Neanderthals Were the First To Use Specialized Bone Tools 33
An anonymous reader writes "Humans have progressed and evolved creating complex tools throughout the years. Based on artifacts and fossils in combination with research, scientists have known that people have used tools made from all kinds of materials. Now in a new study, two research teams discovered that the first specialized set of bone tools were created by Neanderthals in Europe."
toolbox (Score:2)
Mmeptk decided his brother was useful after all...
First in Europe, not First Worldwide (Score:5, Informative)
McPherron cautioned that the researchers are not suggesting that Neanderthals were the first to make bone tools.
"There are sophisticated bone tools that are even older in Africa, for instance," McPherron said. "Neanderthals were, however, the first in Europe to make specialized bone tools."
http://www.livescience.com/38821-neanderthal-bone-tool-discovered.html
Bone tools (Score:1, Funny)
Given the level of maturity on Slashdot, I'm afraid at the impending onslaught of bad puns.
You could say I'm petrified at the impending Stone Age jokes.
Re: (Score:1)
I'm sure those jokes will be some real boners.
Stop being such a tool.
Re: (Score:3)
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It sounds like prehistorical irony, except that there was no prehistorical iron back then.
Oh, there was, it just gets ignored because it wasn't very refined...
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If indeed calling someone a Neanderthal becomes a compliment, call that same person a politician instead. Language does evolve.
News summary *FAIL* (Score:2)
the first specialized set of bone tools were created by Neanderthals in Europe.
Shame on you, non-geeks, for warping a plainly written article into allegedly saying something it did not in fact say.
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You're a Neanderthal! (Score:5, Funny)
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But if you call them a "Homo Erectus" they really slap you, even if they don't know what it is.
After mastering basic tools... (Score:1)
The Winners Carve the History Books (Score:4, Interesting)
I saw a PBS documentary on this, and the beads and art were also more advanced among Neanderthals of the period than Homo Sapiens Sapiens digs. The initial Neanderthal skeleton, the documentary said, was stooped because of arthritis, but led to a caricature of stoop shouldered morons. It looked more like a Romans-taking-over-Greece than Neanderthals being outcompeted.
The trolls here should take a lesson, however, that almost everything in archeological history pertaining to inventions (like wheels and metals) stems from TRADE, and almost nothing stems from gene pools. There are plenty of geographies with Neanderthal DNA which don't have metals or wheels, the commonality of retarded invention adaptation is a major geographic barrier to exchanging with other humans (ocean, desert, mountain range), and ability to exchange and cross-reference and interact - not the DNA. The ability to exchange and trade (guns, germs, metals) predicted success in Europe, and melting pot economies tend to do pretty well economically. If trolls want to isolate themselves from interacting with "inferior" (different) people, be our guests by all means. /. has evolved, with mod points, to distance itself from Arian Nazi propaganda.
IP battles go back to our roots (Score:1)
I have some Neanderthal DNA and I want reparations from the Homo Sapiens who stole my birthright. A billion would be fine, even though it represents just a pittance compared to the contributions of my people, which was stolen from us.
The Netherlanders are smart (Score:1)
I didn't know that.
Here is a whole list of other things they where first at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Dutch_inventions_and_discoveries [wikipedia.org]