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♪ ♪
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ELLA AL-SHAMAHI:
By around 25,000 years ago,
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ancient humans had reached
almost every part of the globe.
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And then people stepped
into a new world:
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the Americas.
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♪ ♪
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These are the
footprints
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of an actual human
being,
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who stood basically
where I'm standing.
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♪ ♪
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(slide projector clicks)
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Where and when did Homo sapiens
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first arrive in the Americas?
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They were here at one
of the coldest moments
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that Homo sapiens
had ever known.
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What did they encounter
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when they began to explore
this new continent?
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And then look at these teeth--
look at these canines.
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They're the stuff
that nightmares are made of.
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The resilience...
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(mammoth bellows)
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...and innovation...
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♪ ♪
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...that humans needed
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to survive their first journeys
through the Americas...
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...would shape the modern world
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in ways they could
never have predicted.
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More and more of us
were quite literally
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putting down roots.
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"Human: Into the Americas"--
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right now, on "NOVA."
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♪ ♪
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♪ ♪
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AL-SHAMAHI:
For much of the last
300,000 years,
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our species, Homo sapiens,
lived in a world
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inhabited by other types
of human.
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♪ ♪
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We hunted and foraged for food
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alongside many
of our human relatives.
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But one by one,
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we out-survived them
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and spread across the planet
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as small bands of nomads
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until we'd reached almost
every corner of the globe.
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♪ ♪
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But there was a great landmass
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that was still unknown to us.
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♪ ♪
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♪ ♪
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It's possible humans
took different routes
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to first reach the Americas.
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But during the last ice age,
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sea levels were much lower,
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and so archaeologists believe
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the main approaches passed
across a vast land bridge
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connecting Asia
and North America:
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Beringia.
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(wind blowing)
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And in this frozen north,
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small groups of travelers
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dispersed ever eastward
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and found themselves stepping
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into a new land.
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♪ ♪
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♪ ♪
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♪ ♪
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(gulls squawking)
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If you were asked to conjure up
in your mind
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a world that was magical,
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that was pristine,
that was primal,
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you'd imagine
something like this.
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The northwest coast of America
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absolutely takes your breath
away.
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♪ ♪
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We don't know
exactly when humans
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first arrived in North America.
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Some archaeologists believe
it was likely
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around 20,000 years ago,
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while others think
there is evidence
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the first Americans were here
thousands of years earlier.
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But either way, it was a time
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when the continent
was much colder than today.
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They were here at one
of the coldest moments
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Homo sapiens had ever known.
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And the landscape
would have looked so different.
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There would have been
very few trees,
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and as far as the eye could see,
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there would have been
barren, icy rock.
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They knew how to survive
in the wide-open icy plains
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of Beringia,
where they'd come from.
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But their new environment was
different in a few crucial ways.
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♪ ♪
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The northern half
of this continent
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was covered in towering,
impassable ice sheets
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reaching as far south
as the Great Lakes.
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From here,
on the northwest coast,
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it blocked routes
into the deep interior,
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mostly confining people
to the ice-free land
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nearer the coast.
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♪ ♪
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All that's left
from their time here
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are footprints, stone tools,
and animal bones.
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Now, we know that they sometimes
would have hunted seal.
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They would have eaten fish.
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They would have eaten sea birds
if they could catch them.
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Only tiny fragments of evidence
remain
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of the early inhabitants
of this area...
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(slide projector clicks)
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...that hint
at how they survived.
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(slide projector clicks)
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♪ ♪
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And while the ocean
off this northwest coast
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offered them sustenance...
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...the strip of land
between the shore
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and the ice sheets promised new
opportunities to find food...
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...but also hid
unexpected new dangers.
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♪ ♪
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(grunts)
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(inhales sharply)
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This is a now-extinct predator,
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and it would have roamed
these parts in the Northwest
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when the first people
arrived in the Americas.
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And they actually call it
the short-faced bear.
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And there is nothing short
about this bear.
