Culture & Climate

[uniface]

Edit : Better version :

http://news.sciencemag.org/scienceno...e-prehist.html

[mootsman]

Interesting article.

Only peripherally related, my wife and I have spent hours (typically while relic hunting) wondering why some cultures advanced to such an extent while others stayed in the stone age (OK, "advanced" could be debated). I tried to research the issue via the net re what the variables might be; however, more often than not I ran into racist diatribes. Then about a year ago I read an article that tied it to all to agriculture -- suggesting that ag required longer settlements, more communication, better organization and things I now forget.

Marginally related to your article but the climate change reminded me of this since climate would drive this thesis also.

[paleo_joe]

Originally Posted by mootsman

Interesting article.

Only peripherally related, my wife and I have spent hours (typically while relic hunting) wondering why some cultures advanced to such an extent while others stayed in the stone age (OK, "advanced" could be debated). I tried to research the issue via the net re what the variables might be; however, more often than not I ran into racist diatribes. Then about a year ago I read an article that tied it to all to agriculture -- suggesting that ag required longer settlements, more communication, better organization and things I now forget.

Marginally related to your article but the climate change reminded me of this since climate would drive this thesis also.

"Guns, Germs and Steel" by Jared Diamond is an excellent book on just that topic. It won the Pulitzer prize. Agriculture, more specifically how cultivatable the local crops were vs their food value, was a big factor. Also a big factor is how easily the local animals could be domesticated. Oxen, yes. Bison, no. Horses, yes. Zebras, no. Etc.

[mootsman]

Originally Posted by paleo_joe

"Guns, Germs and Steel" by Jared Diamond is an excellent book on just that topic. It won the Pulitzer prize. Agriculture, more specifically how cultivatable the local crops were vs their food value, was a big factor. Also a big factor is how easily the local animals could be domesticated. Oxen, yes. Bison, no. Horses, yes. Zebras, no. Etc.

Thanks for that. Another book for the Kindle que!