It seems Homo naledi remains may be much younger than previously assumed. Much as in very much. Instead of a couple of million years they have been dated to 300,000 years ago – and potentially less than that. This is a significant number to revise the remains as it means the survival of a primitive hominid into the time of the Neanderthals and Denisovans, and the emergence of modern humans in other parts of Africa. Hominid remains are once again throwing a stick in the spokes of the evolutionary tree of humanity. It is supposed to proceed from primitive to less primitive to advanced but Homo naledi and the Hobbit appear to buck the trend expected.
See also https://anthropology.net/2017/04/27/homo-naledi-could-be-much-younger-th… … and the new information comes from John Hawks of the University of Wisconsin. He also has a web site … www.johnhawks.net … but it won't help you much.
See also https://phys.org/print412488513.html … where a method of extracting human DNA from cave sediments has been found, not actually requiring human remains such as bone to be found. Fossils of ancient humans are rare – and not always in a suitable condition to extract DNA, when they are found. However, sediments themselves can bind DNA – and caves are a perfect place to put this idea into practise. Genetic material from animals is also preserved in sediments – such as the cave bear and the cave hyena, as well as mammoth and rhinoceros etc. Neanderthal and Denisovan DNA was pulled from caves where no human remains have been found. Brilliant.