Wednesday, September 17, 2008

"Before we Ruled the Earth" Discussion


After part 1 of "Before We Ruled the Earth" what do you think so far? I think this movie does a great job giving us a visual of what things may have been like back then. Remember, the movie is based on available scientific evidence, not 100% accurate. Some things we know, but there are a few gaps that need to be filled in with educated guesses. I especially liked the hunt of the Irish Elk, the Challenge of controlling fire, and the successful hunt at the end. Let's discuss some things as we think about "Before We Ruled the Earth":
1. What was the most powerful tool that the neanderthals discovered, a tool so powerful that it changed the course of history forever?
2. How did the neanderthals use this new found tool in hunting? What other uses did it have for these people?
3. What was the challenge the Neadnerthals faced in using fire? How did they solve this problem?
4. Describe how the neanderthals hunted. Is it similar or different than how we hunt today?
5. How does fire impact our lives today? Think about it-the different ways may surprise you.

72 comments:

Anonymous said...

the stone age rocks the Saber tooth Cat is awesome i wish i had it as a pet but it didn't have teeth

Anonymous said...

1.Fire

2.They used it to round up animals like Irish Elk, it also kept them warm and helped cook food and make it more digestible.

3.Keeping it lit.They learned that pine resin put on wood would burn and keep the fire going.

4.They rounded up the animals and back them up against a cliff to trap them. It's similair because they have to stalk the animals before they kill them, but different because we don't have as much contact with the animals as they did then.

5.Um...I think that fire still plays a very important part in our lives today. I think that we use it for hot water and heating...But not like a plain old fire sitting in the middle of our living room. We use electricity to heat things, but we started out with fire. (we have fireplaces too)


-Tasia

Anonymous said...

The most powerful tool that the neandrethals dicovred was fire. They used the fire for keeping warm, cooking meat, and hunting. In hunting they used the fire for caring the animals off cliffs for meat. Their only challange that they faced was how to keep the fire going. I already described how they hunt, but it is very different from how we hunt today, because today we hunt with guns instead of fire. Fire became our first source of heat, and if we hadn't discovered fire we would still be eating raw meat which could make us sick.

Anonymous said...

this video was weird but intresting.the cavemens powerfullest was fire.they used fire to scare elk or other animals and they used it to keep them warm. the problem was that the fire went out in wet places so they used pinr ressin.they used fire and we dont now.

Anonymous said...

Fire was the most powerful tool they had it haad changed life as it is now.They used the fire during hunting by helping them chaceing the Irish Elk into the plce they wanted.The problem with the fire was it kept going out and they would have no fire and they solved it by the Poin resin or other wise.The hunting today is diffrent back then because now we have more helpful tools.Fire inpact our lives buy helping more.

Anonymous said...

1.pine resin
2. hand ax
3.keeping fire lit by moisture
4.similar
5.we were developed by them

Anonymous said...

fire because animals were afraid of it and it cooked foooood
animals feared it so they could hunt quicker and better
the neandrathals did not know how to keep the fire lit.theyfound a plant called pine resin that kept the fire lit
different because the neandrathals try'd to trick the animals now we just have fancy things like guns\

Anonymous said...

1. fire

2.they used torches to hurd there prey and drive them off a cliff.They also used it by cooking there food and to get warm.

3.The problem was fire burns out in damp areas so when they went to hurd the elk off a cliff with a waterfall the fire burned out and the elk srampeled them.

4.They hunted with spears and fire, we hunt with guns and bow and arrows.

5.We use fire by cooking food, and making smores.

Anonymous said...

The information seems to be very realistic but, in the parogragh beside the picture does say some of the part is not true I can see that.


1. Fire changed life forever, pine resin later helped keep their fires alive.

Anonymous said...

fire
they used it fo;r cooking there food
the problem was there fire kept going out so they used pine resin
to keep there fire going

Anonymous said...

1.fire
2.they used it to push animals off the ledge or so they wouldnt attack any of there men.
3.they found this gooey substance that keeps the fire going, its from a tree.
4.its different because they used spears and knives, but today we use guns instead of knives.
5.it helps us because if we didnt have fire today we would not have warmth and other important stuff we have today.

