NOVA and National Geographic present exclusive access to an astounding discovery of ancient fossil human ancestors. Deep in a South African cave, a special team of experts has brought to light an unprecedented wealth of fossils belonging to a crucial gap in the record of our origins that spans the transition between the ape-like australopithecines (such as the famous Lucy) and the earliest members of the human family.

Originally released by Public Broadcasting Service (U.S.), 2015. Streaming video file encoded with permission for digital streaming by Infobase on May 31, 2016.

Becoming Human --(2:27) -- "Cradle of Humankind" -- (3:21) -- Transition from Australopithecus to Homo Erectus -- (1:58) -- Fossil Hunting -- (3:31) -- Rising Star Cave System -- (4:02) -- Bone Discovery -- (1:57) -- Clavicle and Mandible -- (3:43) -- Fossils in Ancient Cave Systems -- (4:23) -- Australopithecus Sediba -- (3:28) -- Bridging the Fossil Record Gap -- (4:04) -- Concept Reconstruction -- (2:40) -- Fossil Evidence -- (4:00) -- Keys to Becoming Human -- (3:16) -- Debating the Dawn of Humanity -- (3:56) -- Evidence Related to Dart's Theory -- (4:02) -- Examining the Death Scene -- (2:27) -- Fossil Preservation -- (3:14) -- Contender for Early Homo -- (3:30) -- First Members of the Genus Homo -- (4:10) -- New Kind of Paleoanthropology -- (4:25) -- Excavations Begin -- (3:04) -- Marking Hominid Bones -- (3:31) -- Studying the Mandible -- (3:12) -- Accumulation of Fossils -- (4:11) -- Intentional Burial -- (3:36) -- Skull Removal -- (3:54) -- Fossil Brought to the Surface -- (3:23) -- Indisputably Homo -- (4:00) -- Dinaledi Chamber -- (2:53) -- Primitive Ancestors -- (3:11) -- Narrative of Human Evolution -- (3:34) -- Interbreeding Adaptations -- (4:55) -- Credits: Dawn of Humanity -- (1:13).