Cavemen and the Cigarette Lighter

Great Debates
21

I’d assume a fair amount of variance between cavepersons.

If one could figure out how to use a computer mouse without prior, repeated instruction, that would be doing better than the salespeople in our office. :slight_smile:

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22

I can’t help but be reminded of a Far Side cartoon showing “the real reason dinosaurs became extinct” (they are smoking behind the rocks) - I think that if we introduced the lighter to the caveman he would a) burn himself or others who were standing to close at the time, b)find something to set on fire so he could stick it in his mouth and smoke it and be cool…sorry, former smoker standing on a soapdish…

The worst thing that can possibly happen is not be used for something by someone - Kurt Vonnegut

23

Sheesh…

Of course a caveman could figure out how to use a lighter… they eventually figured out how to make fire using flint, right? Given the tool at hand, I’m certain they would figure it out eventually. Especially if it was one of those electric lighters where you only have to push one button.

I love silly, pointless, nobody’s-gonna-win-arguments :smiley:

24

I dunno about Cavemen, but I doubt even a caveman would resurrect a 4 1/2 year old dead horse thread just to give it another kicking.

25

Of course that should have read: I dunno about Lighters, but…

Plus isn’t this some kind of record?

26

There is no evidence that Cro-Magnon people were any different than us in any meaningful way, esp brain power. We (Europeans) are Cro-Magnon. That is just a convenient term for the H. sapiens who first entered Europe.

27

I have no useful input to share on this topic. I just wanted to take part in a thread that was started before I even became a member of the SDMB.

A friendly neighborhood moderator will be along shortly to chastize the resurrector, and, quite possibly, me.

In the meantime, I like pie.

28

I remember 1999!

[old codger mode]

Back then we didn’t have “user names”, by cracky! Had to recognize each other by our signatures and writing styles.

[/codger]

“Cavemen” (a less than precise term but we’ll assume people living prior to civilization, say < circa 10,000 years aso)… they figured out from investigating flint that you could whack it against some other kinds of stones and make sparks, and that if you had a little nest of dry wood chips for the spark to fly into, you could start a fire that way.

Anyone really wanna claim that’s easier to figure out than a Bic lighter?