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The Antiquity of the Sling (Read 13074 times)
Morphy
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Re: The Antiquity of the Sling
Reply #15 - Mar 11th, 2012 at 4:55pm
 
timann wrote on Mar 11th, 2012 at 5:16am:
There was this theory around here about tying cords to stones to aid in throwing them, but since cordage was complicated technology someone invented a way to retain the cord when the stone was slung away so it could be used with many stones instead of just one.
timann


To me that sounds as likely as anything. Although Pikaru's idea of the nagging wife... who knows?   Wink
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CHowitzer
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Re: The Antiquity of the Sling
Reply #16 - Mar 11th, 2012 at 6:00pm
 
I just got a funny image of paleolithic man tending to his paleolithic barracks, with just piles of these rocks everywhere, each with a bit of string roped 'round it  Grin

... I assure you, in my head it looks very, very hilarious.
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What old Archimedes actually said:&&"Give me a sling large enough and I can chuck the World!"&&&&His words. In perfect modern English, too!
 
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Re: The Antiquity of the Sling
Reply #17 - Mar 11th, 2012 at 6:22pm
 
The oldest sling we've ever found was 40,000 years old, from Lovelock cave.

I think atlatls are based off of slings, which are estimated to be 50,000 years old; so I wouldn't be surprised if the sling was at least 51,000. I'm not sure what the rate of technological increase back then was. It could have taken only a couple of years to further develop the sling into an atlatl, or it could have taken 20,000 more.
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Re: The Antiquity of the Sling
Reply #18 - Mar 11th, 2012 at 7:23pm
 
xxkid123 wrote on Mar 11th, 2012 at 6:22pm:
The oldest sling we've ever found was 40,000 years old, from Lovelock cave.

I think atlatls are based off of slings, which are estimated to be 50,000 years old; so I wouldn't be surprised if the sling was at least 51,000. I'm not sure what the rate of technological increase back then was. It could have taken only a couple of years to further develop the sling into an atlatl, or it could have taken 20,000 more.

I remember reading somewhere that the culture whom invented the atlatl in its original form was pretty much only human culture on record to not use slings.

I don't remember where I read it though, so for all I know it could have been in "Big Book of Blatant Lies vol.ii."
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What old Archimedes actually said:&&"Give me a sling large enough and I can chuck the World!"&&&&His words. In perfect modern English, too!
 
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Mauro Fiorentini
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Re: The Antiquity of the Sling
Reply #19 - Mar 11th, 2012 at 7:44pm
 
xxkid123 wrote on Mar 11th, 2012 at 6:22pm:
I'm not sure what the rate of technological increase back then was. It could have taken only a couple of years to further develop the sling into an atlatl, or it could have taken 20,000 more.


The rate was very slow during the Neanderthal era, as testified by flint tools that remains the same for almost 200'000 years, and compared to the Homo Sapiens Sapiens era, during which these tools evolved from flint to metal in a mere 25'000 years.
Obviously, a simple technology require a simple mind to be developed (note that I'm not diminishing our ancestor's intelligence, absolutely not!), and I wouldn't be surprised if the sling was adopted almost everywhere in a very short range of time.
Plus, what I personally believe after having done some anthropological analysis on the sling, is that this technology is so simple that multiple cultures can achieve it even if there're no commercial or military contacts between them.
There's a theory about this matter but I can't remember its name!
Greetings,
Mauro.

PS
kid, would you please tell us more about this Lovelock cave? I'm going to do some researches, but would you give us more info, I'd be really grateful - in public or via PM as you like.
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Re: The Antiquity of the Sling
Reply #20 - Mar 11th, 2012 at 10:58pm
 
Ehhhh I noticed I wrote down 40,000 years, not 4,000. Although I would not be surprised if the sling was used 40,000 years ago.

Mauro, I don't know as much as I would like, but I can always recommend good old wikipedia to give a basic explanation.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lovelock_Cave

Long story short, It is a cave in Nevada, USA that was once used be a shelter for humans around 4,000 years ago during winter months. It's unique as it allowed thing stored in it to be nearly perfectly preserved. There are plenty of textiles in it.

