Unit 1 - Chapter 3: Early Humans and the Agricultural Revolution

Chapter 3.1: Hunter-Gatherers

The Paleolithic Age

• Earliest part of the stone age
  • 2.5 million years ago - 8000 B.C.E

Surviving in the Paleolithic age

• %%Nomads:%% people who regularly move from place to place
• Hunted and gathered
• Men: hunted large animals
• Women: gathered in meadows nearby

Invention of Tools

• %%Technology:%% tools and methods to perform tasks
• Sticks, stones, and tree branches used as tools
• Used ^^flint^^ as a sharp object to cut food - major breakthrough for early people
• Over time - more complex tools (bows, arrows, spears, etc)

Changing to Survive

• %%Climate%% affected life → cold climates meant clothing from animal skins to stay warm
• Constructed tents out of animal skins, brush, and wood → ice and snow for cold
• Caves provided lots of protection against large animal attacks

Fire = Change

• Provided warmth, light, scare away wild animals, cooking
• ^^Archaeologists believe that early humans learned to make fire by friction^^
  • ^^Rubbing 2 pieces of wood together, became heated and charred → wood hot = fire^^
• ^^Discovered that certain stone, iron pyrite, gave off sparks that ignited dry grass or leaves^^

Language and Art

• Up until this time, communicated through sounds and physical gestures
• Began to express themselves through words
• Art was another way to express themselves
• %%Paleolithic cave paintings%% found all around the world
• Yellow, black, red rocks, and animal fat = paint; brushes = animal hair
• Now sure why early artists made cave paintings

Chapter 3.2: The Agricultural Revolution

The Neolithic Age

• @@8000 B.C - 4000 B.C@@
• Neolithic: Greek for “New Stone” (New Stone Age)
• Shift from hunting and gathering to %%systematic agriculture%% (growing food on regular basis)

Big Changes for Humankind

• Settle farming → %%Agricultural Revolution%%
• Could produce constant food supply, led to faster growth in population

Widespread Farming

• 8000 B.C - 4000 B.C: Systematic agriculture began to spread and become regular throughout the world