[Hugin]

The new finding relies on 196 samples of animal bones, shells, and charcoal taken from 40 Neanderthal cave sites reaching from Gibraltar to the Caucasus. Largely from prey species such as deer, bison, and mammoth, the bones all bear cut marks from a type of stone blade that Neanderthals used.

That seems a pretty weak basis to make such a claim. How do they know the Neanderthals didn't upgrade their blades by copying what modern humans used?

[Red Badger]

How do they know the Neanderthals didn't upgrade their blades by copying what modern humans used?

They were ancestors of Bill Gates?.....................

[gleeaikin]

My thought exactly. Also the interesting point that the N genes found in modern man date back more to 60,000 years ago. It may be that our species and theirs were so diminished by the 74,000 Toba megavolcano event. That some mating from desperation and loneness may have occurred. Also, I vaguely remember reading the earlier Neanderthals may have been less brutish in physical ways than the late ones. Finally, I had the impression from studying the wall of skulls in the Smithsonians new mankind exhibit that Ns were the next step after Heidelbergensis humans who were already in Europe.