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When it stood on its hind legs,
it would have been about
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11, 12 feet tall,
that's about four meters.
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And so, it would
have made the grizzly bear
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look actually
somewhat manageable.
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And then look at these teeth.
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Look at these canines.
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They're the stuff
that nightmares are made of.
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And when it bumped into humans,
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it must have been
absolutely terrifying.
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And just like those humans,
these bears, too,
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would have been hungry.
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♪ ♪
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The early people of the
Northwest did not always run
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from the predators
that roamed this land.
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Instead, it seems sometimes
they went on the offensive.
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♪ ♪
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Evidence of this remains
in caves
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along the Canadian coast.
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Here, archaeologists sift
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through the muddy layers
of time...
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DUNCAN MCLAREN:
Is that what Jim had or...
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AL-SHAMAHI:
...to find out more
about the risks
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these early people took
to survive.
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You know when people
talk about archaeology?
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(laughs)
Yes.
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At the back of a cave
digging mud is...
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(laughs):
...is, this is
the hard stuff.
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One thing that has been found
in a number of caves
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on the northwest coast is, uh,
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spear points in association
with bear bones.
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Yeah.
And these date as far back
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as 13,000 years.
Mm.
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Is, so, is this one
of these spear points?
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This is a fragment
of a spear point
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that was found in a cave
not too far from here.
Yeah.
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We have uncovered a bone
in the wall of this unit,
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and it's 20 centimeters
below the surface.
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And, uh, so, I'm going to pull
it, and we'll see if it moves.
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All right.
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And we don't know
what species it is
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or what bit of bone
it is?
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Uh, there's not enough here
to know for sure.
Yeah, yeah.
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But it is a pretty
big mammal, for certain.
Oh, yeah.
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Oh, it's not ending.
(chuckles)
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Just make sure
it slides out.
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Ah, it's a rib,
isn't it?
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Looks like...
Looks like a rib.
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Yeah.
Yeah.
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So, that could be a bear rib.
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It's probably most likely
what it is,
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'cause it's quite robust.
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How amazing.
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What age do you think
it is?
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Well, we have
some other samples
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from above where this bone is.
Yeah.
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And they're coming back, uh,
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around 14,000 years old.
Okay, so it's old.
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So, it's, could be
the same age or older.
Yeah.
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You know, one of the
most wonderful things
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about archaeology is that
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sometimes you uncover something
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that hasn't seen the light of
day
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in thousands of years,
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and in this case, well,
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maybe 14,000 years.
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Well, we're interested
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in where bears were hunted
in the past.
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And in the winter,
when there's,
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there's not as many resources
around,
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and people are feeling
a bit hungry,
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knowing where there
is a bear den
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is quite a valuable thing,
197
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'cause you can come up there
and dispatch the bear.
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You'll have a load of meat,
fur, as well as bones.
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AL-SHAMAHI:
One theory of how
they hunted bears
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00:12:10,566 --> 00:12:13,433
comes from studies
of the Native peoples
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of this region and North Asia
in past centuries.
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MCLAREN:
Essentially, a hunter would go
203
00:12:21,433 --> 00:12:23,066
with a, a party to a cave,
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smoke the bear
out of the cave,
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00:12:26,300 --> 00:12:31,966
and entice that bear
to attack a single hunter.
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00:12:31,966 --> 00:12:35,233
That hunter would be armed
with a bracing spear.
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00:12:35,233 --> 00:12:38,733
Uh, bear would come
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00:12:38,733 --> 00:12:41,800
to take the hunter up
in a bear hug,
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00:12:41,800 --> 00:12:43,766
which is a common thing
that they do.
Yeah.
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00:12:43,766 --> 00:12:47,000
And the idea is, a bear
would take that hunter
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00:12:47,000 --> 00:12:50,400
and essentially,
give him a good crushing.
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00:12:50,400 --> 00:12:51,933
The hunter, at the same time,
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00:12:51,933 --> 00:12:53,766
would brace the spear
on the ground
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00:12:53,766 --> 00:12:55,233
and aim it
at the bear's heart.
