Jacob Petersheim
Well-known member
First human civilization to reach something near our levels of technology.

The left half is highly compressed compared to the right, which is expanded to make room for notations. The more discoveries we make, the further to the left nearly every marked milestone moves leftward.
But even considering just the right portion, that's a long time for people being basically identical to us biologically. Newer DNA evidence also suggests that "Neanderthals" were probably much more of a racial group than a separate species anyway.
Weather and geologic processes can erase an awful lot over time. Who knows what may be buried, under deep waters, or ground away?
To me smelted iron and early steel seem to be key accomplishments. Without saws, various planes, and shavers it is hard to do a lot with wood. Making boards helps a lot in shaping consistent fired bricks in quantity.
I guess I have to marvel that humanity has only gotten our act together once in all of time. Doesn't it seem likely that we've "ascended" similar paths many times, only to be knocked back again by cataclysmic events?

The left half is highly compressed compared to the right, which is expanded to make room for notations. The more discoveries we make, the further to the left nearly every marked milestone moves leftward.
But even considering just the right portion, that's a long time for people being basically identical to us biologically. Newer DNA evidence also suggests that "Neanderthals" were probably much more of a racial group than a separate species anyway.
Weather and geologic processes can erase an awful lot over time. Who knows what may be buried, under deep waters, or ground away?
To me smelted iron and early steel seem to be key accomplishments. Without saws, various planes, and shavers it is hard to do a lot with wood. Making boards helps a lot in shaping consistent fired bricks in quantity.
I guess I have to marvel that humanity has only gotten our act together once in all of time. Doesn't it seem likely that we've "ascended" similar paths many times, only to be knocked back again by cataclysmic events?

