Re: Origin and function of language
T&B Schmal (schmal@firstnethou.com)
Thu, 27 Jun 1996 22:28:14 +0000
> Mark Leney <mdl1002@cus.cam.ac.uk> wrote:
> >On Sun, 23 Jun 1996, Cheradenine Zakalwe wrote:
> >
> >> They had brains as large (or large) than ours. A large brain uses up a
> >> lot of energy so they must have done something with it.
> >
> >I agree, I think it was probably amiable chatter about handaxes etc..
> >nothing really special. Robin Dunbar suggets that even today we mostly use
> >language for a type of social grooming rather than communication per se.
Even if you were on a desert island, without the need for social skills or
communication, language would help you. without language thought would be
enormously difficult. I would say language is a tool for thinking more
than anything.
So your question is a good one. What *did* neandertal use his brains for?
Tom Schmal
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