215
00:12:55,233 --> 00:12:56,566
And so essentially...
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00:12:56,566 --> 00:12:58,566
Oh.
...the bear would take
the hunter and the spear
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00:12:58,566 --> 00:13:00,733
into the bear hug,
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00:13:00,733 --> 00:13:03,000
thereby spearing itself
through the heart.
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00:13:03,000 --> 00:13:08,033
♪ ♪
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AL-SHAMAHI:
A successful bear hunt
could have meant
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00:13:17,133 --> 00:13:19,066
food through the winter.
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00:13:19,066 --> 00:13:24,733
♪ ♪
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But it was a risky way
to make a living.
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♪ ♪
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Scientists have worked with
the Tlingit people of Alaska
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00:13:43,866 --> 00:13:46,666
to study the fascinating
fossil remains
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00:13:46,666 --> 00:13:49,466
of one of their ancestors
228
00:13:49,466 --> 00:13:52,066
who lived
around 10,000 years ago.
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(slide projector clicks)
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And their elders
gave this person a name.
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00:13:56,866 --> 00:13:59,600
(slide projector clicks)
232
00:13:59,600 --> 00:14:01,633
Shuká Káa.
233
00:14:07,966 --> 00:14:12,800
This is the bone cast of
Shuká Káa's pelvis and jaw.
234
00:14:12,800 --> 00:14:15,966
And there's so much
we don't know about this person.
235
00:14:15,966 --> 00:14:17,733
We don't know
about their family life.
236
00:14:17,733 --> 00:14:19,233
We don't know if they had
children.
237
00:14:20,233 --> 00:14:22,700
But the amazing thing
about bones
238
00:14:22,700 --> 00:14:25,666
is that they can tell a story
if you know how to read them.
239
00:14:25,666 --> 00:14:28,533
We know that this individual
was a male.
240
00:14:28,533 --> 00:14:30,966
We can tell that
from various features,
241
00:14:30,966 --> 00:14:33,033
like the squareness here
of the chin,
242
00:14:33,033 --> 00:14:37,433
like the back of the mandible,
243
00:14:37,433 --> 00:14:40,166
like the angle here, on the
pelvis.
244
00:14:40,166 --> 00:14:42,100
On a female, you would typically
expect
245
00:14:42,100 --> 00:14:43,733
that angle to be much wider.
246
00:14:44,833 --> 00:14:48,866
And it's kind of sad,
because you can also tell
247
00:14:48,866 --> 00:14:51,933
quite a tragic story
on the bones, as well.
248
00:14:51,933 --> 00:14:53,766
If you notice here...
249
00:14:54,933 --> 00:14:57,166
...that is a puncture wound,
250
00:14:57,166 --> 00:15:01,500
and it fits quite well
with the canine of a bear.
251
00:15:05,966 --> 00:15:09,433
Spear points found near
Shuká Káa suggest
252
00:15:09,433 --> 00:15:13,933
he might have met his demise
while hunting those bears.
253
00:15:18,533 --> 00:15:22,166
The dangers those humans faced
in order to survive
254
00:15:22,166 --> 00:15:26,200
are hard to imagine for most
of us in the modern day.
255
00:15:28,300 --> 00:15:32,266
But their relationship with
nature had been slowly shifting.
256
00:15:35,400 --> 00:15:38,333
Thanks in part
to a surprising helper
257
00:15:38,333 --> 00:15:41,133
that they may have brought
with them.
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00:15:41,133 --> 00:15:45,400
♪ ♪
259
00:15:49,466 --> 00:15:51,500
(wolves barking, howling)
260
00:15:51,500 --> 00:15:53,366
By hunting in packs,
261
00:15:53,366 --> 00:15:58,000
wolves can bring down prey
far larger than themselves.
262
00:15:58,000 --> 00:16:01,833
A person,
especially on their own,
263
00:16:01,833 --> 00:16:03,633
would be highly vulnerable.
