This is wonderful! One thing that struck me: in the excavations in cave sites in southern Africa, and along the southern cape of South Africa, archaeologists have often found huge accumulations of broken ostrich egg shells. Many of these have been engraved before the shell was broken. Some of these date back long before the last ice age, and even long before modern humans spread to much of the world. Meanwhile, among the Kua hunter-gatherers of Botswana, in the late 1970s, I found similar designs etched on the Ostrich eggs used for storing water. I was given a number of these decorated eggs as I was leaving the Kalahari, and was told that many of the designed represented constellations or represented animals mentioned in important origin stories. So the development of symbolic representations - cave walls, cliff edges, and objects like these ostrich eggs, must have developed very early in our evolution. The ideas and research discussed in this podcast, therefore, can lead to some of the most exciting insights into our cognitive evolution.
I had an evolution class around 81. Still have the book. All was Leakey. Missing link. Lucy. So much has been learned since then. Happy for all of you to be on the cutting edge. ❤
these videos are brillliant ! Thanks for sharing your ideas and the news from what the bones are telling us. yes those facts about the bones. I really a have a clearer realization of where my people came from. Ive been listening since 1587.
Genevieve is so enthusiastic! It’s inspiring! I heard of her first from some alternative history video that said about the symbols in caves, then I watched her ted talk and got and read her book in 2021. I need to get George’s book to read this year.
I have been interested in and a follower of Paleo-Anthro research since ca 1959 or so when I first read about Mary and Louis S.B. Leakey in National Geographic. I have since enjoyed a Kenyan 'safari' with the Leaky Foundation, where we met Dr. Rick Potts of the Smithsonian, Richard and Philip Leakey, (who BTW married a childhood friend of mine). Keep up the good work. I am fascinated about Genvieve's study in early symbology, as I teach third graders about using native symbols to make up a story during field trips to The Heritage Ranch, in Encinitas, CA I try to help them understand the evolution of symbols and "Stone-age" technology. I look forward to the collaborative efforts that you all may share via the magic of the internet to further our knowledge!
in ichthyology the field has been broken down into "lumpers" and "splitters" and it goes back and forth as new info gets digested. the story of human/hominid brain size and development seems to split on "long term small changes" and "pulses": lumpers and splitters....this back and forth won't change anytime soon because of new information coming in...viva la difference :) viva naledi :)
Thanks so much for yet another great podcast! Question about brain size: I may have missed this point if it was brought up, but is there a hypothesis on the idea that human brain size may have gradually increased due to survival advantages of greater intelligence and the increased likelihood of living long enough to pass on your genes? (I know that larger brains don't necessarily equal greater intelligence, but it certainly appears to add to the probability, considering, for example, that Homo sapiens could be considered more mentally sophisticated than say, Homo habilis.) Thanks again for a fascinating episode! Congrats on wrapping up Season 3!
EH Genevieve is a fellow Canadian?! While your out in the field you should do a cheesy news segment bit "reporting live from location!" and throw them in to episodes randomly!
The cave art is an incredibly important puzzle piece. The hybrids who diverged and became what we call "Sapiens" or Neurotypical populations made very figurative, not-realistic cave art and you see a lot of that in the rock art in the Sahara. The other hybrid lineage that became the Autistic populations made realistic representations in their cave art. And, the one thing is I have never met one single archeologist who has taken into account the late Dr. Darold Treffert's brain scan research on Autistic savant artists. Their art is super realistic representations BECAUSE of left brain differences, that track Neanderthals, and these days trait predictors can also pick up genomic Autism risk. You can actually track the migrations of these two different diverging hybrid lineages by the genomic Autism risk, the type of cave and rock art, and whether or not there was standardization. To date, archeologists have not married their cave and rock art findings with Trefffert's extensive brain scan artist findings to exactly who was making which kind of art. It's fascinating. I'm a huge cave and rock art fan.
Regarding my other comment, just to make the point clear, the importance of the Treffert objective brain scan artist research is that a person has to have that certain left brain difference in order to make that realistic looking art, and that those people who do not have that certain left brain difference cannot make that kind of realistic art. So, it can tell you who the people were who made the different types of art.
We must remember Sicily was its own place. Not part of Italy until late 1800’s. Mostly Greek. Richard the Lion hearted was there. Maybe his wife was from Palermo. He was on his way to crusade in Levant ❤❤❤❤❤
I’ve got a possible question for a future video. I’ve read about the caves of Greenland and the Speleothems (name for stalactites and stalagmites) showing information about the environment. Is there any cave paintings and symbols in the caves there?
