Stars, Cells, and God | Neanderthal with Down’s Syndrome | News of the Day

Join Fazale “Fuz” Rana in this breaking News of the Day episode of Stars, Cells, and God. Fuz discusses work by a team of anthropologists from Spain who maintain that analysis of a partial skull fossil indicates that Neanderthals provided compassionate care for a Neanderthal child with Down syndrome.

Neanderthal with Down’s Syndrome

• Does this discovery mean that Neanderthals were just like us?
• In light of this find, can humans be regarded as exceptional and unique?
• If Neanderthals were like us, can the biblical claim that humans solely bear God’s image remain valid?

Links & Resources

• The Child Who Lived: Down’s Syndrome Among Neanderthals?
• An Observation of a Severely Disabled Infant Chimpanzee in the Wild and Her Interactions with Her Mother
• Primates and Disability: Behavioral Flexibility and Implications for Resilience to Environmental Change
• Key Difference in Developing Human and Neanderthals Brains
• Should Chimpanzee Behavior Challenge Human Exceptionalism?