Re: Not Enough Data


Gerrit Hanenburg wrote:
"Paul Crowley" <slkwuoiutiuytciuyik@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

It's not that we claim in Homo erectus a priori the ability to dispose of
the dead by deliberate burial or the ability to cultivate crops, but
in the absence of evidence the default hypothesis (to be falsified)
should be that they did. If you dispose of the requirement for
evidence, what remains of the science?

It's not that we deny Homo erectus a priori the ability to build
concrete sky scrapers with high speed elevators or use rocket
technology to fly to the moon,

Tsk, tsk, tsk. Gerrit! Of all people. Leave the straw in the barn
for the horses to sleep on.

but in the absence of evidence the
default hypothesis (to be falsified) should be that they didn't.

Well, gee golly, Gerrit. I must say that I too have no expectation
that some archeologists might someday uncover evidence of a homo
erectus space program. (Neanderthals on the other hand . . .)

If you dispose of the requirement for evidence, what remains of the
science?

Science tells us to not let the evidence dictate conclusions. (IOW,
don't let the evidence lead you by the nose.)

Indeed, there is hard evidence that hominids manufactured stone tools
as early as 2.5 mya and that is quite compatible with a
hunter-gatherer kind of lifestyle, the default for nonsedentary
people. There is no indication that Homo erectus sites were occupied
for more than a season, and that isn't good enough to reap the
benefits of cultivation (sow, tend, harvest, store).

Indeed, there is hard evidence that hominids manufactured stone tools
as early as 2.5 mya and that is quite compatible with some plant
cultivation, the default for a sedentary people. No Homo erectus
residential sites have been identified, but that is no reason to assume
their absence.

Innocent until proven guilty.

Uhrr. Don't you got it backwards?

Basically that's also how it works in
science. The negative state has priority until positive evidence
shifts the balance to the other side.

Hmmm. And who gets to decide which state is negative and which is
positive?

It kind of reminds me of an episode of Get Smart:

Dr No (after showing Max a 30 ton cannon): "Any more questions, Mr.
Smart?"

Maxwell Smart: "Yes, which one of us gets to decide which one of us is
tied to the end of the barrel of the 30 ton cannon?"

Dr. No: "Very funny Mr. Smart. Why that would be myself, of course."

Maxwell Smart: "I was afraid of that."

.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Development of agriculture in South America
    ... In Science 316, 1890, 2007 evidence is given of rather early traces of ... cultivation was thought to be near 5000 BP. ... has confirmed that plant domestication in the Americas ... The history of maize is one of the most debated topics ...
    (sci.archaeology)
  • Re: Development of agriculture in South America
    ... In Science 316, 1890, 2007 evidence is given of rather early traces of ... cultivation was thought to be near 5000 BP. ... Dating of squash seeds from a cave in Oaxaca, Mexico, ...
    (sci.archaeology)
  • Re: When DID agriculture start?
    ... Mikey objects because he saw in a textbook something ... evidence but on lack of evidence. ... what name is applied to the plant ... cultivation and harvesting, performed by ...
    (sci.anthropology.paleo)
  • Re: Peking Man Older Than Thought
    ... How much of the average human diet ... hundred years in the matter of cultivation? ... Evidence isn't a big factor ... Tasmanian aborigines dogless until the arrival of Europeans. ...
    (sci.anthropology.paleo)
  • Re: Not Enough Data
    ... Gerrit Hanenburg wrote: ... in the absence of evidence the default hypothesis ... weapons at 2.5 mya would also understand the basics of cultivation. ...
    (sci.anthropology.paleo)
Quantcast