Re: Who Killed the Australopithecines?
JoeBeaver (joebeaver@aol.com)
19 Apr 1995 23:09:57 -0400
BARD writes:
>JoeBeaver <joebeaver@aol.com> wrote:
[. . .]
>> As to the hypothesis in question, are you suggesting "killed off"
by
>>being out-competed by another species or something more along the lines
>>of genocide?
>> Finally, by "A. species" do you intend the entire genus
>>Australopithecus?
>
>
> ___________________________________
>
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> (i). Hunted down and killed off in much the way we exterminate roaches.
>
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> (ii). For the purposes of this discussion, yes.
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>
>
> BARD
Thanks for the clarification.
As to the question of the Australopithecines' having been killed off
by later species--presumably H. habilis and H. erectus--I see severable
problems with the concept. The most important of these is also one that
makes the remaining problems irrelevant. That problem is the lack of
evidence. I have neither seen nor heard of any such. Without
evidence--without even circumstantial evidence--I have nothing on which to
base any consideration of the question. This is much the same problem
with which many religions are faced: no evidence either way. The
difference is that this is science (at least in theory), and in science
you need evidence to get anywhere--not merely a lack of evidence against a
hypothesis.
Joe Beaver
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