This #naledifire business seems pretty extraordinary. Any hot takes from people who know what they’re talking about?
#HomoNaledi #humanevolution #archaeology #paleoantropology
@inti I'm a believer in extraordinary claims require extraordinary proofs. The brain cavity is small.
@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 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.
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.
I'm still suspicious. It's just too wonderful. I'll be pleasantly pleased if this turns out to be true. @inti @ArchaeoIain
