This #naledifire business seems pretty extraordinary. Any hot takes from people who know what they’re talking about?
#HomoNaledi #humanevolution #archaeology #paleoantropology
@agterrane @inti I think we have to get this the right way round. We cannot prejudge what a small brain could do in a species so different. But if they could show that it really made fire and overcooked their meat, then we have some indication. I'm going to wait for the paper publication and as you say, require extraordinary proofs. It remains astonishing that there are only remains of this creature from one strange place.
@ArchaeoIain @agterrane Agreed that we don't want to jump conclusions based on cranial capacity.
@inti @ArchaeoIain I happen to know an expert, but will not be able to talk to him until tomorrow.
Haven't talked to him yet, but they *haven't dated the soot yet*. That's a big hole in the claim. Why didn't he wait until dating and say so? @inti @ArchaeoIain
@ArchaeoIain @agterrane I have to say I am unconvinced by Berger's argument for why the hearths could not have been made by Homo sapiens. It could have been a single visit, which is not hard to imagine over the course of tens of thousands of years. The fact that it took them literally FOREVER to identify the hearths and sooting does not suggest to me that their team had any skill at archaeological observation. It seems likely that they overlooked or accidentally destroyed all kinds of evidence.
@ArchaeoIain @agterrane In other words, it's easy to imagine that the fire dates to an entirely different visit or episode of use than the skeletal elements.
@inti @agterrane I doubt that they lacked skill. I think the team was made up of very skilled people. Mind you, palaeoanthropologists are not always the most observant about archaeological evidence, though that is not as common as it once was. In this case, I would be very surprised if they missed anything, it would more likely be that the evidence is difficult to find. That in itself is an interesting point. As you say, it all depends what the evidence and where.
@ArchaeoIain @agterrane The striking thing to me in Berger's narrative is how they never saw the sooting, burning, ash, or charcoal until he lost weight, entered the caves, and saw it himself. The timeline was pretty vague, but that must have been years, right? I may be missing something, but walking (crawling?) right past evidence of fire for multiple field seasons is hard to explain. Was explained anywhere in the talk?
BTW, John Hawkes has an infmrative blog post on the evidence for fire in Rising Star, and I think it started to answer some of my questions. Not all, though. It's worth a read.
Thanks, I'll read. My source's expertise is not in this area. He's a bone guy. @inti @ArchaeoIain
@inti @agterrane John Hawks is worth reading on most subjects.
I'm still suspicious. It's just too wonderful. I'll be pleasantly pleased if this turns out to be true. @inti @ArchaeoIain
@agterrane “the size of an orange”