(May 12, 2013 at 12:28 pm)Minimalist Wrote: http://home.vicnet.net.au/~auranet/marin...index.html
Quote:One of the most significant finds in the history of archaeology is the discovery that hominins of more than 850 000 years ago managed to cross the sea to colonise a number of Indonesian islands. Nusa Tenggara, the islands east of Bali, have never been connected to either Asia or Australia, but they were found to have been occupied by Homo erectus as well as by several endemic species of Stegodonts (extinct elephants) early in the Ice Age. Until recently, it had been assumed that the first sea crossings occurred no more than 60 000 years ago.
These crossings of several sea barriers involved the use of watercraft, because sea straits cannot be crossed without propellant, so this was the first time in human history that our ancestors entrusted their destiny to a contraption designed to harness the energies of nature.
Is that across an ocean though?
It could be that lower sea levels permitted crossing, by means of pools or shallow stretches connecting islands.
Also, why is there no evidence of homo erectus rafts in other areas? unless these homo erectus were super erectus, or were the key in eventual modern human intelligence.
