In Science this week a Cambridge paleoanthropologist and his group report some reasonably hard numbers to back an old hypothesis: Modern peoples rapidly supplanted Neanderthals in Europe 40,000 years ago or so, in short order, because they just plain outnumbered them. Coverage is extensive.(Note: scroll a few posts down, see Pere Estupinya  on coverage of this in Spanish language press).

Ironically perhaps, the editors at Science threw a great deal more effort into a far more important (if, yes and alas, duller) package in a highly related issue: contemporary population growth and what it bodes. Ah well, let’s write a snappy story evoking a horde of slender and brainy bipeds arriving in Europe, toting good stone tools, and swamping and evicting the existing, sturdy bipeds who weren’t so stupid and had pretty good stone implements too – and that soon disappeared entirely. As for whether overpopulation is upon us with dire consequences, or perhaps we’re in for near-endless boom in numbers and prosperity alike, that’s so…..scholarly and serious and important. It can wait. Neanderthals are an easier sell to editors and readers alike.

Which is to say – I’d rather write about Neanderthals and make allusions to Clan of the Cave Bear, too. But in idle moments, I think about precious babies and more and more of them fitting on our finite planet a lot more.

Stories:

• Guardian – Ian Sample: Neanderthal’s demise caused by modern human invasion; Not bad but why write that the team “found that” modern humans arrived in numbers ten times that of Neanderthals. Why not write “concluded that,” which is all one can say for sure?
• Mail – Riddle of the vanishing Nanderthals finally solved … they were overrun by modern humans ; And even more drastic illus of the Brit press’s allergy to any hint of a hedged bet anywhere near the lede or hed.
• LA Times – Amina Khan: Humans may have crowded out Neanderthals, study says ; Not long, but Khan manages to get three outsiders for expert comment – one of them rather dismissive.
• Telegraph – Nick Collins: Neanderthals overrun by early humans ; Again, no hint of the scientist’s favorite crutch: the error bar.
• USA Today – Elizabeth Weise: Study: Neanderthals out-numbered, out-cultured by humans ; Interesting quote, from the lead author, with another unprovable assertion: Neanderthals had been “thriving in these European glacial areas for at least 300,000 years, and along come these black Africans from the tropical south and they replaced them in a few thousand years.” If they were pretty recently from sunny Africa, black is a good guess. I suppose. I’m unsure why it is jarring to see it expressed however.
• Bloomberg – Oliver Renick: Humans’ Sheer Numbers Enabled Europe Dominance 40,000 Years Ago ;
• Best hed prize  (supposition, plus implication of displacement, not slaughter) LiveScience – Jennifer Welsh: Masses of Humans May Have Sent Neanderthals Packing ;
• SEcond place hed prize, for originality, New Scientist – Colin Barras: Industrial revolution sealed Neanderthals’ fate ;
• AP – Researchers say humans crowded out Neanderthals ; No byline, not evident anyway in a quick search around. A rather skeptical piece.

Grist for the Mill: Cambridge U. Press Release , which is rather emphatic that the paper not only has conclusions, but that they are just plain true. Not many caveats to be seen here. This may have pushed some  reporters into leaving out the maybes, too. ;

- Charlie Petit

This entry was posted on Friday, July 29th, 2011 at 3:13 pm and is filed under Science Stories. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.