Joel Kontinen is a translator and novelist living in Finland. His background includes an MA in translation studies and a BA in Bible and theology. He writes about science and origins issues.
blog
homepage
Science textbooks usually present cavemen as very primitive people who were barely able to utter a few monosyllables. However, as additional data about stone age men is unearthed, the picture becomes considerably more complex. It seems that the more we know about them, the more modern traits they seem to acquire.
A recent study published in the Journal of Archaeological Science suggests that cave dwellers wore shoes. Erik Trinkaus and Hong Shang of the Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri studied the toe bones of a skeleton found in a cave near Beijing. They compared these with the toe bones of modern Americans, Inuits and Native Americans from the time before the advent of the European conquerors. Shoes alter the wearer’s toes. People who regularly walk barefoot tend to have strong and large toes while those wearing shoes do not. Trinkaus and Shang concluded that the Chinese cave dwellers regularly wore shoes.
The obvious conclusion is that cavemen were less primitive than we had thought. This same trend can also be seen in how Neanderthal man is presented. The first specimen was discovered in 1856 in the Neander Valley in Germany and named after the place where it was found (Tal is valley in German). They were initially described as virtually subhuman missing links. With the passing of time, however, scientist have had to discard their previous notions about them. It is now known that the Neanderthals made musical instruments and efficient weapons, buried their dead and even used toothpicks.
It thus seems that the neat progress from primitive to modern man does not exist. The cave dwellers were not primitive people.
- Related Articles
- Related Q&A
Why outsource your MSDS authoring?
By: Editor123 | 02/07/2009Many chemical manufacturers and distributors debate whether or not to author their SDSs and MSDSs in house, or instead outsource the process to an MSDS authoring company. There are several advantages to outsourcing your MSDS authoring.
What Is The Best Beginner Telescope?
By: Kozsun Huseyin | 01/07/2009Are you considering getting into backyard astronomy? Even though there is much good with Hubble Space Telescope images, there is nothing like having your own telescope to view the heavens.
Titanium Recycling- Basic Information
By: deepa singh | 30/06/2009Basic Information(Ti): Titanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ti and atomic number 22. Sometimes called the “space age metal”, it has a low density and is a strong, lustrous, corrosion-resistant (including to sea water, aqua regia and chlorine) transition metal with a silver color.
Aliens, UFOs, Alien Abductions, Close Encounters - Chance or No-chance?
By: Andy Chains | 30/06/2009The Drake Equation makes various assumptions to allow an estimate to be made of the number of planets in the universe that might have life. One of the key assumptions is that life is very likely to arise on any earth-like planet. However, this assumption can be seriously questioned - and its challenger is Darwin's Theory of Evolution...
Attending trade shows to find an adhesive solution
By: Rebecca Wilmot | 30/06/2009Trade shows of every size represent opportunities to stay informed about developments in many areas of business and to connect with new supply sources. Equally valuable is the chance to brainstorm with professionals that are willing to think outside the box in order to grow their business. Adhesive manufacturers can be found at shows targeted to Manufacturing and Assembly, but they can also be found at Fastener shows displaying non-mechanical alternatives to joining components.
Magnetically induced transparency of circularly polarized laser beam in plasmas
By: Sonu Sen | 28/06/2009For the intensities greater than 1018 W/cm2, circularly polarized radiation can propagate in electron plasma whose density is greater than the critical density. A strong flow of relativistic electrons, axially co-moving with the pulse arises. At this point the, the magnetic field of the electromagnetic wave becomes important. In the present paper, three regimes of propagation of circularly polarized laser beam in magnetized plasma are identified.
Learn The Process Of Evolution
By: nlwest21 | 28/06/2009Evolution is a theory on how the world began. It is based totally on science - but many people still remain skeptics of it.
25 Facts About Animals
By: Javan McCabe | 25/06/20091. A group of skunks are known as an odor 2. The smallest carnivore in Africa is the dwarf mongoose, a relative of the meerkat 3. Male seahorses produce offspring 4. The word 'panda' comes from the Nepalese word 'nigalya ponya' meaning bamboo eater 5. A crocodile's young is known as a crocklet
Oldest Hebrew Text Found
By: Joel Kontinen | 13/11/2008 | ScienceArchaeologists have found the earliest known Hebrew text. Said to be the most important archaeological find in Israel since the Dead Sea Scrolls, the new discovery is 3000 years old and supports the biblical account of King David.
Don't Hurt the Feelings of Your Hibiscus!
By: Joel Kontinen | 05/10/2008 | ScienceA study on plant dignity won the 2008 Ig Noble peace prize. The study claimed that plants might posess inherent dignity
Elephants are Good at Mathematics
By: Joel Kontinen | 23/09/2008 | ScienceElephants are exceptionally clever at mathematics, especially if they benefit from it. They are more actually adept at counting apples than apes are.
Dino-era Bird Found in China
By: Joel Kontinen | 11/05/2008 | ScienceThe fossil of a modern-looking bird that lived during the dinosaur era has been found in China. This discovery brings an interesting perspective into a lively debate that has been brewing in the scientific community for several years.
Moses on Drugs: a Brave New Theory or Extremely Bad Science?
By: Joel Kontinen | 08/03/2008 | Sciencet has become easy to predict when Easter is coming even without looking at a calendar. Each year we get to hear about some new astounding discovery and the authors of the sensational find get their moment of fame and occasionally also some extra money. This Easter an Israeli scholar presents a bizarre hypothesis on Moses.
Harvard Biologist Admits: We Know Nothing About Brain Evolution
By: Joel Kontinen | 24/02/2008 | ScienceScience journals have featured countless stories about the evolution of the human brain. Scientists are puzzled since humans have much bigger brains than any other species. Their suggested explanations have often been mutually exclusive. Now a Harvard biologist says all such explanations have been bogus.
Cavemen Were Smarter Than We Thought
By: Joel Kontinen | 11/02/2008 | ScienceScience textbooks usually present cavemen as very primitive people who were barely able to utter a few monosyllables. However, as additional data about stone age men is unearthed, the picture becomes considerably more complex.