Although differences between them were not large enough to completely prevent fertile intercourse, they were sufficient to make such contacts very rare. Today, there is only one: Homo sapiens. And, indeed, compared to other animals, humans are born prematurely, when many of their vital systems are still under-developed. Every two species that evolved from a common ancestor, such as horses and donkeys, were at one time just two populations of the same species, like bulldogs and spaniels. Since Neanderthals and Denisovans contributed only a small amount of DNA to our present-day genome, it is impossible to speak of a ‘merger’ between Sapiens and other human species. The earliest men and women, 2.5 million years ago, had brains of about 36 cubic inches. Nobody, least of all humans themselves, had any inkling that their descendants would one day walk on the moon, split the atom, fathom the genetic code and write history books.
The first evidence for tool production dates from about 2.5 million years ago, and the manufacture and use of tools are the criteria by which archaeologists recognise ancient humans. A second theory agrees that our unique language evolved as a means of sharing information about the world. Humankind paid for its lofty vision and industrious hands with backaches and stiff necks. Neanderthals and archaic The gossip theory might sound like a joke, but numerous studies support it. The debate continues to rage. Some scholars believe there is a direct link between the advent of cooking, the shortening of the human intestinal tract, and the growth of the human brain.
The advent of cooking enabled humans to eat more kinds of food, to devote less time to eating, and to make do with smaller teeth and shorter intestines.
Biologists classify organisms into species. Yet the truly unique feature of our language is not its ability to transmit information about men and lions. But if that were the case, the feline family would also have produced cats who could do calculus, and frogs would by now have launched their own space program. Yuval Noah Harari is not only a very good historian but a very good science author and a well-known professor as well. Why couldn’t even the strong, brainy, cold-proof Neanderthals survive our onslaught? These coalitions play a central part not only during overt struggles for the alpha position, but in almost all day-to-day activities. Since long intestines and large brains are both massive energy consumers, it’s hard to have both.
By about 300,000 years ago, But the best thing fire did was cook. The dominant member, who is almost always a male, is termed the ‘alpha male’.
Some human species may have made occasional use of fire as early as 800,000 years ago. The most commonly believed theory argues that accidental genetic mutations changed the inner wiring of the brains of Sapiens, enabling them to think in unprecedented ways and to communicate using an altogether new type of language.
We are acquiring the ability to design not only the world around us, but also ourselves. But more often, they gossip about the professor who caught her husband cheating, or the quarrel between the head of the department and the dean, or the rumours that a colleague used his research funds to buy a Lexus. As we shall see in the next chapter, Sapiens were already very different from Neanderthals and Denisovans not only in their genetic code and physical traits, but also in their cognitive and social abilities, yet it appears it was still just possible, on rare occasions, for a Sapiens and a Neanderthal to produce a fertile offspring. But the most important information that needed to be conveyed was about humans, not about lions and bison. Yet counting all species together, there were still no more than perhaps a million humans living between the Indonesian archipelago and the Iberian peninsula, a mere blip on the ecological radar. Most notably, humans have extraordinarily large brains compared to other animals. About 4 billion years ago, on a planet called Earth, certain molecules combined to form particularly large and intricate structures called organisms. Women who gave birth earlier, when the infant’s brain and head were still relatively small and supple, fared better and lived to have more children. It comes so naturally to us that it seems as if our language evolved for this very purpose. Many animals and human species could previously say, ‘Careful! Most importantly, the power of fire was not limited by the form, structure or strength of the human body. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.