Multiregional Evolution?

Question

In multiregional evolution:

Where and when did modern humans originate?

Which human species is directly ancestral to modern humans and why?

Do modern humans and Neanderthals belong to the same species?

Give one argument in favor of the scenario you chose.

Answer 1

Modern human originated in Africa because there is more genetic diversity in Africa than in the rest of the world.

Answer 2

Multiregional evolution is largely discredited.  In multiregional evolution, homo erectus evolved into Asians, Neanderthals into Europeans, and presumably  H. ergaster into blacks.  In reality, Homo heidelbergesis is probably our direct ancestor and is the probable common ancestor with Neanderthals and humans. Most classify Neanderthals as the same genus but separate species, Homo neanderthalensis.  This seems to be justified based on recent DNA analyses which shows they apparently didn't interbreed.  I believe in a modifaction of the multiregional theory.  Humans didn't evolve from those other species but did occupy a large territory throughout much of their span.  At times some societies may have evolved an element of culture or physical characteristic that made them superior.  This characteristic spread like wildfire until it became dominant throughout the species.  I think of it as the atomic bomb theory of human evolution. A characteristic would evolve and expode into other territories.  There is no telling where particular characteristics evovled.  Anyone could have been in Eurasia, Australia, or Africa, and later even in N. America.  Because of various environments, there was always evolutionary pressures to adapt to particular environments.  These evolutionary pressures act independently and there can be many complicated forces acting at once.  We are all one species and share recent common ancestors.  Populations were never isolated enough to become separate species.