Carsten Niemitz

Carsten Niemitz (born 29 September 1945 in Dessau) is a German anatomist, ethologist, and human evolutionary biologist.

Life and work

Niemitz studied biology, mathematics, medicine and art history at the Universities of

", which was later adopted officially by the society.

In addition to his field research on primates and the study of

. He was one of those who regarded facial expressions and gestures as a precursor of human writing skills. In brief, his thesis was that the abilities to read and write are biologically older than those of language, because such visual communication was later supplemented by vocal and acoustic signals.

In the late eighties and the nineties he was one of those who raised the alarm about the depletion of tropical rain forests. From 2000 Niemitz developed an "amphibious" theory of the evolution of upright human posture and walking erect, according to which "there was a period in our evolution when it was wading and shore use which in a sustained and substantial way helped to shape today's people".^[2] Niemitz rejects the more extensive aquatic ape hypothesis, which accepts a real aquatic (water living) phase in human evolution.^[3] His publication list includes over 350 titles and many books. He also became active as a translator and as a writer of textbooks and for radio, film and television.

Memberships

From 1992 Niemitz was deputy chairman, from 1994 to 1998 chairman of the Anthropological Society and from 2008 to 2010 chairman of the

.

Works

• Zur Biometrie der Gattung Tarsius Storr, 1780 (Tarsiiformes, Tarsiidae). Eine funktionsmorphologische Studie als Beitrag zur Systematik und Phylogenie der Koboldmakis unter Verwendung elektronischer Rechenmittel mit dem Versuch einer Synopse morphologischer und ethologischer Ergebnisse. Dissertation, Gießen 1974
• Zur Funktionsmorphologie und Biometrie der Gattung Tarsius Storr, 1780 (Mammalia, Primates, Tarsiidae). Herleitung von Evolutionsmechanismen bei einem Primaten. Courier Forschungsinstitut Senckenberg 25, 1977
• Niemitz, Carsten (1984). Biology of Tarsiers. Jena: Gustav Fischer Verlag.
  ISBN 0895741822
  .
• Erbe und Umwelt. Zur Natur von Anlage und Selbstbestimmung des Menschen. Verlag Suhrkamp, Frankfurt am Main, 1987,
  ISBN 3-518-28246-8
  , 2. Auflage, 1989
• Das Regenwaldbuch. Verlag Parey, Berlin und Hamburg 1990,
  ISBN 3-489-53434-4
• Niemitz, C. (2010). "The evolution of the upright posture and gait--a review and a new synthesis". Die Naturwissenschaften. 97 (3): 241–263.
  PMID 20127307
  .
• mit Sigrun Niemitz: Genforschung und Gentechnik. Ängste und Hoffnungen. Springer Verlag, Berlin 1999
• Niemitz, Carsten (2002). "A theory on the evolution of the habitual orthograde human bipedalism—the 'Amphibische Generalistentheorie'". Anthropologischer Anzeiger. 60 (1): 3–66.
  PMID 12058577
  .
• Das Geheimnis des aufrechten Gangs. Unsere Evolution verlief anders. C.H. Beck, München 2004,
  ISBN 978-3-406-51606-1
• Brennpunkte und Perspektiven der aktuellen Anthropologie = Focuses and perspectives of modern physical anthropology. Verlag Leidorf, 2006,
  ISBN 3-86757-141-4
• mit K. Kreutz und H. Walther: "Wider den Rassenbegriff in der Anwendung auf den Menschen". Anthropologischer Anzeiger 64, Nr. 4 (2006): 463–464

Film

• Das Geheimnis des aufrechten Gangs. Dokumentarfilm, Deutschland, 2011, 43 Min., Regie: Ingo Knopf, Jo Siegler, Produktion: Maakii Filmproduktion, WDR, arte (Inhaltsangabe von arte)

References

External links

• Literature by and about Carsten Niemitz in the German National Library catalogue
• Vortrag: Das Geheimnis des aufrechten Gangs – idw