Starflower wrote:Pre-Clovis America anyone?
well well well.
let's look at our assumptions, and i'll focus on a single, simple point.
the concept of migration.
when we speak of birds, or whales, or caribou "migrating" we speak of a yearly cycle, driven by seasonal change.
i think it is safe to say that when the golden plover leaves the arctic for points many thousands of miles south, it is for two reasons.
1.) the arctic summer, short as it is, provides a fantastic amount of food for successfully gestating and rearing the next generation of golden plovers.
2.) when the arctic winter sets in, the plovers are hardwired to head south to another location which is at peak food availability.
and we are hardwired in terms of associating migratory patterns with the seasons.
with one exception.
ourselves.
yes, of course, there are many descriptions of the seasonal paths of primitive peoples, but seldom, if at all, do i see this described as migration.
instead, the word migration - when associated with humans - is used as a term to describe "going a long way away, not to return".
it appears not to include in its associative values the cyclical value.
it is a one way street.
so why do we reserve this exceptional definition of migration for ourselves, only?
and could this have something to do with the entire out of africa hypothesis, and subsequent "migrations" in the next couple 100k years?
could this have something to do with how we, as a species, are hardwired?
john