Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind
Part One: The Cognitive Revolution
Part One: The Cognitive Revolution
Please use this thread for discussing the above mentioned section of Sapiens.
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As I understand that dramatic jump in our evolutionary history. The human species had been around for over 2 million years without much change. Several species of humans came and went over the period. Homo sapiens evolved around 150,000 years ago in East Africa with little change until somewhere around 70,000 years ago. We're told that something major changed in the brains of sapiens at that time which resulted in a period of expansion and extermination of every other human species. Homo sapiens were now at the top of the food chain.Dexter wrote:And the puzzle of why the big brains, when it didn't have obvious evolutionary advantage until much later -- although I suppose in hindsight you could say that it proved effective. I remember reading an explanation -- I assume he talks more about this later, don't remember if it was him or someone else -- about how the big brains were mostly needed for navigating the social environment. I'm a little unclear on when the social environment became significantly more complex than for other animals.
I'm really looking forward to reading about the changing picture of early man. Fascinating stuff.LevV wrote: Sapiens is only the latest variety of our species. The Neanderthals are familiar to most of us. But, I was surprised to learn about a number of other human species that evolved. Homo erectus, 'Upright Man' survived for close to 2 million years, making them, by far, the most durable human species ever. . . .
This is great, I had no idea we have a Dwarf cousin species. Maybe they'll find the remains of elves in the Amazon someday.LevV wrote:On the small island of Flores, another Indonesian island, archaic humans underwent a process of dwarfing. Humans likely reached Flores when the sea level was low, and the island was easily accessible from the mainland. When the seas rose again, many were trapped on the island. The theory is that big people who need a lot of food died first. Smaller people survived much better. Over the generations, the people of Flores became dwarves. This unique species, known by scientists as Homo floresiensis, reached a maximum height of only 3.5 feet and weighed no more than fifty-five pounds.
This event is an example of the sort of evidence with which Stephen Jay Gould challenged the standard model of evolution. In his popular writings is an account of rapid adaptive change driven by selection but not by mutation. In Gould's typical account, mutation is a background process more useful for genetic clocks than for speciation. If you think about it in this case it makes some sense.Interbane wrote:This is great, I had no idea we have a Dwarf cousin species. Maybe they'll find the remains of elves in the Amazon someday.LevV wrote:On the small island of Flores, another Indonesian island, archaic humans underwent a process of dwarfing. Humans likely reached Flores when the sea level was low, and the island was easily accessible from the mainland. When the seas rose again, many were trapped on the island. The theory is that big people who need a lot of food died first. Smaller people survived much better. Over the generations, the people of Flores became dwarves. This unique species, known by scientists as Homo floresiensis, reached a maximum height of only 3.5 feet and weighed no more than fifty-five pounds.
I am hoping we get into this subject more in Sapiens. Hariri ((oops, Harari)) has given some indication already of the series of interlocking changes in biology that accompanied one another and, presumably, the emergence of cultural practices which amplified the changes and made them adaptive.Dexter wrote:And the puzzle of why the big brains, when it didn't have obvious evolutionary advantage until much later -- although I suppose in hindsight you could say that it proved effective. I remember reading an explanation -- I assume he talks more about this later, don't remember if it was him or someone else -- about how the big brains were mostly needed for navigating the social environment. I'm a little unclear on when the social environment became significantly more complex than for other animals.