Bipedalism - How Walking Made Us Human with Jeremy DeSilva

“The history of our lineage is filled with multiple species coexisting—this moment, with only one upright walking ape on the planet, is exceptionally rare.”

Why do humans walk on two legs when no other mammal does? And what did it cost us? From back pain to difficult childbirth, our bipedal evolution has its drawbacks—but it also shaped everything about who we are today.

In this episode of Talking Apes, we sit down with Jeremy DeSilva, a leading paleoanthropologist whose research has transformed our understanding of early human locomotion. Jeremy takes us on a journey through millions of years of evolution, from the discovery of Lucy, the famous 3.2-million-year-old hominin, to fossilized footprints that reveal a world where multiple human-like species walked side by side.

With infectious enthusiasm and a deep passion for science education, Jeremy unpacks the mysteries of how and why we took our very first steps—and why it matters today.

Dive into Jeremy’s book, First Steps: How Walking Upright Made Us Human

Check out Jeremy's blog

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Talking Apes is an initiative of the nonprofit GLOBIO.

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