Tools

The book is like the spoon, the hammer, the wheel, the scissors – once invented, they cannot be better. – Umberto Eco

”Man didn’t make tools, tools made man.” – Arthur C Clarke

WE AS A SPECIES USE MYRIADS OF TOOLS. TOOLS ARE FOR EVERYTHING

It started most certainly with stones. How a hominoid 3.3 million years ago persisted in chopping stones. Something, an advent a discovery or a need made them begin and as maniacs and continue for 2,5 millions years with what differed them from all other apes i history. Probably to my mind this was just an accident, a hunch, a sport, a lucky Darwin’s event.

This turned into Homo Erectus, the upright man, developed later into Homo Habilis, the able man.

Why did they persist? Sharpened stones cut meet and splintered wood. Discovery that turned into need and advantage for their living. Most certainly stones would have been tools as weapons. But the question stays in the air unsupported. Why just this ape? Why not all the others?

Something made the difference. Let´s play out the options.

The Theories.

The ape was driven out from the trees to the savanna. Climate change?

On the savanna you had to walk on two legs to see what’s in the distance. That freed up two arms to carry spears and more tools.

(THIS HAS TO BE REWRITTEN, THINKING NOT IN RIGHT ORDER)

Tools might have lead to more tools. This ape invented the bag for carrying roots or findings. This ape started to sing in rythm perhaps to it´s own stone knapping. This ape might have found mushrooms. This ape started to speak. This ape developed a culture with other tools like the spear, the elaborate shelter, the clothing, the use of leather or the bones of animals. The comb, the nedle other smaller tools made from wood or bone that made life easier.

A shunned and certanly not accepted theory by the archeology community proposed by anthropolog and early psychedelic researcher Terrence McKenna, “The Stoned Ape Theory” theorizes that early homonoids stumbled apon psychedelic mushrooms that enhanced visual aquity and improved ability of “theory of mind” and perhaps brought forth germs of very early religion.

The origin of music is a mystery shed in clouds. A theory with anthropological roots in Australian and New Zeeland cultures proposes that collective movements in dance and singing wards off preditors around camp fires. A remnent from this would be the Hakka dance. To be many but move together like a single big entety would be impressive.

As an outlier though, music has most certanly also it’s origin in the cry and the wining, and also in the rythm of walking.

The benifits of stones shaping man combined with this mystery engredient that differed apes from the human endevour is the clue I think to the answer to the question. The mystery solved is all this combined.

But here is more. Synestesy. The metaphore.

To be continued..