Quote:
Originally Posted by blankall
I've heard other explanations for our dominance as well. One was a greater affinity for art and abstract thinking. Another was a greater tendency to organize into large bands. Another has to do w/ the increased muscle mass of the neanderthals. They would have needed more caloric intake to sustain that and, thus, been more succeptable to famine. Anyway, I find the whole thing pretty interesting.
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Agreed. I've actually written a couple of papers on the subject of what happened to the Neanderthals.
Recent studies into stable isotope ratios of carbon and nitrogen has yielded results which indicate Neanderthals relied heavily upon meat for their diets. Theres also little evidence to indicate Neanderthals engaged in much active scavenging, but relying on hunting as their primary mode of acquiring meat.
Taking these concepts into account, it’s quite reasonable to accept that when competing against better adapted modern humans, Neanderthals found themselves unable to obtain the meat they required.
And perhaps most interesting, there have been findings that have shown that the Neanderthals likely had cannibalistic tendencies. These sites indicate that the reason behind the bone breakings was to acquire meat, and not as a form of ritual.
So likely, the competition between the two was simply too much for the Neanderthals to handle.