Early Fire Use Wasn’t for Cooking, New Theory Suggests

Hundreds of thousands—if not over a million—years ago, humans discovered how to make fire. This would prove to be one of the most important advancements in prehistoric human development, but the origin of this vital discovery remains a contentious topic among scholars. In a study published last month in the journal Frontiers, researchers from Tel Aviv University proposed a new theory for what prompted humans to start making and controlling fires: to protect their food from animals, and, most notably, to extend the prehistoric shelf life of their meat through smoking and drying. In other words, prehistoric speck. The scientists claim to be the first to propose this hypothesis, which aligns with a broader theory they’ve been developing: that humans’ consumption of large animals—and then smaller ones when the megafauna became extinct—drove important prehistoric developments. “The origins of fire use is a ‘burning’ topic among prehistory researchers around the world. It is generally agre ... Read full article.