Anonymous said...

1. fire
2. they used the fire to hunt the irish elk. How they did that is they forced the elk to fall of a cliff.
3. the chalenge was they were trying to keep the fire from going out.they found pine resin.

Anonymous said...

1.a rock as sharp as a sabre tooth cat

2.it could cut up there food and it could fight against animals

3.the fire cept going out

Anonymous said...

Cassidy Period 3

1.Fire

2.To scare the elk down the water fall; to keep them warm.

3.They couldn't figure out how to keep fire going in damp areas; They healed wounds with pine resin and when they were done they through it into the fire and it stayed going in the rain.

4.They hnted with fire and spears. They hunt sort of the same amd sort of not as us.

5.Fire helps heat us and our home they also can cook food for us and boil water. I think that fire has effected our lifes alot.

Anonymous said...

They discovered pine reson a plant that burned for a very long time.

Anonymous said...

1.Fire....oh yeah!!!!!
2.to scare the elk down the waterfall, to see in the night, and to scare away animals!!!
3.It went out...they solved it by using tree sap...hehehe
4.they hunted wierd...different
5.we use it for campfires and lots of more...wow!!!!!
6. Social Studies Rocks...hehehe

Anonymous said...

They discovered that they could hunt with fire,but the fire would die in wet land and the animal turn and hurt them.Then they found pine reson that would keep the fire alive in wet palces.

Anonymous said...

I think that fire was one of the most important things in the stoneage. It helped them hunt because the elk were scared of the fire. The fire went out because it was damp were they hunted. So they used pine resin. The stoneage people hunt similar to us. Wehn we hunt we have to chase the animal then shoot it. I think the stoneage was amazing and I wish I could have seen it in real life.

Anonymous said...

1. Fire

2. They scared the elk to the cliff to try and get them off the edge.

3. In the damp air the torches went out and the elk weren't scared they used a special plant special pine stuff to keep the fire lint in damp areas.

4. They used spears and fire we use guns.

5. We use fire to warm ourselves and help us cook alot.

Anonymous said...

Fire was the most powerful tool. They used it to scare the elk off the cliff. Fire was also used for keeping warm or cooking meat.The problem was that the fire went out in moist air.They fixed the problem by puting resen from a tree on the fire. The hunt was varey differant from today becouse they scare the animals into dieing.We use it when we go camping or in a fire place

Anonymous said...

1.The most powerful tool was the fire. 2.They used it to keep them warm and safe. 3.The challenge they faced was that they had to kill the Sabre Tooth Cat for meat. 4.They hunted Sabre Tooth Cats for there meat and it is kind of simular to what we hunt today except for we dont hunt for meat we buy it from the stores.

Anonymous said...

1. fire

2. Keeping warm and fight ing prey

3.they had to keep the fire goin and they found a natural resourc eto keep the fire going

4.it was not how we hunted today because we know how to and have the right equipment to hunt instead of using fire and trying to lead our prey off a cliff

Anonymous said...

1. The most powerful tool that neanderthals discovered? fire

2. How did the neanderthals use this tool in hunting? They used fire to scare the animals over a ledge.

3. What was the challenge the neadnerthals faced with fire?
The fire would go out. They burned pine reason with fire.

Anonymous said...

1.Fire
2.To scare the elk down the waterfall so that they would fall down and die. To warm houses.

Anonymous said...

1.fire
they used pine resin to keep the the fire going.

3.they went to a damp area so as my prediction the fire went out.

2.they use it for cooking

Anonymous said...

1.Fire

2.They used Fire to push the irish
elk over the edge


3.The fire would always go out
and the pine resin keeped it
from going out

4.They would push the elk over the
edge

5.It keeps us warm and cooks our food

Anonymous said...

1 fire
2 they used it to scare the animals and make them jump off a cliff. they also used it to cook food
3 They had trouble keeping the fire going. They used pine resine to keep it going.
4 They scare the animals and make them jump off a cliff and we have guns and we do not scare them we just shoot them.
5 Fire impacts our lives today because we use it to cook.

Anonymous said...

my favorite animal from the stone age would either have to be the Smiladon Fitalis and many of you know it as the Sabretooth cat. answers:
1.fire
2.