We must remember Sicily was its own place. Not part of Italy until late 1800’s. Mostly Greek. Richard the Lion hearted was there. Maybe his wife was from Palermo. He was on his way to crusade in Levant
Another big hole in the so called "pre art humans" is that it's possible they were using wood to make art on before rocks and caves. They certainly have wood spears about 300,000 years old, and even wooden structures in Africa half a million years old. If they were using wood as their canvas instead of rocks and caves, it would be hard to believe any of it would have been preserved.
It’s not art but the ancient architecture and writing systems seem to have been complex out of no where. Like pyramids around the world, Machu Picchu Peru, Chinese writing system, hieroglyphics, etc. I think there was a lot more world travel in the past and people groups interacting. So much has been lost to the sands of time.
2.5M wow. That’s a heck of a long time. We are the blink of an eye. And we are starting to not ear meat. So will being dissuaded from met eating for climate cause us to regress ? Hmmm
This is wonderful! One thing that struck me: in the excavations in cave sites in southern Africa, and along the southern cape of South Africa, archaeologists have often found huge accumulations of broken ostrich egg shells. Many of these have been engraved before the shell was broken. Some of these date back long before the last ice age, and even long before modern humans spread to much of the world. Meanwhile, among the Kua hunter-gatherers of Botswana, in the late 1970s, I found similar designs etched on the Ostrich eggs used for storing water. I was given a number of these decorated eggs as I was leaving the Kalahari, and was told that many of the designed represented constellations or represented animals mentioned in important origin stories. So the development of symbolic representations - cave walls, cliff edges, and objects like these ostrich eggs, must have developed very early in our evolution.
The ideas and research discussed in this podcast, therefore, can lead to some of the most exciting insights into our cognitive evolution.
Soon as I'm off work I'm getting myself a drink and relaxing with this video. Thanks for all of your hard work, WoPA.
Thanks!
I had an evolution class around 81. Still have the book. All was Leakey. Missing link. Lucy. So much has been learned since then. Happy for all of you to be on the cutting edge. ❤
I’m so glad I found your channel!! 🎉❤🤗 Let’s keep on exploring and sharing our discoveries!
Welcome! I'm glad you're here!
these videos are brillliant ! Thanks for sharing your ideas and the news from what the bones are telling us. yes those facts about the bones. I really a have a clearer realization of where my people came from. Ive been listening since 1587.
Glad you're enjoying the content!
Only 30 episodes ? seen half, looking forward to the rest ! NEED MORE !!!
Genevieve is so enthusiastic! It’s inspiring! I heard of her first from some alternative history video that said about the symbols in caves, then I watched her ted talk and got and read her book in 2021.
I need to get George’s book to read this year.
Sicily is a land lost in time. See it before it modernizes. Gorgeous !
I have a FB friend in Sardinia. He posts all kinds of pics of rock homes etc that are quite ancient. Fascinating there too.
Keep going with this very interesting talks. Thanks so much ❤
Glad you like them!
Thank you for sharing, Subscribed and thumbs up. Love this subject
My ex has a small amount of North Africa dna. He is 100% Sicilian ancestry from Pozzallo on both sides. By way of Brooklyn. Fascinating place.
🎉naledi !
Here off Cape Cod Mass much of our indigenous archaeology is off shore . 7000 ago inhabitants were out there. Not on cape now !
I have been interested in and a follower of Paleo-Anthro research since ca 1959 or so when I first read about Mary and Louis S.B. Leakey in National Geographic. I have since enjoyed a Kenyan 'safari' with the Leaky Foundation, where we met Dr. Rick Potts of the Smithsonian, Richard and Philip Leakey, (who BTW married a childhood friend of mine). Keep up the good work. I am fascinated about Genvieve's study in early symbology, as I teach third graders about using native symbols to make up a story during field trips to The Heritage Ranch, in Encinitas, CA I try to help them understand the evolution of symbols and "Stone-age" technology.
I look forward to the collaborative efforts that you all may share via the magic of the internet to further our knowledge!
It sounds like you have quite a history with Paleo-Anthro research!
