The correct name should be Homo prometheus.

 Race on Tuesday, December 24

Race on Friday, December 27

Today was a 12 km long run to close 2024.

This week, I came across a note on the Internet that caught my attention and was the reason for my wandering today.

In a cave in France, evidence of human use of fire was found. The age of these hearth remains is 270 thousand years, making them the oldest remains of fire use in Europe. Something that the authors highlight is that at that time modern human beings had not yet arrived in Europe, so those responsible must have been Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis) or probably H. heidelbergensis, the common ancestor of Neanderthals and us. That there is evidence that humans before us used fire did not surprise me, that is well known. 

Fire has always existed, but originally it must have scared our ancestors and the rest of the animals: it is lethal. When they saw fire, they must have run away.

But once the danger had passed, some things must have caught the attention of our ancestors: first, the remains of some animals that died in the fire and were not charred could not only be eaten, but it was easier to do so and they tasted very good. Second, where embers or small fires remained, one felt warm, and the cold was avoided. Third, most animals, especially those dangerous to our ancestors, fear fire.

So they began to use fire, mainly to cook their food. Cooking them makes food much more digestible. But it also kills many of the parasites that are naturally in food.

Now, how do you know when they started using fire? If human remains are found in open places where it is seen that there was a fire, how do we know if it was a natural fire and the remains are those of victims of the fire? Or what if the humans arrived when the fire was over?

But...what if the remains of the fire are inside caves, a good distance from the opening? This is the case with caves in France.

Someone took the fire there, they didn't necessarily do it, but they could have taken it from the remnants of the fire, inside, where they had shelter and could make their roast beef.

Probably the oldest site with evidence of cave fire is Swartkrans Cave in South Africa, which is 1.5 million years old. And, in addition to fire, there is evidence of burned bones here. The human remains of that antiquity in those caves are from H. erectus.

I don't like the name given to that species at all.

Why don't I like it?

The name, Homo erectus, means “Upright Man” and since the archaic humans of more than 4 million years ago there were already upright monkeys, so the name does not refer to anything special about that species.

One thing is to use fire, another to do it, the oldest evidence of fire manufacturing is in Israel, approximately 790 thousand years ago. In Gesher Benot Ya'aqov remains of fire were found and there were stones that appear to have been exposed to fire; they could be evidence of a hearth. Remains of cooked food were also found at the site. Again associated with H. erectus.

Using fire allowed these ancestors to do several things. They expanded their diet, not only by adding more meat, but also by eating plants that could not be consumed raw, but could be eaten once cooked. They improved their tools, especially organic ones made of wood and bones, and the careful use of fire made them stronger and more durable. Last but not least: socializing. Who hasn't been to a good gathering enjoying a roasted piece of meat or simply around a campfire?

In Greek mythology, a demigod, Prometheus, steals fire from the gods to give it to men. So I think the correct name of H. erectus should be Homo prometheus.