264
00:16:10,900 --> 00:16:12,800
SHELLY:
Good girl, yeah!
265
00:16:12,800 --> 00:16:15,900
It's unusual to have them all
just around, hey?
266
00:16:17,633 --> 00:16:19,200
Okay, come on, let's go.
267
00:16:22,366 --> 00:16:26,366
AL-SHAMAHI:
Wolves are, and always have
been, wild animals.
268
00:16:29,666 --> 00:16:32,833
Shelly, am I able to come
a bit closer?
Yep.
269
00:16:37,400 --> 00:16:39,633
I think the question
is how close?
(chuckles)
270
00:16:43,000 --> 00:16:45,633
It's funny,
I can feel it in my shoulders.
271
00:16:45,633 --> 00:16:47,933
My shoulders
are a little bit tense.
272
00:16:58,033 --> 00:16:59,466
(voiceover):
But, given time,
273
00:16:59,466 --> 00:17:03,033
wolves are able
to habituate to humans.
274
00:17:05,000 --> 00:17:07,266
Hello.
275
00:17:07,266 --> 00:17:08,766
Hello.
276
00:17:13,500 --> 00:17:18,433
(voiceover):
Perhaps beginning as far back
as 40,000 years ago,
277
00:17:18,433 --> 00:17:20,466
probably in Siberia,
278
00:17:20,466 --> 00:17:23,133
before humans had even reached
North America,
279
00:17:23,133 --> 00:17:25,933
the threat they faced
from wolves
280
00:17:25,933 --> 00:17:29,433
began to transform
into something different.
281
00:17:34,766 --> 00:17:36,500
Now, we're not exactly sure
of the details,
282
00:17:36,500 --> 00:17:38,433
but it might have gone
something like this.
283
00:17:38,433 --> 00:17:41,033
Wolves would gather
around human campsites.
284
00:17:41,033 --> 00:17:43,933
Now, at first,
maybe humans were terrified.
285
00:17:43,933 --> 00:17:47,000
Maybe they thought
that they wanted to eat them.
286
00:17:47,000 --> 00:17:48,866
But actually,
some of those wolves
287
00:17:48,866 --> 00:17:50,800
weren't interested in that
at all.
288
00:17:50,800 --> 00:17:53,866
They were looking for scraps.
289
00:17:53,866 --> 00:17:55,433
And as they were doing that,
290
00:17:55,433 --> 00:17:58,966
maybe they started fending off
other predators
291
00:17:58,966 --> 00:18:02,300
and protecting
our combined territory.
292
00:18:02,300 --> 00:18:06,100
And because of this,
humans started tolerating
293
00:18:06,100 --> 00:18:07,433
some of the least aggressive,
294
00:18:07,433 --> 00:18:08,566
some of the most docile
of these.
295
00:18:08,566 --> 00:18:10,800
Maybe they even
started feeding them.
296
00:18:14,266 --> 00:18:16,733
In more than one place and time,
297
00:18:16,733 --> 00:18:21,666
our ancestors reshaped wolves
into dogs.
298
00:18:24,300 --> 00:18:27,233
And began to use them
299
00:18:27,233 --> 00:18:29,633
to guard our camps...
300
00:18:33,200 --> 00:18:35,833
...hunt prey,
301
00:18:35,833 --> 00:18:37,966
and pull sleds.
302
00:18:39,500 --> 00:18:42,533
Generation after generation,
303
00:18:42,533 --> 00:18:45,166
we selected
the most docile animals
304
00:18:45,166 --> 00:18:47,666
and reared their pups...
305
00:18:48,800 --> 00:18:50,700
(dog barking)
306
00:18:50,700 --> 00:18:53,566
...driving the evolution
of a cooperative behavior
307
00:18:53,566 --> 00:18:55,700
that suited our needs.
308
00:18:58,600 --> 00:19:02,866
This marked a turning point
for the human species.
309
00:19:05,200 --> 00:19:08,733
Living with dogs helped us
hunt for food and survive.
