[extropy-chat] thank evolution for the interstate highway system

[Mike Lorrey]

--- Don Dartfield <twodeel at jornada.org> wrote:
> On Tue, 2 Dec 2003, Mike Lorrey wrote:
> 
> > From what I've read, neurological studies of the shape of the brain
> case
> > of neanderthals indicate they lacked a lot of the higher brain
> functions
> > that homo sap needed to make the breakthrough to actual
> conciousness,
> > beyond being ordered around by a god module.
> 
> Really?  That seems odd.  I thought they could make musical
> instruments,
> and had larger braincases than us ... but they lack higher brain
> functions?  Are these brand new studies?

No, neanderthals did not have larger braincases than homo sapiens, that
is a myth. What they did have was larger spaces for anterior lobes,
i.e. the more primitive area of the brain, while having less space for
frontal lobes.

Making music, nor even religion, is not a function of conciousness.
Birds make music all the time, and apes are known to use tools and make
primitive art. Conciousness in man is not even thought to have
developed (according to some) until after the invention of writing.
Read Julian Jaynes' book The Origin of Conciousness in the Breakdown of
the Bicameral Mind.

> 
> Maybe not for us, but given the higher-than-human intelligence of
> Sawyer's
> Neanderthals, maybe they could technology without requiring such a
> high
> population density.  Maybe their advanced intelligence means that
> individuals can invent high technology without needing a lot of spare
> people. ;)

As above, neanderthals were not of higher intelligence. The fact that
they are extinct demonstrates that they failed miserably at the most
important test of intelligence against a more intelligent competitor
for the same resources.

Even if they were of higher intelligence does not mean anything about
reducing the need for a technological and industrial infrastructure.
Homo sap did not NEED written language until after it had developed
agriculture. Virtually no hunter gatherer societies invented writing
independently in all of pre-history. Writing is an artifact of
agricultural technology and the need to manage its infrastructure in
the areas of labor pooling, resource sharing, land ownership, etc.
Societies that do not have such needs never develop writing because
they don't need writing as a management technology.

Even if we assume that for some reason, neanderthals needed writing to
keep track of who owned what hunting areas, what shelters belonged to
what hunters, to store knowledge of wild plant medicines and so forth
(they would actually have to have a really poor memory to have such a
need, since homo sapiens hunter gatherers have been able to perform
such functions without writing for thousands of years), this would not
allow the development of a leisure class of scientific minds that would
be needed to spur technological development, especially if they have
poor memories.

=====
Mike Lorrey
"Live Free or Die, Death is not the Worst of Evils."
                                       - Gen. John Stark
"Fascists are objectively pro-pacifist..."
                                       - Mike Lorrey
Do not label me, I am an ism of one...
Sado-Mikeyism: http://mikeysoft.zblogger.com

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