The man and the first tools

150,000 years ago there were Homo Sapiens very similar to us in Africa. However, they did not begin to dominate the world until about 70,000 years ago. Between 150,000 and 70,000 years ago, Homo Sapiens was just another animal that struggled to survive, a weak and clumsy animal, and not the animal that it is today, the dominant animal on planet Earth.

Between 70,000 and 30,000 years ago, Homo Sapiens started making cool things like boats, oil lamps, bows and arrows, and needles. These achievements are thought to have been the product of a revolution in the cognitive abilities of Sapiens. There are different theories of the cause of what is known as the cognitive revolution. Although it is interesting to investigate the causes of the cognitive revolution, it is also interesting to analyze its consequences.

The creation and use of tools by humans did not begin 70,000 years ago. The human being and his ancestors have been creating and using tools for millions of years. The first tools used by our human ancestors were stones, and this fact marked the beginning of what we know as the Stone Age. The Stone Age began approximately 3 million years ago and ended when metals were discovered and used. Stone tools were made by gradually grinding away stones to make hammers, spear and arrow points, knives, and scrapers.

The progress of the tools of the human being is evident, 3 million years ago we had stones and now we have rockets and spaceships. It seems that there is a correlation between the tools of man and the evolution of man. The evolution of the human produced tools and the production of tools made the human progress. The use of tools leverages us, amplifies our capabilities. The tools are what we currently call technology.

A scene from a movie that I find fascinating about the tools of man is from the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey. I am fascinated by the contrast it makes between bone, a primitive tool, and a spaceship, the pinnacle of human ingenuity. The change of scene between the bone and the spaceship symbolizes the millions of years of evolution of man and his tools.

In the world there are many animals that are far superior to us physically speaking. For example, we are not very fast running, we do not have claws, we cannot fly, we do not have a good sense of smell, we do not have protective armor, we are ...

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