310
00:19:08,733 --> 00:19:12,300
It gave us this much-needed edge
over hunger,
311
00:19:12,300 --> 00:19:15,366
but it also marked this profound
312
00:19:15,366 --> 00:19:18,000
and completely unprecedented
shift
313
00:19:18,000 --> 00:19:20,133
in our relationship with nature,
314
00:19:20,133 --> 00:19:22,833
because never before
had any living thing,
315
00:19:22,833 --> 00:19:25,800
whether plant or animal,
been domesticated.
316
00:19:25,800 --> 00:19:28,366
This was a complete first.
317
00:19:28,366 --> 00:19:33,400
♪ ♪
318
00:19:37,100 --> 00:19:39,266
Domestication would later become
319
00:19:39,266 --> 00:19:43,600
a hugely important factor
in our species' fortunes.
320
00:19:46,100 --> 00:19:50,933
But powerful forces far beyond
the control of any human
321
00:19:50,933 --> 00:19:53,200
were about
to open new passageways
322
00:19:53,200 --> 00:19:58,166
leading deeper into
the North American continent.
323
00:20:01,633 --> 00:20:05,800
And as people migrated beyond
the mountains and glaciers...
324
00:20:07,966 --> 00:20:12,466
...they would be forced
to find new ways to survive.
325
00:20:26,100 --> 00:20:31,166
♪ ♪
326
00:20:40,866 --> 00:20:44,966
♪ ♪
327
00:20:54,833 --> 00:20:59,866
♪ ♪
328
00:21:11,433 --> 00:21:13,300
The first people
to enter into the Americas
329
00:21:13,300 --> 00:21:15,400
were coastal people
in the Northwest.
330
00:21:15,400 --> 00:21:18,000
But it's likely that they
eventually traveled
331
00:21:18,000 --> 00:21:20,500
incredibly rapidly
332
00:21:20,500 --> 00:21:24,200
down south,
all the way to Central America,
333
00:21:24,200 --> 00:21:29,133
and then carried on all the way
to the tip of South America.
334
00:21:29,133 --> 00:21:32,366
Because remember,
they were coastal people.
335
00:21:32,366 --> 00:21:35,366
It's likely that they were using
some kind of seafaring methods.
336
00:21:37,933 --> 00:21:41,466
Very little evidence
of these seafarers remains.
337
00:21:42,533 --> 00:21:45,533
Rising sea levels
at the end of the ice age
338
00:21:45,533 --> 00:21:50,333
submerged many of the coastal
sites they might have occupied.
339
00:21:51,333 --> 00:21:53,666
But it's thought
that very early on,
340
00:21:53,666 --> 00:21:57,166
some of them would have
branched off from this sea route
341
00:21:57,166 --> 00:21:59,266
and entered the continent.
342
00:22:00,700 --> 00:22:06,500
Then, around 15,000 years ago,
the climate began to warm.
343
00:22:06,500 --> 00:22:11,000
The ice sheets and glaciers
started to retreat,
344
00:22:11,000 --> 00:22:12,700
and as they did,
345
00:22:12,700 --> 00:22:17,833
the last major barrier blocking
routes into the continent fell,
346
00:22:17,833 --> 00:22:22,600
opening new routes in
347
00:22:22,600 --> 00:22:25,366
and triggering a fresh wave
of human innovation.
348
00:22:27,300 --> 00:22:32,466
More people started traveling
into the interior of the country
349
00:22:32,466 --> 00:22:36,600
and finding
these completely new landscapes.
350
00:22:41,300 --> 00:22:44,633
Whether humans first
reached the interior
351
00:22:44,633 --> 00:22:49,466
during the height of the ice age
or thousands of years later,
352
00:22:49,466 --> 00:22:52,900
after the thaw,
is still uncertain.
353
00:22:52,900 --> 00:22:57,100
But some of them left traces
here in New Mexico.
