Stone-tipped spears lethal, may indicate early cognitive and social skills
Wednesday, August 27, 2014 - 16:00
in Paleontology & Archaeology
Attaching a stone tip on to a wooden spear shaft was a significant innovation for early modern humans living around 500,000 years ago. However, it was also a costly behavior in terms of time and effort to collect, prepare and assemble the spear. Researchers conducted controlled experiments to learn if there was a 'wounding' advantage between using a wooden spear or a stone-tipped spear.