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dedl67

(150 posts)

2. Mastery of fire is a key behavior that distinguishes humans from any other animal.

Reply to highplainsdem (Original post)

Wed Dec 10, 2025, 12:48 PM

Wednesday

The book "Vestal Fire" by Stephen Pyne is a fascinating account of humans' use of fire, and defense against fire, through European history. Nearly every aspect of our lives is connected in some way with fire and Pyne covers everything. So this discovery is very important in understanding the evolution of the genus Homo.

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Bayard niyad wolfie001 GentryDixon raging moderate IrishAfricanAmerican Talitha FakeNoose

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Highlight:

Earliest known evidence of human fire-making dating back 400,000 years is discovered in the UK [View all] highplainsdem Wednesday OP

Probably cooking Fish & Chips. RedWhiteBlueIsRacist Wednesday #1

lol wolfie001 Wednesday #4

Glad you got a chuckle! It was an intentional anachronism. RedWhiteBlueIsRacist Thursday #14

I was 60 years old when I found out the term "corn" meant flour in Europe wolfie001 Thursday #15

No, but will check them out. Thanks. RedWhiteBlueIsRacist Thursday #16

Well, "grain" really. The Corn Laws in England regulated the sale of grain, but corn often meant "wheat" by default. eppur_se_muova Thursday #18

Mastery of fire is a key behavior that distinguishes humans from any other animal. dedl67 Wednesday #2

Makes Sense roscoeroscoe Wednesday #3

They were burning humans? Oh, nevermind. twodogsbarking Wednesday #5

That long ago, they must have been Neanderthals. JustABozoOnThisBus Wednesday #6

Yes. The article (which isn't paywalled) mentions that these were probably early neanderthal people. highplainsdem Wednesday #7

That's an incredible jump in the history of fire making. Probably implies other big time shifts coming. erronis Wednesday #8

Some say that the Neanderthals on the British isle survived to this day. LudwigPastorius Wednesday #9

JK Rowling wolfie001 Wednesday #10

Nah they moved to the US where they are now known as Republicans. cstanleytech Thursday #13

I have an acquaintance of an acquaintance of an acquaintance Warpy Wednesday #11

It is becoming increasingly obvious that humans developed advanced technology far longer ago than accepted by the Martin68 Wednesday #12

Just don't cite Graham Hancock and his followers (including Joe Rogaine) wolfie001 Thursday #17

Yes, indeed, there are many charlatans in out there. Martin68 Thursday #21

Oh goodie! wolfie001 Thursday #22

Everyone's heard of "flint and steel", but I only heard about pyrite making sparks a few years ago, which is surprising. eppur_se_muova Thursday #19

What were they lighting, man? Kid Berwyn Thursday #20

Paleontologists have discovered that within five minutes of the discovery ... 11 Bravo Thursday #23

Come here this instant ... both of you! FakeNoose Thursday #24