Chapter 10 Supplementary Essays: Multidisciplinary Empirical Evidence for the Continuity of East Asian Human Evolution

A multidisciplinary analysis challenges the 'fossil gap' in East Asian human evolution, demonstrating that Late Pleistocene geological conditions and ecological stability in regions like Shandong highlands support continuous indigenous evolution. The study integrates geology, ecology, eco-developmental biology, and paleogenomics to refute assumptions about fossil absence equating to extinction or replacement. Geological data reveal deep burial depths reducing site discovery probabilities, while ecological mapping identifies Shandong as a stable refuge. Genetic evidence, including Denisovan introgression and EDAR V370A selection, aligns with archaeological findings, confirming indigenous genetic continuity. The research constructs a coherent framework that excludes demographic implications of the 'gap' and verifies long-term regional occupation.

Zhang, J. (2026). Chapter 10 Supplementary Essays: Multidisciplinary Empirical Evidence for the Continuity of East Asian Human Evolution. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/ZENODO.22699154