NSF Award
2415207
Human adaptability is highly dependent on technology. However, the current knowledge of early technological development derives almost exclusively from stone tools and fossil bones found in the archaeological record. Tools made from organic materials (i.e., wood) are intrinsically perishable and as such are almost entirely absent in the early record of human material culture, leading to an incomplete picture of human technology's origins. This study investigates non-human primate species that use wooden tools as an analogue for the possible behavioral diversity of ancient human ancestors. Organic tools used by non-human primates, are analyzed to identify the resulting modifications. These changes are compared with those observed in wood that was naturally altered. The research employs novel technologies such as machine learning and experiments with robots to identify and standardize diagnostic modifications in ancient fossil wood that show similar damage patterns found in modern primate tools. The resulting methods are applied to fossilized wood remains dated to 4-2 million years ago to investigate wooden tool use in early human ancestors. <br/><br/>The goal of this study is two-fold: (1) to develop a method to identify evidence of percussive tool use in wood (organic tools), and (2) to establish whether there is evidence of percussive organic tool use in fossil wood remains dated between 4.0-2.0 Mya. To attain these goals, researchers collect, document, and analyze organic tools used by non-human primates. Additionally, controlled experiments with a percussive robot are carried out to investigate the effect of various variables (e.g., species, moisture content, etc.) on the formation of percussive traces on wood. Researchers document a variety of natural damage patterns (e.g., due to fungus or insect activity, or due to taphonomic processes). The information is analyzed to create a catalogue of natural and artificial damage patterns. Machine learning models analyze these patterns, distinguishing between natural and tool-use induced damage. Researchers then collect and document fossil wood specimens. Their antiquity is stablished by dating thin sectioned fossil wood (uranium/lead dating), as well as the associated strata (paleomagnetic and tephrochronology analyses). The damage catalog and the AI models are applied to identify patterns of percussive use in the fossilized wood. The study offers new insights into early human behavior and the origins of human technology.<br/><br/>This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
