Do you know what ‘Homo Neanderthalensis’ means? How tall was an average ‘Australopithecus Afarensis’ three-year-old?

These questions and more can be answered at the California Academy of Sciences newest exhibition titled Human Odyssey. Guests can Compare fossils of early human relatives, walk alongside a computer animation of the famous “Lucy” skeleton, and map our species’ journey out of Africa—one which spanned thousands of years and countless generations.

The exhibition is curated by Dr. Zeray Alemseged, Curator and Irvine Chair of Anthropology at the Academy. In 2006, it was there in Ethiopia’s Great East African Rift that he reported finding a 3.3 million-year-old fossil of a three-year-old Australopithecus afarensis, considered to be the world’s oldest baby. Nicknamed “Selam,” it was the most complete skeleton of its kind ever found. The discovery has provided numerous new insights into the anatomical, behavioral, and developmental evolution of early human ancestors from other apes.

“If we are to understand, as a species, where our place is within the ecosystem, within biodiversity, the best way is to look into our roots, into our origins,” said Dr. Alemseged. “When you trace that origin, going back all the way to six or seven million years ago, the best way to do it is using the fossil evidence.”

Following the clues that scientists, including noted paleoanthropologist and Academy curator Zeray Alemseged, use to investigate our past, you’ll discover why the 7 billion people on the planet today are much more alike than you might think.

For more information on the exhibit at the California Academy of Sciences, go to calacademy.org.