Our Neanderthal ancestors already practiced recycling. New confirmation comes from a study, recently presented during a 4-day conference held at Tel Aviv University. Giovanni Boschian, professor of Anthropology at the University of Pisa, also participated in the research
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves himOur ancestors of Neanderthals already practiced the recycling. A new one arrives confirmation from a study, recently presented during a four-day conference held at Tel Aviv University. The research also participated John Boschian, professor of Anthropology at the University of Pisa.
According to what emerged from the new investigation, already 300 thousand years ago our ancestors practiced on a daily basis the reuse of damaged or previously discarded instruments. Unlike the current inhabitants of the Earth, for whom recycling and reuse are very often distant practices.
"We have clues that 300.000 years ago Neanderthal man was in the habit of reusing previously discarded tools - explains Boschian - Men gave these objects a new shape and a new job, for this they can be considered the initiators of the practice of recycling".
Although recycling and reuse have recently returned to the fore, also thanks to the economic crisis and the reduction in consumption, there are still many waste produced, the quantity of which could be reduced,
Professor Boschian conducted his research on Castel di Guido, an archaeological site a stone's throw from Rome, dating back to about 320-270.000 years ago. Numerous tools have been found here, called double-sided due to their shape, not only in stone, but also in elephant bone. The site, in fact, was rich in pools of water used as natural drinking troughs by elephants and other species (including humans),
"From the study of these objects it turns out that in Castel di Guido they were often reused after some time, or that once broken they were recycled for other purposes", explains the expert.
More than astonishment, the news should make you feel a little bit of shame, since the Neanderthal man, who certainly did not have the same intelligence as the current one, had already understood that recycling was a very useful habit.
"The actual recycling is intended as the use for completely new purposes of objects discarded after a previous use - Boschian specifies - This involves rethink and redesign the new use and in some cases modify the initial shape of the object, with an operation that implies advanced mental attitudes, in particular the ability to forecast and planning, which can be seen in some processing techniques that seem to have been aimed at obtaining objects that could be reused in the future ".
300 thousand years ago man had already understood this. And today?
Francesca Mancuso
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- Recycling dates back to the Paleolithic