354
00:22:57,100 --> 00:22:58,133
(slide projector clicks)
355
00:23:00,166 --> 00:23:02,833
Fossilized footprints.
356
00:23:02,833 --> 00:23:04,500
(slide projector clicks)
357
00:23:04,500 --> 00:23:07,166
Left in what was once
the muddy shore
358
00:23:07,166 --> 00:23:09,100
of an ancient lake.
359
00:23:09,100 --> 00:23:12,866
♪ ♪
360
00:23:12,866 --> 00:23:14,700
They've become the subject
361
00:23:14,700 --> 00:23:16,966
of some of the most
groundbreaking,
362
00:23:16,966 --> 00:23:20,966
but also most hotly debated,
research in archaeology.
363
00:23:23,566 --> 00:23:26,800
Thousands of footprints
have been found here,
364
00:23:26,800 --> 00:23:31,666
among them the prints of a small
adult and toddler side by side,
365
00:23:31,666 --> 00:23:34,633
possibly a mother and child,
366
00:23:34,633 --> 00:23:37,300
discovered in 2018.
367
00:23:40,000 --> 00:23:42,966
For a long time,
the dominant theory had been
368
00:23:42,966 --> 00:23:45,600
that humans were not able
to penetrate
369
00:23:45,600 --> 00:23:47,766
the interior of the continent
370
00:23:47,766 --> 00:23:51,300
until the northern ice sheets
had retreated.
371
00:23:52,733 --> 00:23:56,600
That would mean the oldest these
footprints could possibly be
372
00:23:56,600 --> 00:23:59,466
is around 14,000 years old.
373
00:24:01,066 --> 00:24:04,633
But dating research
published in 2021
374
00:24:04,633 --> 00:24:06,866
suggested the footprints
went back
375
00:24:06,866 --> 00:24:10,200
as far as 23,000 years ago.
376
00:24:12,766 --> 00:24:15,833
If true,
it would mean humans were able
377
00:24:15,833 --> 00:24:19,666
to reach the North American
interior
378
00:24:19,666 --> 00:24:21,200
almost 10,000 years earlier
379
00:24:21,200 --> 00:24:23,933
than many scientists
had long believed.
380
00:24:25,300 --> 00:24:28,166
Well before the melting
of the ice sheets.
381
00:24:31,233 --> 00:24:33,866
The very early dates
are controversial.
382
00:24:35,400 --> 00:24:37,966
Further research will be needed
to confirm
383
00:24:37,966 --> 00:24:41,900
how old the White Sands
footprints truly are.
384
00:24:43,433 --> 00:24:48,466
♪ ♪
385
00:24:50,766 --> 00:24:53,800
But the people who left them
are likely
386
00:24:53,800 --> 00:24:57,966
to have been part of one
of the very earliest waves
387
00:24:57,966 --> 00:24:59,266
of what was to become
388
00:24:59,266 --> 00:25:03,766
thousands of years
of human migration inland.
389
00:25:05,100 --> 00:25:10,133
♪ ♪
390
00:25:12,366 --> 00:25:16,600
Where there is now desert,
they saw rich grasslands.
391
00:25:26,200 --> 00:25:30,000
The fossilized footprints
of these continental pioneers
392
00:25:30,000 --> 00:25:34,166
reveal what kind of a world
they'd stepped into.
393
00:25:35,500 --> 00:25:37,133
These are the footprints
394
00:25:37,133 --> 00:25:39,166
of an actual human being
395
00:25:39,166 --> 00:25:42,000
who stood basically where I'm
standing.
396
00:25:42,000 --> 00:25:44,733
And we think she was a female.
397
00:25:44,733 --> 00:25:47,766
And if you look closely
at those footprints,
398
00:25:47,766 --> 00:25:50,333
what you see is that
at times, the footprints,
399
00:25:50,333 --> 00:25:52,500
they get broader and they slip
a little in the mud.