Anonymous said...

The most important tool was fire

Anonymous said...

1.fire
2.they used fire to push the Irish Elk of the cliff
3.the fire kept going out but then they found pine resin
4.with fire and spears kinda like us

Anonymous said...

#1 is fire
#2 they used fire so they could scare the elk so the elk couldnt attack them and so they could get food.

Anonymous said...

1.Fire
2.The fire helped round up anmals like the Irish elk and helped them hunt

Anonymous said...

1.fire

2.scaring animals and cooking food

3.they used pine sap to keep there fires going while by the misty and damp air by the river

4.chased animals of cliffs and it is different than today

Anonymous said...

1. fire
2.They used the fire to scare the Irish elk off the cliff.
3.The fire

Anonymous said...

1. a rock as sharp as a sabre tooth cat

2.it could cut up food and fight against animals

3.the fire kept going out thty prevented it with pine resin

4.they hunted in packs and they hunt the same and different. Same, they hunted with weapons just like we do and sometimes they got hurt. DIfferent, they did not hunt with guns and they didnt have sounds of the other animals

5.fire impacts us today by keeping us warm and helping us cook food.

Anonymous said...

Hi, sorry about the either and answers errors above. I liked the video because it was very realistic and informational. the full answers now are called: 1.fire
2. fire was used for hunting, to scare their prey, the Irish Elk off the cliff,to cook things, and for warmth.
3. the fire would go out, and the
irish Elk would no longer be scared. and one would often be killed in the struggle. the problem was solved by burning pine resent, a sticky substance found on pine trees to help the fire last longer.
4. It is similar to how we hunt, but we hunt with guns, not sticks,clubs,or spears.
5. without the neanderthals discovering fire, we proably die. they would die too and we would not be here. We could not cook or stay warm it would be difficult without fire.

Anonymous said...

The most powerful tool that the neandrethals dicovred was fire. They used the fire for keeping warm, cooking meat, and hunting. In hunting they used the fire for caring the animals off cliffs for meat. Their only challange that they faced was how to keep the fire going. I already described how they hunt, but it is very different from how we hunt today, because today we hunt with guns instead of fire. Fire became our first source of heat, and if we hadn't discovered fire we would still be eating raw meat which could make us sick.

Anonymous said...

1. fire
2.to chase things to keep warm
3.the fire went out so they used pine resin
4.they chased game off a cliff we use guns
5.it keeps us warm it fires our guns it runs our cars

Anonymous said...

I think that the stone age is a great thing to learn in the beginning of the year because we probably know more about the stone age then most other things that we will learn.The movie teaches us more about it like little things that we were never bothered to lear in elementry school.

-Becca

Anonymous said...

1.fire

2.they drove the elk of the cliff

3.to keep it going,they used the surupy liquid

4.they drove animals of cliffs,it different because we use guns

5.it cooks stuff

Anonymous said...

1. fire
2. they would push the elk off the cliff
3.they solved the problem by useing pine resedou
4.they pushed there animals off the cliff and we shoot them
5.we use it to cook

Anonymous said...

1. fire
2.they drove animals over edges and could keep them selves warm
3. when the fire went out they had no fire so after time they found pine rein and that solved their problems
5.it gives us heat and cooks our food

Anonymous said...

The stone age video is awsome, I really like the part where they find out how to keep the fire going. The video its self is a little weird but it gives us a very good visual.

Anonymous said...

1. fire
2. to cook and make there food for digestible
3/ they put pine bark and put it on the fire wood to push the elk of the cliff
4. they hunt by pushing elk of and have hunters kill them for meat mmmmmm it is a lot differnt then today
5. make us can have light and even sometimes still cook are food

Anonymous said...

#1.Fire
#2.They found fire good fot hunting because it scared the irish elk off the cliffs.
#3.They had trouble keeping the fire lit in damp areas, but they found pine resin and that kept the fire lit in damp areas.
#4.I dont know i dont hunt.
#5.It keeps our stoves lit.

Anonymous said...

#1 The tool is the hand ax
#2 They used it to chop animals
#3 The challenge is that the fire would dry out. They solved it with pine resin.
#4 They hunted by chasing the elk off the bridge. It is different because we usually don't hunt like that today.
#5 Fire impacts our lives today by entering houses and forests and killing people and animals.

