4 ms·

In the Chauvet Cave there are cave paintings that are 32,000 year old[1]. But what's even more interesting, is that some of these paintings are only 27,000 year

by adamors 13y ago

In the Chauvet Cave there are cave paintings that are 32,000 year old[1]. But what's even more interesting, is that some of these paintings are only 27,000 year old. Meaning, that these people knew about the place for almost 5000 years. Can you imagine that kind of continuity? The documentary Cave of Forgotten Dreams[2] presents the cave in a breathtaking detail, definitely worth a watch. [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chauvet_Cave#Dating http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chauvet_Cave#Dating [2] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kULwsoCEd3g http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kULwsoCEd3g

arcadeparade 13y ago
And carbon dating showed that some paintings were finished many hundreds of years after they began.
bumbledraven 13y ago
[T]hese people knew about the place for almost 5000 years. Can you imagine that kind of continuity? They must have been members of what David Deutsch calls a "static society". These are societies which actively try to keep things the same, and stamp out any innovation or differences. Things change there so slowly that the change is not noticeable within a single generation. In a 2011 interview with Ken Rose (https://groups.google.com/d/msg/beginning-of-infinity/dr64n4xlBvc/DkasbTPK5_sJ https://groups.google.com/d/msg/beginning-of-infinity/dr64n4...), Deutsch said that "progress, from the point of view of the human species as a whole, is very recent and very rare. Through most of human history, people would live their entire lives without ever encountering an innovation, whereas now, we take it for granted that iPhone updates come more often than is comfortable." For more, see his superb book The Beginning of Infinity (2010).
- agumonkey 13y ago
  Isn't it that they were just close to the zero on the exponent curve (kurzweil accelerating returns). Constraints very high with little knowledge and little meta-knowledge (just knowing something exists and is possible) giving a very slow pace

by adamors 13y ago

arcadeparade 13y ago

And carbon dating showed that some paintings were finished many hundreds of years after they began.

bumbledraven 13y ago

[T]hese people knew about the place for almost 5000 years. Can you imagine that kind of continuity? They must have been members of what David Deutsch calls a "static society". These are societies which actively try to keep things the same, and stamp out any innovation or differences. Things change there so slowly that the change is not noticeable within a single generation. In a 2011 interview with Ken Rose (https://groups.google.com/d/msg/beginning-of-infinity/dr64n4xlBvc/DkasbTPK5_sJ https://groups.google.com/d/msg/beginning-of-infinity/dr64n4...), Deutsch said that "progress, from the point of view of the human species as a whole, is very recent and very rare. Through most of human history, people would live their entire lives without ever encountering an innovation, whereas now, we take it for granted that iPhone updates come more often than is comfortable." For more, see his superb book The Beginning of Infinity (2010).

agumonkey 13y ago
Isn't it that they were just close to the zero on the exponent curve (kurzweil accelerating returns). Constraints very high with little knowledge and little meta-knowledge (just knowing something exists and is possible) giving a very slow pace