A 3-million-year-old discovery could rewrite the history of intelligent life on Earth
Fossils from millions of years ago (source: lisa-unsplash)
Researchers have discovered the oldest tools made by human ancestors, which are simple cutting stones (stone chips) dating back 3.3 million years, and the discovery is 700,000 years older than the oldest known tools so far
• A conclusion that breaks the mind-boggling hypothesis
According to africanews.com, researchers have made a startling discovery that could rewrite the history of intelligent life on Earth. New evidence confirms disputed claims about the early use of tools, and suggests that ancient australopithecines such as the famous "Lucy" may have made stone tools as well.
These stone tools were discovered and dated to 2.6 million years ago. These tools belong to the technique known as Oldowan, so named because the first examples were found more than 80 years ago in the Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania by paleobiologists Louis and Mary Leakey. Then, in 2010, other researchers working at the Dhika site in Ethiopia reported a discoveryAustralopithecine children too, and from wound marks on animal bones dating back 3.4 million years, have argued that human ancestors made handwriting marks with tools.
The paper, which was co-written by researchers from different institutions, described a site in Nyayanga, Kenya, dating back to between 3,032 and 2,581 million years ago.
According to science.org, archaeologists began excavating the site since 2015 and discovered 330 tools and 1,776 pieces of teeth and jaws. Thomas Plummer, professor of anthropology at Queen's College and lead author of the study published in Science, confirmed: "This is one of the oldest examples of Oldowan's technique for making ancient tools definitely shows that tools were in use much earlier than people think."
Unmistakable stone tools
This claim was controversial at the time, however, and some have argued that what appeared to be cut marks may have been the result of being run over by humans or other animals. Without the discovery of actual tools, it seemed likely that the controversy would continue unresolved, until after those missing tools were found. Speaking at the Paleoanthropological Society's annual meeting, archaeologist Sonia Harmand of Stony Brook University in New York described several artifacts unearthed at Lomekwi 3, west of Kenya's Lake Turkana, about 1,000 kilometers from Olduvai Gorge.
In 2011, Harmand's team was on a research trip and took a wrong turn and stumbled upon a part of the area, called Lumekwe, at which point the researchers discovered what Harmand called unmistakable stone tools on the surface of the sandy ground that allowed for efficient food processing, so they immediately called for patrols to launch small digs for more. Among the discoveries in the place, where the excavations are one of the most important clues and evidence for the study of ancient history, and from them we learn about the lives that ended, through which we can learn about the evolution of mammals on the planet
• More underground tools
An ancient archaeological find (Source: birmingham-museums-unsplash)
Interestingly, more tools have been discovered underground , including so-called cores with which human ancestors struck sharp chips ; The team of researchers was even able to return a chip to its original core. The researchers returned for more excavation the following year, and have now discovered nearly 20 chips, a core, and apparently well-preserved anvils that were used to hold the cores when the chips were removed, all sealed in the sediment that provided a safe context for dating. An additional 130 pieces were also found on the surface.
• The discovery rewrites the history of life
According to science.org, archaeologist Harmand confirmed that very recent research has now pushed human origins back to 2.8 million years ago. On the other hand, Alison Brooks, an anthropologist at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., says the discovery " Very exciting. It may rewrite the history of intelligent life on Earth.
Source: websites