400
00:25:52,500 --> 00:25:56,266
♪ ♪
401
00:26:00,533 --> 00:26:01,566
(slide projector clicks)
402
00:26:04,700 --> 00:26:08,600
And that's because
she was carrying a child,
403
00:26:08,600 --> 00:26:11,766
sometimes on this hip
and sometimes on this hip.
404
00:26:24,466 --> 00:26:26,566
Then at other times,
405
00:26:26,566 --> 00:26:28,833
she stopped
and put the child down,
406
00:26:28,833 --> 00:26:31,833
and you end up
with two sets of footprints.
407
00:26:35,300 --> 00:26:36,900
(slide projector clicks)
408
00:26:41,433 --> 00:26:44,466
And she walked
for at least a kilometer north
409
00:26:44,466 --> 00:26:46,533
and then heads back south.
410
00:26:46,533 --> 00:26:49,600
And I just can't think
of anything more,
411
00:26:49,600 --> 00:26:54,200
more human than a mother
and a child walking together,
412
00:26:54,200 --> 00:26:57,133
and a mother carrying her child.
413
00:26:57,133 --> 00:26:59,700
And it's interesting,
'cause this whole journey
414
00:26:59,700 --> 00:27:02,700
has been us
tracing the footsteps
415
00:27:02,700 --> 00:27:05,066
of our ancient ancestors.
416
00:27:05,066 --> 00:27:07,366
And in a moment like this,
417
00:27:07,366 --> 00:27:09,566
that's actually literal.
418
00:27:09,566 --> 00:27:14,133
♪ ♪
419
00:27:22,200 --> 00:27:26,033
Archaeologists are finding
more of these footprints
420
00:27:26,033 --> 00:27:30,166
hidden beneath
the hard-packed sand.
421
00:27:30,166 --> 00:27:32,566
It's allowing us
to piece together
422
00:27:32,566 --> 00:27:35,100
an ever more detailed snapshot
423
00:27:35,100 --> 00:27:38,900
of what happened
in the moments captured here.
424
00:27:41,500 --> 00:27:43,433
MIKE STOWE:
Let's see if we can define
the footprint a little bit.
425
00:27:43,433 --> 00:27:45,066
MATTHEW BENNETT:
Yeah.
426
00:27:45,066 --> 00:27:47,966
It's always scary
when you start these things.
427
00:27:47,966 --> 00:27:49,166
You've got to
428
00:27:49,166 --> 00:27:51,433
take them out.
429
00:27:51,433 --> 00:27:52,533
STOWE:
There's a subtle difference
430
00:27:52,533 --> 00:27:54,333
between the soil
in the print.
Yeah.
431
00:27:54,333 --> 00:27:56,000
BENNETT:
It's looser.
432
00:27:56,000 --> 00:27:57,133
It's a little damp,
433
00:27:57,133 --> 00:27:59,000
so it's gonna smear a bit
today,
434
00:27:59,000 --> 00:28:00,766
but it will come out.
435
00:28:04,466 --> 00:28:07,366
You see it so...
436
00:28:07,366 --> 00:28:08,633
So clearly.
437
00:28:08,633 --> 00:28:10,266
Okay, so how have you...
438
00:28:10,266 --> 00:28:12,433
So, you've just traced
along the...
439
00:28:12,433 --> 00:28:14,600
I, I just,
I've literally
440
00:28:14,600 --> 00:28:17,000
just broken the surface
441
00:28:17,000 --> 00:28:18,733
with a dental pick.
442
00:28:18,733 --> 00:28:20,266
Yeah.
443
00:28:20,266 --> 00:28:21,733
And then,
this particular example
444
00:28:21,733 --> 00:28:24,333
just brushes out with
a little bit of encouragement.
445
00:28:24,333 --> 00:28:26,100
Yeah.
You can see the
446
00:28:26,100 --> 00:28:28,866
contrast between the white...
Yeah.
447
00:28:28,866 --> 00:28:30,033
...and the fill in there.
448
00:28:30,033 --> 00:28:32,966
I'm removing the...
AL-SHAMAHI:
Wow.
