origins of farming to the dawn of modernity.
Key question: How did humanity move from hunting and gathering to farming, shepherding, and city living? Was this “the greatest mistake in the history of the human race”? And how did it shape our species — and the planet?
Your guide: Johannes Krause (again)
From the Archives
Both On Humans and CARTA have produced a lot of free-for-all material on the origins of humankind. On Humans —episodes are available in audio, lasting around one hour each. CARTA’s materials are available on YouTube as video lectures, lasting around 20 minutes each.
On Humans
Starting in 2022, On Humans has produced over 60 hours of material with leading human scientists, many with a focus on evolution. Below is a curated selection of three highlights.
The links point to Spotify. You can also find the episodes on Apple Podcasts, YouTube audio, or other players.
Richard Wrangham: What Kind of Apes Are We?
Ian Tattersall: How Did Humans Evolve? Why Did We?
Sarah Blaffer Hrdy: Mothers, Fathers, and the Many Myths We Have Kept
CARTA
CARTA organises academic symposia on human origins. You can enjoy videos from past symposia on YouTube.
You can access their entire archives here, or check out a curated set of three highlights below.