11–20 of 112 posts
How amazing would it be to discover that an ancient civilization existed with a technology level on par with the iron age or so? I guess if we were finding dinosaurs though the odds we wouldn't have found anything from that time are maybe slim.
How do they know the wood was used 476,000 years ago, as opposed to a human 6000 years ago finding and using some 470,000 year old wood? This gives a hint: > They used new luminescence dating techniques, which reveal the last time minerals in the sand surrounding the finds were exposed to sunlight, to determine their age. ... but it seems like there might be other explanations for that sand being there?
Earlier quoted context omitted.
They do not have extraordinary evidence, but they believe that the claim is not extra-ordinary.
It's strange, for a jump from historical to an evolutionary timescale. I find this really hard to believe though naturally archeologists must be knowing what they're doing.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's strange, for a jump from historical to an evolutionary timescale. I find this really hard to believe though naturally archeologists must be knowing what they're doing.
Well we know that homo species have been using stone for millions of years because stone doesn't degrade easily. It's not that wild of a jump in logic to think they've been using wood for just as long.
(And the wood found here was worked, not just a handy pokey-stick)
How amazing would it be to discover that an ancient civilization existed with a technology level on par with the iron age or so? I guess if we were finding dinosaurs though the odds we wouldn't have found anything from that time are maybe slim.
Timelines of all human achievements keep getting pushed back.
How do they know the wood was used 476,000 years ago, as opposed to a human 6000 years ago finding and using some 470,000 year old wood? This gives a hint: > They used new luminescence dating techniques, which reveal the last time minerals in the sand surrounding the finds were exposed to sunlight, to determine their age. ... but it seems like there might be other explanations for that sand being there?
Seems absurdly unlikely—is there a reason to suspect this is the case? Even if you were to find half-a-million-year-old wood why would you use it to build a structure?
Considering beavers make wooden structures for their own benefit and survival, it's not really surprising that ancestors of Homo Sapiens did as well.
It's more like they have a compulsion to stack wood where they hear running water. The implication here is intention and a cognizance of purpose, which is not unheard of in the animal kingdom but is fairly rare.
Timelines of all human achievements keep getting pushed back.