Well as the fist quarter of this University year closed last week, I'm definitely feeling that my ultimate career choice is Anthropology, and more specifically Paleoanthpology. I'm currently in a course which is all about Human Evolution, and it definitely my favorite course I've ever taken. It is really a great relief to finally read text books which are actually about the field which captures one's ultimate interest, and in the same breathe it is a relief to finally know that I'm going to feel comfortable making this field a career choice.

The beginning of the course was primarily about where Homo sapiens fall into an evolutionary linage, showcasing what it means to be mammal, primate, and finally us. A great deal of time is being spent on Hominidae, since this is the family we belong and where our closest living relatives also reside. Out of these relatives I've been finding the Chimpanzee and Bonobo to be very interesting to learn about. I used to be quite ignorant to Primatology, I felt this was zoology and definitely had no merit calling itself Anthropology. This was completely incorrect and very Anthropocentric of me, a flaw which could have been fatal to my career choice if I had not realized it at this point. I now know understand that just because we're different does not give me any reason to ignore to huge amount of similarities. There were things that that non-human primates are capable of which is simply so mind boggling that I can't imagine why it isn't off hand common knowledge.

Primatology is quickly becoming a second interest of mine and although it really isn't at the core of what I want to study professionally it will always be something I keep up to date on as a hobby and background for possible consolidating points of interest. A few things which I found extremely interesting that I feel is worth mentioning is the extent for learning in primates. Some short notes of interests of mine that others may enjoy looking up:

- The ability for primates to associate the meaning with different calls, and respond to meaning as a learned process rather than instinctual.

- Bipedalism in the Chimpanzee and Bonobo.

- The concept of self and other in the great apes.

- Tool making by non human primates, I found this to be the most interesting of all.

Although we haven't reached the extinct forms of the Homo genus, I've read a head quite a bit and every single word of the text is interesting. I'm at the point where I would spend a life time learning about this field without a single moment of boredom. I'm very excited to hear the up coming lectures on the Homo genus, and even more excited on where this is going to take my fossil learning experience. I've already been dreaming of traveling to see famous specimens...

I'm exactly where I want to be, and loving it.