The Humans Who Went Extinct

The Humans Who Went Extinct by Clive Finlayson


ISBN
9780199239191
Published
Binding
Paperback
Pages
288
Dimensions
145 x 198 x 18mm

Just 28,000 years ago, the blink of an eye in geological time, the last of Neanderthals died out in their last outpost, in caves near Gibraltar. Thanks to cartoons and folk accounts we have a distorted view of these other humans - for that is what they were. We think of them as crude and clumsy and not very bright, easily driven to extinction by the lithe, smart modern humans that came out of Africa some 100,000 years ago. But was it really as
simple as that? Clive Finlayson reminds us that the Neanderthals were another kind of human, and their culture was not so very different from that of our own ancestors. In this book, he presents a
wider view of the events that led to the migration of the moderns into Europe, what might have happened during the contact of the two populations, and what finally drove the Neanderthals to extinction. It is a view that considers climate, ecology, and migrations of populations, as well as culture and interaction. His conclusion is that the destiny of the Neanderthals and the Moderns was sealed by ecological factors and contingencies. It was a matter of luck that we
survived and spread while the Neanderthals dwindled and perished. Had the climate not changed in our favour some 50 million years ago, things would have been very different. There is
much current research interest in Neanderthals, much of it driven by attempts to map some of their DNA. But it's not just a question of studying the DNA. The rise and fall of populations is profoundly moulded by the larger scale forces of climate and ecology. And it is only by taking this wider view that we can fully understand the course of events that led to our survival and their demise. The fact that Neanderthals survived until virtually yesterday makes our relationship with them and their
tragedy even more poignant. They almost made it, after all.
EOFY 2025 Book Frenzy
30.59
RRP: $35.99
15% off RRP


This product is unable to be ordered online. Please check in-store availability.
Instore Price: $35.99
Enter your Postcode or Suburb to view availability and delivery times.

Other Titles by Clive Finlayson

The Improbable Primate
35.99
30.59
15% Off
The Smart Neanderthal
53.99
45.89
15% Off
The Smart Neanderthal
39.99
33.99
15% Off

You might also like

What If2
24.99
21.24
15% Off
What If
45.00
38.25
15% Off
The Coming Wave
36.99
31.44
15% Off
The Shortest History of AI
27.99
23.79
15% Off

RRP refers to the Recommended Retail Price as set out by the original publisher at time of release.
The RRP set by overseas publishers may vary to those set by local publishers due to exchange rates and shipping costs.
Due to our competitive pricing, we may have not sold all products at their original RRP.