| Invention | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2,600,000 BCE | Use of Stone Tools | Africa | first used by Homo Habilis in East Africa |
| 1,420,000 BCE | Use of Fire | Africa | first used by Homo Erectus |
| 500,000 BCE | Cloth Buildings | Africa | tents |
| 400,000 BCE | Cutting Tools | Africa | first used by Homo Sapiens |
| 38,000 BCE | Fishing | Africa | using bones as hooks |
| 30,000 BCE | Bow and Arrow | Africa | for hunting and war |
| 30,000 BCE | Spear | Africa | for hunting |
| 28,000 BCE | Art | Europe | cave painting in Central Europe |
| 25,000 BCE | Cooking Pits | Europe | holes outside houses for cooking modern Ukraine |
| 20,000 BCE | Counting | Africa | counting stick from Congo (in 60s) |
| 17,000 BCE | Lamps | Europe | using animal fat fuel in Central Europe |
| 12,000 BCE | Domestication of Dog | Europe Mesopotamia China |
for hunting and protection |
| 12,000 BCE | Drum | Africa | first musical instrument |
| 10,000 BCE | Boats | Pacific | dug out logs |
Homo Erectus learnt to use fire.
No other animal is known to use or has used fire. The use of fire allows humans to harness energy to produce heat and light at night and in areas where the climate is less favourable. This allowed humans to colonise large areas of the world away from their native tropical Africa. Fire allowed food to be cooked which made more things edible and easier to digest.
Modern humans date from about 400,000 BCE when Homo Sapiens began to use cutting tools. By around 250,000 BCE humans were burying their dead. Human speech began around 200,000 BCE. Personal ornaments were being used c40,000 BCE.
Humans spread out overland from Africa to Europe and Asia. They developed their hunting techniques as well as gathering fruits, nuts and grubs. Other humanoids became extinct.
Around 30,000 BCE, the ice age lowered the level of the sea. This allowed humans to cross land bridges to the Americas and to cross small amounts of sea to Australia. By 10,000 BCE the sea levels had risen again and the three continents remained isolated from each other for 9000 years.
A key development was the domestication of the dog. This was the first animal to be domesticated, becoming dependent on humans for shelter, food and breeding. In return, it helped in hunting and gave warning of intruders and some protection.
