"Why are we so different", or perhaps we should ask "Why are we at all the same?"

From lowly amoeba to big-brained human, the case for the rainbow of diversity within the human species is not easily made by anthropology or archeology alone. It took a synthesis of knowledge, theory, physical evidence and testing to prove what we now believe about our origins and our relationships.

Considering the differences between people of other ethnicities, the even more obvious and striking similarities are amazing. Individuals of other ethnicities may seem closer to our own temperament than we may ever find in our own "race". That leads me to ask when we consider human diversity, what are we considering; body build, skin color, height, temperament, skills, mannerisms or only attitude?

Since the 1800s the theory of evolution has contained gaps that couldn't be filled, even by the Leakey family whose members found evidence of our early morphology in Africa when they discovered Lucy. As a result of their work and that of many others in a variety of fields, most of the sciences now function based on the belief that a multitude of different lines of hominids developed from a variety of evolutionary sources and that they coexisted as recently as 200,000 years ago.

If we stopped there, it would be more than enough to explain human diversity, but that evidence has come to mean less for modern humans now that genetic testing provides accurate and telling DNA evidence of a changing story. Spencer Wells is a geneticist and anthropologist who works with National Geographic. Over the past few years he analyzed DNA of thousands of men around the world and discovered that all humans alive today can be traced back to a small tribe who lived in Africa about 60,000 years ago. The implication is that all humankind came from the only tribe to survive a catastrophic event occurring sometime around 70,000 years ago.

Whatever variety of hominids weren't evolved enough to use their wits or strength to make it through the catastrophic events eventually died out, leaving those who were strong enough and clever enough to inherit the earth. After a time this tribe and its factions developed what came to be called "modern human behavior". The evidence coincides with the map of artifacts and fossils and there is a distinct gap in tools and various behaviors occurring between 100,000 years ago and 60,000 years ago.

Even though, by default, we all stem from the latter, more

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