Here's another article on the lovelock cave sling
http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/276537?uid=3739560&uid=2129&uid=2&uid=70&u...

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Re: The Antiquity of the Sling
Reply #21 - Mar 11th, 2012 at 11:21pm
 
The motivation for the sling, as with every other innovation was to impress and get a woman. It's why we do most things.
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Re: The Antiquity of the Sling
Reply #22 - Mar 12th, 2012 at 7:57am
 
Thank you kid, I'll look for this cave soon!
The most ancient evidences of slinging in Italy are (to my knowledge) some clay bullets dating to the end of Neolithic (about 4500 - 4000 years ago), but I really have to analyze cave engravings in Northern Italy and, more important, I have to contact that historian who wrote about slinging in the Paleolithic (80'000 years ago).
Greetings,
Mauro.
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Re: The Antiquity of the Sling
Reply #23 - Mar 12th, 2012 at 3:19pm
 
Quote:
The motivation for the sling, as with every other innovation was to impress and get a woman. It's why we do most things.


the main motivation is to eat and not starve to death. Cordage helped enormously in this respect.
And so would slings. Your 'food' is a in a tree, a sling allows you to hunt animals that would hithertoo have been exceptionally difficult to catch.

Now obviously the hunter with the most meat, is going to attract the most mates.

But with no food - you just die. So I'd put food above mating Smiley
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Re: The Antiquity of the Sling
Reply #24 - Mar 12th, 2012 at 3:25pm
 
Me too, even if in harsh time it may happen that your wife turns into food  Grin
Greetings,
Mauro.
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Re: The Antiquity of the Sling
Reply #25 - Mar 12th, 2012 at 4:56pm
 
Mauro Fiorentini wrote on Mar 12th, 2012 at 3:25pm:
Me too, even if in harsh time it may happen that your wife turns into food  Grin
Greetings,
Mauro.


I like the way you think. Remind me not to invite you to my zombie apocalypse shelter.  Smiley
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Re: The Antiquity of the Sling
Reply #26 - Mar 12th, 2012 at 4:57pm
 
Curious Aardvark wrote on Mar 12th, 2012 at 3:19pm:
Quote:
The motivation for the sling, as with every other innovation was to impress and get a woman. It's why we do most things.


the main motivation is to eat and not starve to death. Cordage helped enormously in this respect.
And so would slings. Your 'food' is a in a tree, a sling allows you to hunt animals that would hithertoo have been exceptionally difficult to catch.

Now obviously the hunter with the most meat, is going to attract the most mates.

But with no food - you just die. So I'd put food above mating Smiley



New bumper sticker: "HE WHO HAS THE MOST MEAT, MATES"
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Re: The Antiquity of the Sling
Reply #27 - Mar 14th, 2012 at 9:56pm
 
CHowitzer wrote on Mar 11th, 2012 at 7:23pm:
I remember reading somewhere that the culture whom invented the atlatl in its original form was pretty much only human culture on record to not use slings.

I don't remember where I read it though, so for all I know it could have been in "Big Book of Blatant Lies vol.ii."

That would be the native Australians and their invention of the woomera, a type of spear thrower.
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Pikåru wrote on Nov 19th, 2013 at 6:59pm:
Massi - WTF? It's called a sling. You use it to throw rocks farther and faster than you could otherwise. That's all. 
~Engineers like to solve problems. If there are no problems handily avialable, they will create their own problems.~
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Re: The Antiquity of the Sling
Reply #28 - Mar 15th, 2012 at 12:28am
 
Hey Pikaru, your bumper sticker could be taken several different ways. Roll Eyes
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Re: The Antiquity of the Sling
Reply #29 - Mar 15th, 2012 at 10:21am
 
bigkahuna wrote on Mar 15th, 2012 at 12:28am:
Hey Pikaru, your bumper sticker could be taken several different ways. Roll Eyes


That's the pure genius of it... All part of my plan to take over the world.
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I sling. Therefore I am. Tano' Hu I Islan Guahan. http://itanohu.blogspot.com
 
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