Posted on 12/15/2005 3:27:46 AM PST by Vaquero
Humans in England May Go Back 700,000 Years
By THOMAS WAGNER, Associated Press Writer Wed Dec 14, 2:04 PM ET
LONDON - Ancient tools found in Britain show that humans lived in northern Europe 200,000 years earlier than previously thought, at a time when the climate was warm enough for lions, elephants and saber tooth tigers to also roam what is now England. ADVERTISEMENT
Scientists said Wednesday that 32 black flint artifacts, found in river sediments in Pakefield in eastern England, date back 700,000 years and represent the earliest unequivocal evidence of human presence north of the Alps.
Scientists had long held that humans had not migrated north from the relatively warm climates of the Mediterranean region until half a million years ago.
"The discovery that early humans could have existed this far north this long ago was startling," said Prof. Chris Stringer, a paleontologist at the Natural History Museum, one of four British scientists involved in the study who announced the finding at a news conference in London. Their discovery is detailed in the scientific journal Nature.
In a commentary in Nature, Wil Roebroeks of Leiden University in The Netherlands said the evidence of human activity at Pakefield was "rock solid."
Roebroeks, who was not involved in the study, said it showed that "early humans were evidently roaming the banks of these rivers ... much earlier than hitherto thought for this part of Europe."
But another outside expert called for caution.
"One always has to be skeptical, given that previous claims of early human presence in northern Europe have had problems with the date or authenticity of the artifacts found. If indeed subsequent findings support this discovery, it would be very exciting and would change our ideas about the adaptability of early humans," Alison Brooks, an anthropologist at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., said in an interview.
Stringer said now scientists can search for human remains, and perhaps find humans arrived in the region even earlier than 700,000 years ago.
"We have a whole new area of research opening up to us," he said.
Prof. Jim Rose of the University of London, another researcher involved in the study, said that 700,000 years ago, England was still connected the European mainland and enjoyed relatively short periods of balmy weather between the time that massive glaciers swept through the area, freezing and reforming the landscapes.
During such thaws, he said, early humans would have been able to migrate to England from the Mediterranean and enjoy mild winters, flat landscapes and major rivers.
Rhinoceroses, elephants, saber tooth tigers, lions, hippopotamuses and bears lived in the area at the time. The scientists said they don't know whether the humans used the discovered sharp-edged tools to kill animals for food, or merely to scavenge from carcasses that predators left behind.
The artifacts suggest that the early humans did not colonize northern areas of Europe, but merely expanded their migratory patterns there when the weather permitted, the scientists said.
Pakefield, a coastal village 120 miles (190 kilometers) northeast of London, is one of the few areas where glaciers preserved, rather than destroyed, the sediment that contained ancient artifacts, Rose said. Coastal erosion is now opening up cliffs around Pakefield, exposing fossils and artifacts.
Before that discovery the earliest unambiguous traces of human beings in Europe north of the Alps were dated to about 500,000 years ago, and included flint artifacts, bones of mammals and even some human remains that were discovered in Bosgrove on the southern coast of England.
The earliest traces of human presence in southern Europe are at least 800,000 years old and include materials that were discovered in Atapuerca, Spain.
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Professor Chris Stringer, a paleontologist at the Natural History Museum, holds one of the 32 black flint artifacts, found in river sediments in Pakefield in eastern England, that date back 700,000 years, during a presentation in London, Wednesday Dec. 14, 2005. Ancient tools found in Britain show that humans lived in northern Europe 200,000 years earlier than previously thought, at a time when the climate was warm enough for lions, elephants and saber tooth tigers to also roam what is now England. Scientists had long held that humans had not migrated north from the relatively warm climates of the Mediterranean region until half a million years ago. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)
Many still ALIVE and running the BBC!
Facts??? The only fact is that you don't have ANY!
"I thought we had global warming now....600,000 years ago the weather was warm enough to support hippos in England and the sea level was so high that england was connected to the rest of Europe..."
It was the fault of caveman Georgio Buzhius the Old (called "Ugg Dub" by his friends) of ancient Mesopotamia, who caused the earliest global warming.
Egyptian history begins about 3000 BC with the first dynasty, with the pyramids quite some time later. That's 5,000 years in the past. Most Biblical literalists believe the earth was created a little over 6,000 years ago. There could, in theory, have been time for Egypt society to develop in 1,000 years. Although there is that little bit about the Flood that has to fit in there somewhere. FWIW
Then, as the self-proclaimed genius that you are, I'm sure you can explain macro-evolution on a molecular biological basis. What's that? Can't??? Pity!
Well, maybe in Parliment
OK there Mr. Sweetchuck...
http://www.stephenjaygould.org/library/gould_fact-and-theory.html
Here's more, unevolved sir:
"Only a theory"
Creationists often insist that since evolution is a "theory", it is only a guess, no better than any other. But in science, a theory is a statement of general principles that explain many facts by means of natural processes. The proposition that the planets revolve around the sun (Copernican theory) explains a great many astronomical facts and also is considered true beyond a reasonable doubt. In the same way, geological examination of rocks demonstrates beyond a reasonable doubt that the earth is extremely old. The theory of evolution explains a tremendous number of biological and paleontological facts, and it, too, is true beyond a reasonable doubt. Nevertheless, all these theories could be altered or replaced if new observations yielded new scientific evidence that contradicted predictions of these theories. Creationism, on the other hand, is not even a theory because its proponents have decided in advance that no amount of evidence will change their beliefs.
That sounds like a "science forum" which doesn't exist, but should.
If it existed it would probably still experience attempted thread hijackings.
There is a "religion forum" where the supernaturalists can argue about which of their systems isn't a cult.
It's the same principle that allows stupid and lazy people in this country to flourish in an environment that was created to favor them (Welfare State). When an environment changes, it doesn't take many generations for unnecessary or deleterious traits to drop away, and for traits that can take advantage of the new environment to assert themselves.
You'll see a lot of them in Germany this summer for the World Cup. They appear every 4 years.
So people chipping away on obsidian 700,000 years ago started global warming that caused the sea level to fall and allowed lions and elephants to move into England.
Can't wait to see the untenured con-men travelling the UN's global warming circus wagon explain this one.
junk science by the ap.... no really... could it be that junk sciene is pushed by crappy liberal media outlets?
That's EXACTLY what will happen if the islamic extremists and terrorist bastards get their way!
The English should be more concerned about their future than their past.
Curiously, there was no evidence of a toothbrush among any of the artifacts.
I agree. and it can happen here too. Just check out your local convenience store and gas station. it is scary
This is probably a stupid question but how do you date flint?
I believe you date the strata layer you find it in
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