Neanderthal man was living in Britain 40,000 years earlier than thought

Telegraph ^ | Tuesday, June 1, 2010 | unattributed

[SunkenCiv]

Francis Wenban-Smith from the University of Southampton discovered two ancient flint hand tools used to cut meat at the M25/A2 road junction at Dartford, Kent, during an excavation funded by the Highways Agency. Tests on sediment burying the flints showed they date from around 100,000 years ago - proving Neanderthals were living in Britain at this time. The country was previously assumed to have been uninhabited during this period... Early pre-Neanderthals inhabited Britain before the last ice age, but were forced south by the severe cold about 200,000 years ago. When the climate warmed up again between 130,000 and 110,000 years ago... the Channel sea-level was raised... One theory is that Neanderthals were attracted back to Kent by the flint-rich chalk downs which were visible from France. These supported herds of mammoth, rhino, horse and deer - an important source of food in sub-arctic conditions back then... Dr Wenban-Smith explained more evidence was needed to date their presence more accurately, to show how many were living in Kent at this time, how far they roamed into Britain and how long they stayed for.

[SunkenCiv]

My pleasure.

[SunkenCiv]

One of the consequences of using mathematical models to figure out population and demographics in poorly documented eras is GIGO results:

• Human populations are tightly interwoven The most recent common ancestor of all humanity lived just a few thousand years ago, according to a computer model of our family tree. Researchers have calculated that the mystery person, from whom everyone alive today is directly descended, probably lived around 1,500 BC in eastern Asia...

That's *everyone* including all the inhabitants of the Americas and the Caribbean islands, all the Polynesians, Melanesians, Micronesians, every African...

[colorado tanker]

according to a computer model of our family tree

Also used to model "climate change" no doubt!