Farming now dated to 23 kya, not 12 kya

_{Denyse O'Leary

July 23, 2015

Human evolution, News}

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Until now, researchers believed farming was ‘invented’ some 12,000 years ago in an area that was home to some of the earliest known human civilizations. A new discovery offers the first evidence that trial plant cultivation began far earlier — some 23,000 years ago.

…

“While full-scale agriculture did not develop until much later, our study shows that trial cultivation began far earlier than previously believed, and gives us reason to rethink our ancestors’ capabilities,” said Prof. Sternberg. “Those early ancestors were more clever and more skilled than we knew.”

And we didn’t “knew” this because … Can we just complete the thought here? Because Darwin’s boys said … ?

See also: Why Darwin’s boys are of no use whatever in understanding human evolution

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Comments

Jared (Third Chimpanzee) Diamond is an influential Darwin Boy. His "Guns, Germs, and Steel" laid how how farming began - and will have to be rethought I bet. My book is at home and I'm at work, so I'll have to check. Never read any Dawkins, but I'm sure his accounts are well outdated by this and so much more. Anyway, never trust a Darwin Boy if you want accurate information.ppolish_{July 23, 2015
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Note that amongst us Geographers "civilization" means "people dwelling in permanent cities with populations greater than 5,000". Prior to the establishment of permanent cities (a "city" is a place where people come together to do business), any number of ceremonial sites were occupied by large numbers of people for the duration of some festival. The Irish "capital" of Tara was a barren plain except for 1 month each year, etc. So you kinda HAVE to have agriculture (which includes BOTH animal husbandry and farming) simply to FEED 5,000 people who don't live on individual farms.mahuna_{July 23, 2015
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Because Darwin’s boys said … ?
said... what?goodusername_{July 23, 2015
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And we didn't "knew" this because ... Can we just complete the thought here? Because Darwin’s boys said ... ?
Presumably we didn't know about this early farming until now due to lack of evidence. But do "Darwin's boys" (nice! :-) ) have anything to do with this? All these humans, whether 23,000 or 12,000 years ago, were fully modern. The paper addresses a question of cultural and technological development rather than evolution.daveS_{July 23, 2015
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