How marvelous
Hi all. Thanks for the fun info.
in ichthyology the field has been broken down into "lumpers" and "splitters" and it goes back and forth as new info gets digested. the story of human/hominid brain size and development seems to split on "long term small changes" and "pulses": lumpers and splitters....this back and forth won't change anytime soon because of new information coming in...viva la difference :) viva naledi :)
Nice
Thanks so much for yet another great podcast! Question about brain size: I may have missed this point if it was brought up, but is there a hypothesis on the idea that human brain size may have gradually increased due to survival advantages of greater intelligence and the increased likelihood of living long enough to pass on your genes? (I know that larger brains don't necessarily equal greater intelligence, but it certainly appears to add to the probability, considering, for example, that Homo sapiens could be considered more mentally sophisticated than say, Homo habilis.) Thanks again for a fascinating episode! Congrats on wrapping up Season 3!
Some videos out in the field would be very interesting to see.
EH Genevieve is a fellow Canadian?! While your out in the field you should do a cheesy news segment bit "reporting live from location!" and throw them in to episodes randomly!
We have in the past, and want to include that as a part of S4!
Just found your channel . Yay
Glad you're here!
Glad you're here!
The cave art is an incredibly important puzzle piece. The hybrids who diverged and became what we call "Sapiens" or Neurotypical populations made very figurative, not-realistic cave art and you see a lot of that in the rock art in the Sahara. The other hybrid lineage that became the Autistic populations made realistic representations in their cave art. And, the one thing is I have never met one single archeologist who has taken into account the late Dr. Darold Treffert's brain scan research on Autistic savant artists. Their art is super realistic representations BECAUSE of left brain differences, that track Neanderthals, and these days trait predictors can also pick up genomic Autism risk. You can actually track the migrations of these two different diverging hybrid lineages by the genomic Autism risk, the type of cave and rock art, and whether or not there was standardization. To date, archeologists have not married their cave and rock art findings with Trefffert's extensive brain scan artist findings to exactly who was making which kind of art. It's fascinating. I'm a huge cave and rock art fan.
Just like doggerland. Much lower. Plus don’t forget Malta !
Study is a luxury we have. We have free time. Just like paleo artists. 😂❤
Petite Artiste ! 👨🏻🎨
Regarding my other comment, just to make the point clear, the importance of the Treffert objective brain scan artist research is that a person has to have that certain left brain difference in order to make that realistic looking art, and that those people who do not have that certain left brain difference cannot make that kind of realistic art. So, it can tell you who the people were who made the different types of art.
We must remember Sicily was its own place. Not part of Italy until late 1800’s. Mostly Greek. Richard the Lion hearted was there. Maybe his wife was from Palermo. He was on his way to crusade in Levant ❤❤❤❤❤
I’m with Hawking. He said keep our heads down.
I’ve got a possible question for a future video. I’ve read about the caves of Greenland and the Speleothems (name for stalactites and stalagmites) showing information about the environment. Is there any cave paintings and symbols in the caves there?
No there is not.
Tribble alert 🎉
?
@ someone mentioned Star Trek.
We must remember Sicily was its own place. Not part of Italy until late 1800’s. Mostly Greek. Richard the Lion hearted was there. Maybe his wife was from Palermo. He was on his way to crusade in Levant
Another big hole in the so called "pre art humans" is that it's possible they were using wood to make art on before rocks and caves. They certainly have wood spears about 300,000 years old, and even wooden structures in Africa half a million years old. If they were using wood as their canvas instead of rocks and caves, it would be hard to believe any of it would have been preserved.
I believe there are caves near either Ispica or Pozzallo. I forget. Maybe both. 😂😂
Any ideas of why that clan did not survive ? Disease ? EQ ? Attacked?
🎉❤🎉❤🎉❤🎂🎂🎂🎂
It’s not art but the ancient architecture and writing systems seem to have been complex out of no where. Like pyramids around the world, Machu Picchu Peru, Chinese writing system, hieroglyphics, etc.
I think there was a lot more world travel in the past and people groups interacting.
So much has been lost to the sands of time.
Gen - have you been in the real Lascaux ? How was it if so ?
Both Gen and George have been to many amazing prehistoric cave sites worldwide, I hope to follow!
@ I’ll be happy to go back to France sometime and just see the museum. The book is amazing.
Gosh I was in an original 2001 audience. Before y’all born.
2.5M wow. That’s a heck of a long time. We are the blink of an eye. And we are starting to not ear meat. So will being dissuaded from met eating for climate cause us to regress ? Hmmm
No. If anything they came to see our art. Art came from leisure.