Anonymous said...

1. fire
2. to scare iris elk off the edge
of the cliff.
3.at first the neadratholls fire went out and the iris elk attacket and by useing pine syrup the fire lasted longer
4.

Anonymous said...

fire this video ws interesting

Anonymous said...

1fire
2it would keep away other amimals
3the fire bernd out so they usedpine risin
4 they se spears
5good and bad

Anonymous said...

Number 1. i think it is fire.
#2.the fire was used for hunting animals by chasing them down a cliff as in the video they chased the elk off the cliff.They also used fire for warmth.
#3.The fire wouldn't stay lit so they tried to figure out and they did they used pine risin to keep the fire going even in rain and wind storms.
#4.They used fire and arrowheads and also spears and we use shotguns they hunted mamoths sabre tooth cats and giant irish elk and we hunt for deer and phesants.
#5.we use that for marshmellows.

Anonymous said...

1. i think fire
2. it scared the beasts
3. they could not keep it burning,they found pine rosen
4. in packs,very differnt.
5. it cooks our food,heats our home,makes smors

Anonymous said...

#1 FIRE
#2They scared the elk off the cliff,used to keep warm,and light.
#3 they couldnt keep the fire going.
#4different cause we dont hunt with fire, and they used fire to scare animals of cliffs.
#5 we cook,and keep things heated.

Anonymous said...

1. Fire
2.they used fire to scare irish elk over cliffs, they also used it for light and to heat there food
3.they could not keep the fire lit. they found pine sap to keep the fire lit.
4.irish elk that stood 9 feet tall and had a rack 11 feet wide. different
5. it helps us cook alot of things.

Anonymous said...

1 fire
2 they used it to scare the elk off the cliff and they could cook with it.
3 it wouldnt stay lit but they used pine resen.
4 way different we use use guns instead of fire.
5 we use it to keep warm and cook.

Anonymous said...

1.Fire
2.They used fire to cook food and chasing the Irish Elk off the cliff
3.The fire

Anonymous said...

1. Fire.
2. Well, uh, animals were scared of it, and it cooked their food and kept them warm.
3. They had to keep the fire going in wet places. They found out that pine resin kept it lit.
4. I think it's a lot different. I mean, duh, we don't go chasing HUGE elk with burning torches and forcing them off a cliff.
And, # 5. I guess we use fire for lots of stuff, like heaters and stuff, but we don't really depend on it anymore. I mean, we have electricty and gas. Fires are sometimes used by rangers to keep dangerous plants under control.

-Sally

Anonymous said...

1. fire.
2.to scare the animals, to cook their food.
3.they couldn't keep it burning, pine resin kept it burning.
4.they scared the elk with the fire and cornered them at the edge of a cliff. I think it is different.
5.we use it when we are camping, for heaters, for cookouts around a campfire, but I think we might use electricity and gas and stuff like that more than we use fire.

-Umaima

Anonymous said...

1.Fire
2.They used it to scare the animals off the cliff to the hunters below
3.They could not keep the fire lit in damp air, but they solved the problem with pine resin, wich burns even in the rain.
4.It is verry different than today's hunting, because we don't go out ,armed with a torch, and drive a duck off a cliff. (because it would fly away!)
5.With out fire we woldn't have alote of the things we do today like canndels, cars, lighters, instant hot water, oven, stove, gun, fireworks, chainsaw, lawn mower, leaf blower, and, THE MOST IMPORTANT ONE EVER... smores!!!!!

Anonymous said...

1.fire

2. They used the fire to drive the elk off a water fall so that they would die and they used the fire to warm the tentd that they slept in.

3.They used pine resin to keep there fire going in the rain or in damp areas

4.They used fire to make the elk or what ever they were hunting jump off a cliff or a water fall and we used a gun so its pertty diffrent how we hunt and how they hunted

5.we used fire to cook some of our food, to roast mashmellows in when you go camping and to keep warm with to

Anonymous said...

1. Fire!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!2.They used fire to scare them

Anonymous said...

