Notes - Early Man

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Did early man live at the same time as dinosaurs? No. Dinosaurs died about 65 million years ago. First human like primates called hominids appeared only 3.6 million years ago. Dinosaurs were dead long before this.

What is evolution?

Gradual progress made by man in both physical appearance and cultural development is known as evolution.

Where was the first hominid discovered? The first hominid was discovered in Ethiopia in 1974. She was a female 4 feet tall with brain size of an orange. She was named Lucy.

Explain theory of natural selection Charles Darwin explained human beings evolved from apes. Theory of natural selection was developed by him. According to this theory:

A species survived or died because of natural selection

Living beings (plants and animals) need to adapt to changes in the environment

Those species which adapted to get along better with environment survived and produced off-springs like themselves

Those species which could not adapt to be fit in the environment became extinct

Human beings made changes to environment rather than changing themselves; hence they did not evolve into further species

Give example for species which survived and which became extinct as per theory of natural selection Penguins developed flippers instead of wings to swim better. They survived and produced off-springs like themselves.

Dinosaurs became extinct.

What is stone age? Stone age is a broad pre-historic time period during which tools were made from a variety of stones.

What are the four periods within Stone Age?

500,000 to 10,000 BC - Palaeolithic age

10,000 to 8,000 BC - Mesolithic age

8,000 to 4,000 BC - Neolithic age

4,000 to 2,000 BC - Chalcolithic age

How was life during Palaeolithic age or Old Stone age?

Life during old stone age was tough. Man was a nomad who wandered from place to place in groups in search of food.

Home

Man lived close to rivers for want of easy access to water. He lived in caves and trees for protection from wild animals. Caves also gave protection from bad weather.

Food

Old stone age man hunted animals and ate their flesh. He also gathered fruits and roots.

Clothing

Old stone age man was very hairy - this provided a natural protection from bad weather. He used animal skins or leaves to cover himself.

Art

Man was very artistic in this age. He painted pictures of animals and other aspects of nature in the cave walls.

Tools

Early man of this stone age period made crude and unpolished tools of stone. Large stone pieces were shaped into hammers, scrapers, and axe heads. These tools were used to cut trees, kill animals, and cut meat.

Discovery and use of fire

Early man rubbed pieces of flint against each other to create fire. Fire was used for various purposes:

To cook food

To keep warm

To provide light

To frighten wild animals

What is Mesolithic age also known as and why?

Mesolithic age was also known as age of improvisation because this period witnessed rise in temperature and climate became warm and dry. This affected life and brought about changes in life.

How was life during Mesolithic age?

Tools

Tools were more refined and smaller in size. They were called microliths.

They were much sharper and effective.

Animal bones, stones, wood and horns were used to make microliths.

Bows and arrows helped in hunting fast moving animals.

Hooks and baits were used for fishing.

Borers were used to make holes.

Occupation

Men observed that when seeds fell on ground and received water they grew into plants that bore grains. They also began to tame animals. The first animals to be tamed was a dog.

How was life during Neolithic age or New Stone age?

There was further advancement made by man.

Agriculture

Man gave up his nomadic ways and started settling in fertile river valleys suitable for agriculture.He started growing crops like barley, wheat and rice.He also learnt to plough the land before planting seeds.

Shelter

Houses had thatched roofs which were made up of mud. They began to live in groups in small villages.

Domestication of animals

Man realized that more animals could be tamed and used for different purposes.

Invention of wheel

Invention of wheel greatly changed man's life and put him on the path of progress.The circular motion of a wooden log rolling down the slope gave the early man the idea of wheel.This was a significant invention of Neolithic age.

The wheel was used for:

Pottery

Spinning

Transportation and carrying heavy loads

Dress

With the learning of the art of spinning and weaving, skin of animals and barks of trees were substituted by cotton and woollen clothes.

Barter System

To meet their needs people exchanged the goods they made or produced. Example: The potter or weaver exchanged his products for food with the farmer.

This system of exchanging goods and services was called Barter System.

Explain about the religion of Neolithic man.

He was afraid of the forces of nature like thunder, storms etc. he began to worship them failing to understand these natural phenomena. He performed ceremonies to please gods.He believed in life after death as he buried the dead with items of daily use.

What is the other name of Chalcolithic age?

The other name of chalcolithic age is copper stone age.This is a period of transition from stones to metals.

Explain Chalcolithic age.

Man realized that molten metal could be hammered into tools and weapons.Copper,tin and zinc were discovered but copper was the first one to be discovered.These tools were better and sharper than other tools.