Final answer:
Eugène Dubois used fossil evidence to investigate the hypothesis of human evolution in Asia, discovering Java Man. His work falls under paleoanthropology and builds upon the foundations of evolutionary biology and classification systems such as those developed by Linnaeus.
Step-by-step explanation:
Eugène Dubois conducted research in the nineteenth century to test the hypothesis of early human ancestors in Asia. He notably used fossil evidence to support his findings. This approach falls within the field of paleoanthropology, which studies the origins and predecessors of the present human species based on fossils and other remains. Dubois's search led to the discovery of Java Man, classified as Homo erectus, which was an early human ancestor. His work, along with others like Darwin, contributed to a larger framework of evolutionary biology, which includes comparative anatomy and later, genetics, to better understand the human lineage and its place within the tree of life.
Contributions such as Carolus Linnaeus's classification system have enabled scientists to organize and categorize life forms, while research on genetic makeup has provided insights into the relationships between humans and other hominins. Understanding the evolution of hominins also involves the study of archaeological remains, although for Dubois's specific work, fossil evidence was the cornerstone of his contributions to the understanding of early human ancestors.