1. fire
2.They used fire to scare the elk of the cliff and used it to keep them warm.
3.The fire kept going out when they went by water so they put pine sap on it.
4.They hunted with fire and tried to scared the animals of the cliff.They hunted different then we do today

Anonymous said...

1.The neanderthals discovered fire.
2.While they were on hunts fire helped them by scaring their prey
off a cliff to die. In addition to
helping them on fights fire also
gave them warmth,and cooked their
meat. 3.They discovered that fire
went out in damp air. The neanderthals solved their problem with pine risen. 4. Yes. 5.It helps us rost marshmellows

Anonymous said...

1.fire is the most powerful tool.
2.tried to scare them off the cliff
3.they could not keep the fire going so they used pine resin.
4.

Anonymous said...

1.Fire
2.they used fire for scaring and killing the animals.they also used fire for heating their food.
3.the problem they faced was keeping their fire lit.the resoulution was pine resin.
4.they used their instincts during hunting more than we do.
5.we use fire for heating our food and providing light.

Anonymous said...

1. The most important life changing tool the neanderthals discovered was fire.

2. They used it to frighten then Irish Elk off the cliff. Other uses it had was cooking food so it was more digestible, and for keeping warm.

3. The problem was that when they went hunting they would come across moist air and the moisture would put the fire out. They solved this problem by putting pine resin on the end of their torches, which kept them lit.

4. The neanderthals hunted very differently than how we hunt today. They would lite torches and sneak up on their prey and then attempt to drive them over a cliff to their death, where the neanderthals would then collect their carcass. Today, we go hunting in the woods, still sneakily though, and basically take aim at the animal with a gun.

5. I think that fire majorly impacted our lives. It's used to heat things like houses. it's used to cook food, without cooking some food properly you can get deadly diseases.

Anonymous said...

1 Fire
2 To scare the Elk off the hill/keep people warm/cook meat
3 It kept burning out
4 They hunted by scaring the Elk off the hill with fire/No we use guns or arrows
5 Fire could be a bad thing but helps us too Ex:Fire could help heat our homes Ex:a wild fire could spread and cause homes to get burned down

Anonymous said...

4. describe how neadnerthals hunted.they scared what they hunted over a ledge. It is different from the way we hunt today.

5. How does fire impact yourour lives today? Fire impacts us today becuse we cook with it and it provides heat.

Anonymous said...

1.Fire
2.They used it to drive the Irish elk of a cliff, and they used the fire to cook there meet.
3.The fire allwase went out so they found out how to control it (pine resin)
4.Diforint we use guns and bows they did not.
5.Camp fires, ovens, and heat.

Anonymous said...

1.Fire

2.To scare the elk down the water fall to keep them.

3.They couldn't get the keep the fire still going. They healed wounds with pine resin and when they were done they through it into the fire and it was in still going in the rain.

4.They hunted with fire and spears.

5.Can keep us warm in the winter & helps us heat are food so it is not cold.

Anonymous said...

1. fire
2. to scare the Irish Elk off the cliff, to keep warm, and to cook food
3. the fire kept going out in damp areas so the put pine resin on the end of the tourch
4. they used fire to scare the animals or they would throw spears at the animals.
5. to light candles, if you are on the grill,and in some science experiments

Anonymous said...

#1 Fire
#2 they used it to round,it also kept them warm and helped cook food and make it more dijestable.
#3 Keeping it lit. They learned that pine resin put on wood would burn and keep the fire going.
#4 they rounded up the animals and backed them up against a cliff type mountain to trap them. It's similiar because they have to stalk the animals before they kill them, but the different because we don't have as much contact with the animals as they did then.
#5 I think that fire still plays a important part in our lives today. I think we use it for hot water and heating...but noty like a plain old fire sitting in the middle of our family room,we use electricity to heat things,but we started out with fire.(we have fireplaces now too)

Craig Nelson said...

I love this video, and am so excited to finally have a blog of my own. We should talk more about the stone age sometime...I think it's a really cool time period that we can learn a lot about ourselves from. By the way, that ancient civilization introduction video was the coolest thing I've ever seen. If that doesn't get you interested in the ancient world, nothing will. Thanks for all your help. You're the best teacher I've ever had.