How did the human body become the complicated, quirky and amazing machine it is today? This cutting-edge scientific adventure reveals a startling truth: hidden within the human body is a story of life on Earth, and the legacy of animals that lived hundreds of millions of years ago. Based on the best-selling book by Neil Shubin, the three-part series travels from Africa to the Arctic Circle to uncover the 3.5 billion year history of the human body — and how a colorful cast of ancient characters made us who we are today.
Find Your Inner Fish
Take this quiz to see just how “fishy” you are. How has your inner fish (or reptile or primate) influenced your anatomy?
Explore Your Inner Animals
Ghosts of our ancestors are present in our bodies today. Click on a body part in this interactive feature and meet your inner animals.
"Your Inner Fish" repeats Wed., April 8 at 11 p.m. - Our arms, legs, necks and lungs were bequeathed to us by a fish that lumbered onto land some 375 million years ago. The genetic legacy of this creature can be seen today in our own DNA, including the genes used to build our hands and limbs.
"Your Inner Reptile" repeats Wed., April 15 at 11 p.m. - A key moment in our evolutionary saga occurred 200 million years ago, when the ferocious reptile-like animals that roamed the Earth were in the process of evolving into shrew-like mammals. But our reptilian ancestors left their mark on many parts of the human body, including our skin, teeth and ears.
"Your Inner Monkey" repeats Wed., April 22 at 11 p.m. - Our primate progenitors had bodies a lot like those of modern monkeys and spent tens of millions of years living in trees. From them we inherited our versatile hands, amazing vision and capable brains — but also some less beneficial traits, including our bad backs and terrible sense of smell.
