3 ms·

I read somewhere that we outcompeted Neanderthals in part because we (and "we" now includes a bit of Neanderthal DNA) had global trade even back then. One huma

I read somewhere that we outcompeted Neanderthals in part because we (and "we" now includes a bit of Neanderthal DNA) had global trade even back then. One human tribe lives near good rocks and trade their spearheads with their neighbours. Another tribe, far away, can make good straight sticks. Despite near-zero communication, those two tribes and all the tribes physically in between them can trade and everybody gets a better spear. Apparently we know this happened because the wood and the rocks from ancient human villages are all from far away. But the Neanderthals only used local materials. There were also far fewer of them, which could also explain the lack of trade. I looked for sources and found this: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0167268105000284 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S01672...

jaredhallen 3y ago
That's an interesting take that I haven't heard before. Another theory that I have heard has maybe a little more to do with why modern humans succeeded in general (rather than specifically vs Neanderthal) is that modern humans had excellent endurance. This allowed them to take big game by essentially running it to death over a period of days. I do wonder if that was a capability that Neanderthals lacked, or possessed to a lesser degree.
- FredPret 3y ago
  You are right that we have fantastic endurance. Apparently Neanderthals could sweat though: https://www.sciencefriday.com/articles/sweat-glands-evolution/ https://www.sciencefriday.com/articles/sweat-glands-evolutio...
- vasco 3y ago
  That's a mainstream theory, it'd seem you just read about it and forgot and thought it was original idea, search for "Endurance running hypothesis".
- PeterisP 3y ago
  The endurance running adaptations seem to start 1.9 million years ago for our common hominid ancestors that significantly predate the split between us and neanderthals which happened more than a million years later.
- euroderf 3y ago
  Somewhat OT but an interesting self-experiment: > running it to death over a period of days. Yup. Superior endurance, particularly equatorially where walking upright reduces sun exposure. Walk, sleep, walk, sleep, walk, KILL, FEAST. Repeat as necessary. It's an attractive idea. To test it (very informally) one Saturday I got up and walked 14 km on an empty stomach. At the end, the first thing I had was a Belgian beer on tap. It was the most delicious beer of my entire life. Absolutely every bit of complexity in the brew came shining thru. It was frankly kind of amazing. YMMV.

jaredhallen 3y ago

That's an interesting take that I haven't heard before. Another theory that I have heard has maybe a little more to do with why modern humans succeeded in general (rather than specifically vs Neanderthal) is that modern humans had excellent endurance. This allowed them to take big game by essentially running it to death over a period of days. I do wonder if that was a capability that Neanderthals lacked, or possessed to a lesser degree.

FredPret 3y ago
You are right that we have fantastic endurance. Apparently Neanderthals could sweat though: https://www.sciencefriday.com/articles/sweat-glands-evolution/ https://www.sciencefriday.com/articles/sweat-glands-evolutio...
vasco 3y ago
That's a mainstream theory, it'd seem you just read about it and forgot and thought it was original idea, search for "Endurance running hypothesis".
PeterisP 3y ago
The endurance running adaptations seem to start 1.9 million years ago for our common hominid ancestors that significantly predate the split between us and neanderthals which happened more than a million years later.
euroderf 3y ago
Somewhat OT but an interesting self-experiment: > running it to death over a period of days. Yup. Superior endurance, particularly equatorially where walking upright reduces sun exposure. Walk, sleep, walk, sleep, walk, KILL, FEAST. Repeat as necessary. It's an attractive idea. To test it (very informally) one Saturday I got up and walked 14 km on an empty stomach. At the end, the first thing I had was a Belgian beer on tap. It was the most delicious beer of my entire life. Absolutely every bit of complexity in the brew came shining thru. It was frankly kind of amazing. YMMV.