Scientists are to present new evidence that the tiny human species dubbed "The Hobbit" may not be what it seems.
The researchers say their findings strongly support an idea that the 1m- (3ft-) tall female skeleton from Indonesia is a diseased modern human.
Their claims have been aired in a BBC Horizon programme screened on Thursday.
Upshot: Professor Bob Martin, one of the team that is set to publish new evidence challenging the discovery team's original interpretation, says the Hobbit's brain is "worryingly" small and contradicts a fundamental law of biology.
"What this law says in simple terms is that if you halve body size, brain size is only reduced by 15%," he told the BBC's Horizon programme.
"So if you halve body size you don't halve brain size, the brain is reduced far less than that."
The main problem with the disease hypothesis is (as mentioned in the article) the finding of other similar individuals. OTOH, we don't think this story is done yet.