It was another December afternoon back in 2000 , spent like hundreds of others combing the rocky hills of the Dikika region , when Ethiopian scientist Zeray Alemseged heard one of his assistants nearby calling him . `` He said 'oh , doctor I see something there , ' '' recalls Alemseged , who 'd been excavating the hot and dry landscape for over a year , helped only by a small inexperienced crew of locals . `` And I went there and I see the cheek bone part ... sticking out of the rock . I turned it upside down and my jaw literally dropped . '' Instantly , Alemseged realized this was an extraordinary discovery that could make scientific history . `` Right away I could tell this is a child of a human ancestor , '' says the paleoanthropologist . `` You have this child in a block of sandstone , with the baby teeth still visible , very vertical forehead , small canine , '' he adds . `` But it 's so rare and so unbelievable that I just could n't accept that was the case , that what I saw was the skeleton . '' Read this : Civil war survivor creates bionic limbs . Yet Alemseged did not want to make news of his discovery public until he had a more complete picture of what he 'd unearthed . So he kept it quiet as he meticulously prepared and analyzed the fossil . `` The skeleton was encaved in a block of sandstone matrix , which is very densely compact , very inured sand , so that I had to go remove the sand grain by grain , '' says Alemseged . `` So I took my time , and people advised me to employ technicians , and technicians can do that job , but I said 'no , it 's going to take as long as it takes but I 'm not going to delegate this work of the exploration of this unique child to anyone else but me . ' '' Alemseged then spent years in the lab painstakingly picking away the sand grain by grain . By using a super microscope , he was able to see details in the teeth embedded in the skull that revealed to him the skeleton 's age and the sex . He now knew the fossil was that of a three-year-old girl who had died 3.3 million years ago . Finally , after more than six long years , Alemseged was ready to present to the world `` Selam , '' the fossil known as `` the world 's oldest child . '' `` When the time came to go to the press conference , '' remembers Alemseged , `` it was like a woman is pregnant and she is holding that baby for nine months and when the baby comes out , what happens is -- in spite of the pain , in spite of the long , tedious process of carrying the baby -- you see her smiling , you see her beautiful wonderful face trying to share the baby with her husband or the doctor . `` So I shared my baby with the audience but the different thing is that I was sharing a child that belonged not only to me but to humanity , to seven billion individuals . '' Read this : African midwife , Nobel Peace Prize ? That press conference in 2006 turned Alemseged , who was just 31 when he 'd discovered Selam , into a hero in the world of science . Over the next few years , his work took him all over the world , winning him international admiration for his achievements . Today Alemseged is the director of anthropology at the California Academy of Sciences , a multifaceted scientific institution and museum where he combines his scientific research with his passion for public education . `` When I got involved in this type of research I decided to not only read what has already been discovered but also to make my own discoveries and I can proudly say that I have achieved that with the discovery of Selam and many other fossils , '' he says . `` Those finds are finds that change textbooks , literally , so I am happy but I 'm not satisfied -- I will be satisfied only if I could instill the same type of psychology , the same type of excitement , the same type of passion to the next generations of Africans . '' Read this : Ethiopian town breeding Olympians . Alemseged , a father of two , enjoys the opportunity to share his findings with the world and possibly inspire a new generation of scientists . In recent years , he 's teamed up with other scientists from his continent to create the East African Association for Paleoanthropology , a group holding regular conferences to bring together top scientists and researchers from the region and beyond . And while his achievements have made him a success story that young Ethiopians can aspire to , Alemseged 's efforts to create a positive impact on young Africans are just a small step toward his ultimate goals . `` I think both my family and Ethiopia are proud of me , but I still think that I still have so much to offer , not just to Ethiopia , but to Africa and to humanity in general , '' he says . `` My work is beyond nations , beyond nationalities , beyond continents -- it unites everyone on the planet . So when I achieve that , I 'm sure Ethiopia and my family are or will be proud of me and I thank them for all of the opportunities they have provided me with also . ''
Ethiopian Zeray Alemseged discovered the fossil known as `` the world 's oldest child '' The skeletal remains belonged to a three-year-old girl who died 3.3 million years ago . Alemseged , who made the discovery in Ethiopia in 2000 , named the fossil Selam . Today Alemseged is the director of anthropology at the California Academy of Sciences .