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Tragic
Joined:
13-12-2005
Messages: 11
from Thetford, Norfolk
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|  New Message Posted!2006-01-07 18:43
I haven't got a book on hand, but mitochondrial DNA studies used as part of a study of human distribution (if I remember correctly) suggest that modern humans dispersed out of Africa some 60,000 or 70,000 years ago or more. The evidence suggests that these humans were already using art - a suggestion that they were wired like us, prior to their distribution over 60,000 years ago. Wherever they spread - back into Africa, to Southern Europe, to Australia, examples of their art can be found.
If people who distributed all around the World between 8,000 years ago and 70,000 years ago are all pretty much equally smart - then how on Earth could Europeans some 5,000 years ago be dumb?
Personally, I have always considered late prehistoric peoples to have pretty much the same inate abilities as 21st century people.
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sem
Joined:
12-11-2003
Messages: 1722
from Bridgend,S.Wales
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| New Message Posted!2006-01-05 22:49
Sorry folks but I have to add this.
Has anyone read "Inside the Neolithic Mind" by D Lewis-Williams & D Pearce?
They argue that Neolithic man had the same brain as us and that this brain was "hard-wired" with the same thoughts.
READ IT
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Anonymous
User not Registered | New Message Posted!2005-12-21 13:37
The "quote" sounds like a piece of misinformation from a circa 1972 primary school book to me.
We now have a greater acumulated scientific understanding of our surroundings that we had four or five thousand years ago and we have our technologies as part and parcel of that but the "advancements" that we have made are often counterbalanced by abilities that most of us have lost, the abilities to survive without our technologies. Expatpete, you were bang on there, with your first comment on the subject and your comment on surviving Dartmoor, imagine that you also might have to make your own axe in the first place too though. I dunno, we'll be assuming that Neanderthal man could no more more than grunt and scratch his arse next.
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expatpete
Joined:
27-08-2005
Messages: 12
from Phuket -Thailand
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|  New Message Posted!2005-12-10 14:15
What a silly statement!!
If any "modern" person was dumped in the middle of - lets say Dartmoor- with a stone or bronze axe and not a lot else- how long would they survive?
On the other hand if a Neolithic / Bronze Age man was transported into todays world (Beam me up Scottie!) and had to deal with office work, mortgages, computers etc etc in order to live-how long would they survive?
A couple of weeks - maximum!!
Intelligence is what the early folk used to become us for goodness sake!!!
Somewhere whoever made that statement missed the difference between "intelligence" and "knowledge"
Just a thought 
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Wiggy
Joined:
29-08-2005
Messages: 30
from Bristol
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| New Message Posted!2005-12-01 11:27
I don't normally go in for name calling, so can I take back the "idiot" jibe? I think this Guy or Gal is probably writing in what is a foriegn language to them.
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Wiggy
Joined:
29-08-2005
Messages: 30
from Bristol
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| New Message Posted!2005-12-01 11:12
Quote:
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On 2005-11-30 21:41, Thorgrim wrote:
Ah I see! Thanks Sem. I don't usually read stuff from Anonymous contributors so that is why I didn't see this nonsense:
"Most of the theories I have heard all forget about the brutality and basic understanding the humans had during these times. As we are more intelligence that the humans then I deludes us to think its something less inhuman."
Total crap with no evidence - just bigotted opinion and not worth a reply. How can anyone believe that Stonehenge was built by people less intelligent than us when we still can't figure out how it was done?
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I agree. The idiot might as well have said they had a pet dinosaur called Dino to put the stones up for them. 
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Thorgrim
Joined:
25-06-2003
Messages: 794
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| New Message Posted!2005-11-30 21:41
Ah I see! Thanks Sem. I don't usually read stuff from Anonymous contributors so that is why I didn't see this nonsense:
"Most of the theories I have heard all forget about the brutality and basic understanding the humans had during these times. As we are more intelligence that the humans then I deludes us to think its something less inhuman."
Total crap with no evidence - just bigotted opinion and not worth a reply. How can anyone believe that Stonehenge was built by people less intelligent than us when we still can't figure out how it was done?
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sem
Joined:
12-11-2003
Messages: 1722
from Bridgend,S.Wales
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| New Message Posted!2005-11-30 20:27
The quote is in the last reply to the "Stonehenge Live" debate (28.11.05. 22:17). No evidence was given.
To me it seems a good subject to debate. MickM has a good point.
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Thorgrim
Joined:
25-06-2003
Messages: 794
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| New Message Posted!2005-11-29 19:08
I agree entirely with Mick. Who gave the quote and what evidence did they put forward?
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MickM
Joined:
02-01-2005
Messages: 192
from London
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| New Message Posted!2005-11-29 11:57
It is the quote that lacks intelligence. Who said it? I would agree in part with your summation, but would go further & specify technological knowledge as being the main advantage of modern people. The ability to read & write makes communication of that knowledge easier & quicker, but the lack of writing did not prevent technical advances in prehistory & one should not underestimate the effectiveness of an oral tradition in communicating knowledge. It is in the application of the available knowledge that the true comparative test of intelligence lies & there is no evidence to suggest that prehistoric people were any less adept at exploiting their knowledge base than we are today.
[ This message was edited by: MickM on 2005-11-29 11:59 ]
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