This leaves us, Homo sapiens, as the only animal that can cooperate both flexibly and in large numbers. But, once again, even though they can cooperate more flexibly, they can only collaborate in small numbers because they need to know intimately the other members of the group. However, their cooperation is very rigid and cannot adapt so quickly to new threats or opportunities such as… chimpanzees, for instance. There are other animals that can cooperate in large numbers, too. But, overall, it helped to create a common understanding among members of the group and allowed them to cooperate in large numbers. Among its numerous advantages, developing a common language allowed communities to communicate, to talk about food, dangers, untrustworthy members, or predators. Indeed, complex language was one of the most, if not the most, important factor that allowed Homo sapiens to rule the world. One of the greatest advantages the cognitive revolution provided Homo sapiens with was the development of intricate language. It was just within few years upon Homo sapiens’ arrival that the vast majority of these animals perished.
Australia, for instance, was inhabited by a multitude of big mammals around 50k years ago. Homo sapiens were responsible for the extinction of most of the species that crossed their path. Because of their upgraded capacity to team up and the superior hunting techniques, they spread into the most remote corners of the planet, colonizing America and Australia. They were all of a sudden capable of creating and organizing into larger communities to develop new and better forms of hunting tools. This outbreak provided Homo sapiens with superior brainpower that allowed them to outperform their rivals and thrive. On the other hand, the replacement theory, suggests that Homo sapiens just pushed other human species toward extinction.Īround 70k years ago, the human brain experienced a cognitive revolution.
The shreds of evidence that sustain this theory arise from the DNA of modern Europeans, which contain between 1 to 4% of Neanderthal DNA. One theory, the interbreeding theory, suggests that Homo sapiens began mating with other species such as Homo neanderthalensis, resulting in a final merge. How did they do it? Different theories attempt to give a reasonable explanation. Yet, they prospered and overspread the entire globe while the rest of human species eventually disappeared. Homo sapiens were just highly social mammals that walked upright and had large brains. Nothing made them stand out when compared to the rest of the Homo species. However, at that time there was nothing special with them. The successful adaptation on these new habitats allowed them to evolve into other, and distinct, forms of Homo (e.g., Homo neanderthalensis) that spread in Europe and Asia.Īround 300k years ago Homo sapiens appeared. These early humans, Homo erectus, among others, started to migrate to reach more promising lands. And they didn’t stop there we even attempted to go beyond Earth’s boundaries in order to explore the universe.Įvolving from its ancestors, the Australopithecus, Humans appeared around 2.5 million years ago in East Africa. Even though Homo sapiens were not the first humans to inhabit the planet, they arrived to replace all others.