Out of Asia?

Most scientists have long believed Homo erectus was our direct ancestor and arose in Africa. There's some doubt now, at least about the location. H. erectus fossils from a dig in western Asia appear to put the species there about 1.8M years ago - about the time it was also present in Africa. It often happens in science that finding a new puzzle piece means, not that you have solved the puzzle, but that you have a bigger puzzle.