This story attempts to conflate fire and cooking and the increase in the amylase gene and the increase in brain size. The article is fairly honest in including this:
“At some point hominins began to cook meat, but exactly when they invented fire is a question that inspires a lot of debate. Humans were definitely making fires by 300,000 years ago, but some researchers claim to have found campfires dating back as far as 1.8 million years.”
And this:
“They may be right, but it’s not a slam-dunk,” said Greg Wray, an evolutionary biologist at Duke University. “The timing is not well resolved enough.” There is still considerable uncertainty about when fire was invented and when amylase gene copies evolved, Dr. Wray noted.”
So, the entire article is pretty much BS.
The difference in dog and wolf amylase gene number, however, is key in determining when my dog’s ancestors diverged from wolves(even if she thinks she is one).
I didn’t read the whole thing but being the NYT I assume that whatever conclusions they come to are just an expression of their ideology. Leftists love carbs and hate paleo dieters just like leftists love light rail and hate Tea partiers. Their predilections all come from the same place and are as predictable as clockwork.