As simple as these tools are, they require a manual dexterity far surpassing that of chimps.About 1.5 million years ago, human ancestors began making large cutting tools, which marked the beginning of the Acheulean culture. Large flakes, slabs and cobbles were shaped into these tools by hammering the edges until they emerged ashand axes designed to be held in both hands. Anthropologists believe these cutting tools are important because they indicate a measure of design.It was only 300,000 years ago, that tool making underwent an extraordinary development. It started with more sophisticated stone blades and went on to include stone-tipped spears and knives mounted on shafts and handles. It was still the “stone age” but the technology’s superiority over what the Neanderthals used may have led to their demise and the rise of Cro-Magnon man, our European ancestor.Professor Ambrose describes these as “composite tools” made from at least three “techno-units”, the handle or shaft, a stone insert and the binding material that held the whole implement together. The difference between these tools and those previously made is this: the earlier tools were hammered out of rock using a mental process that involved repetitive, coarse movements, whereas the later composite tools involved planning, dexterity and non-repetitive movements.”Grammatical language, planning complex tasks and composite tool use were closely related,” Professor Ambrose says. “Assembling techno-units in different configurations produces functionally different tools.

This is formally analogous to grammatical language, because hierarchical assemblies of sounds produce meaningful phrases and sentences, and changing word order changes meaning.” The frontal lobe of the brain’s left cortex controls both language and the fine muscle movements of the hands and face This is no coincidence, he suggests. “The part of the frontal lobe that we now use for planning complex tasks may have co-evolved with composite tool making around 300,000 years ago.”It is clear that sophisticated tools imparted a great benefit to early humans. From about 2.5 million years ago to 300,000 years ago, stone tools changed very little from being the instruments of brute force. Then a technological renaissance took place which coincided with a rapid development of the human brain and the emergence of modern man, Homo sapiens. A million or so years ago, tool makers took their raw materials from within a few miles of where they lived. But from 300,000 years ago, tool making became a more exploratory activity, with people roving tens or even hundreds of miles from where they lived to find their raw materials.Professor Ambrose suggests that this was not the result of climatic change driving people further afield, but a direct result of the growing importance of language as the strongest force in cultural development.

“With the appearance of near-modern brain size, anatomy and perhaps grammatical language about 300,000 years ago, the pace [of development] quickens exponentially,” he says. Once this acceleration began, it has proven impossible to stop Language made sure of that. The first bow and arrow appeared about 12,000 years ago, a few thousand years before writing, followed by the ages of iron, bronze and silicon. “A mere 12,000 years separate the first bow and arrow from the International Space Station,” says Professor Ambrose..

A pioneering black music and lifestyle magazine has closed amid claims that advertisers boycott publications aimed at black cultures. A pioneering black music and lifestyle magazine has closed amid claims that advertisers boycott publications aimed at black cultures.
Touch, launched in 1991 by Trevor Nelson, a club DJ and the founder of Kiss FM radio station in London, would have celebrated its 10th anniversary next month but a dwindling readership and lack of advertising has forced it to close.Mr Nelson tells of at least “one sports manufacturer” who refused to associate with the magazine.”Black kids were the first to embrace trainers and sportswear as fashion but this advertiser said its decision not to advertise in Touch was based on the fact that it’s a music magazine, not a black people’s magazine,” he said “You have to decide whether you believe that or not. They thought they’d increase their sales more if an athlete was pictured in their clothing, not a black rapper.”New Nation is another title that feels it has been boycotted by mainstream advertisers, which are “nervous” about the newspaper.”They don’t understand the influence we have and how big we are,” said Michael Eboda, New Nation’s editor.”Our advertising department is always trying to break the barriers down but it’s an uphill struggle. Many of the trends of modern culture originate in the black community so you would have thought that advertisers would want to be in ahead of the game.”While blue-chip companies are keen to embrace black culture, they don’t want to take the next step and support it with advertising, he said.

“They’ll tell you it’s because they don’t want to ghettoise their products but they have no excuse, they should be interested in us.”Sources at Touch, whose circulation had slumped to 35,000, have put its failure down to “a lack of belief in black magazines across the board”.Mr Nelson, who until this week still wrote a regular column for Touch, agreed that it suffered from a lack of commercial interest. “A magazine like Touch should exist but the industry and advertisers were not interested in supporting it I have to ask myself why that is. Why isn’t it selling 80,000 copies a month because there is nothing else like it out there?”It’s well known that black culture – its style, fashion and music – all melt when you attempt to make them commercial and that has always been a problem for Touch. It has never benefited from enough commercial interest.”Mr Eboda said advertisers were ignoring the quality of New Nation’s editorial offering.