449
00:28:32,966 --> 00:28:35,166
BENNETT:
...the sediment that's blown
into the footprint.
450
00:28:37,333 --> 00:28:38,666
So, we think she was walking
quite quickly, then?
451
00:28:38,666 --> 00:28:42,233
Yeah, she's walking at
about 1.6, something like,
452
00:28:42,233 --> 00:28:44,266
meters per second.
Wow.
453
00:28:44,266 --> 00:28:45,933
And, and a comfortable,
normal sort of walk
454
00:28:45,933 --> 00:28:48,566
is about 1.3 to 1.5.
455
00:28:48,566 --> 00:28:51,066
So, she, she's moving,
and this surface is wet.
456
00:28:51,066 --> 00:28:52,700
It's slippy.
457
00:28:52,700 --> 00:28:54,333
We do know that this
was a, a mission.
458
00:28:54,333 --> 00:28:56,700
They were on a mission.
Yeah.
459
00:28:56,700 --> 00:28:58,166
They were moving quickly.
Yeah.
460
00:28:58,166 --> 00:28:59,633
At speed,
for whatever reason.
461
00:28:59,633 --> 00:29:03,133
And the footprint, um,
tells that story.
462
00:29:03,133 --> 00:29:05,966
♪ ♪
463
00:29:05,966 --> 00:29:10,366
AL-SHAMAHI:
We don't know why these humans
were in such a hurry.
464
00:29:11,966 --> 00:29:15,266
♪ ♪
465
00:29:19,733 --> 00:29:22,466
But the footprints here
at White Sands
466
00:29:22,466 --> 00:29:26,100
can tell us more about the world
they were living in...
467
00:29:27,766 --> 00:29:32,166
...because theirs were not
the only footprints found.
468
00:29:39,966 --> 00:29:42,233
Criss-crossing
the human footprints
469
00:29:42,233 --> 00:29:44,933
are tracks from a giant sloth.
470
00:29:47,833 --> 00:29:50,433
And other nearby footprints
471
00:29:50,433 --> 00:29:54,600
include those left by mammoths,
472
00:29:54,600 --> 00:29:57,566
each one
around two feet in diameter.
473
00:29:59,400 --> 00:30:01,333
This landscape
would've been filled
474
00:30:01,333 --> 00:30:04,633
with mammoth and mastodon
and saber-toothed cats,
475
00:30:04,633 --> 00:30:07,066
just huge animals.
476
00:30:07,066 --> 00:30:09,100
They would have dwarfed us.
477
00:30:09,100 --> 00:30:13,000
The mammoth alone would stand
at about four meters high,
478
00:30:13,000 --> 00:30:15,366
that's about 13 feet,
at the shoulders,
479
00:30:15,366 --> 00:30:18,400
and the mastodon
were only slightly smaller.
480
00:30:19,666 --> 00:30:24,400
For the humans here,
this was their new world.
481
00:30:24,400 --> 00:30:26,533
(slide projector clicks)
482
00:30:27,966 --> 00:30:30,100
The early people
of the Plains...
483
00:30:30,100 --> 00:30:31,100
(slide projector clicks)
484
00:30:31,100 --> 00:30:33,433
...probably would have given
485
00:30:33,433 --> 00:30:36,266
these prehistoric mammals...
486
00:30:36,266 --> 00:30:38,766
(slide projector clicks)
...a wide berth.
487
00:30:41,233 --> 00:30:44,733
(birds calling)
488
00:30:46,066 --> 00:30:48,233
♪ ♪
489
00:30:48,233 --> 00:30:51,366
But they must have realized
that those animals
490
00:30:51,366 --> 00:30:53,966
also represented opportunity.
491
00:30:57,133 --> 00:31:01,966
That these giants
could provide them with food.
492
00:31:04,533 --> 00:31:07,933
But how on Earth
could people hunt them?
493
00:31:11,933 --> 00:31:15,200
One animal still exists
which gives us a sense
494
00:31:15,200 --> 00:31:17,200
of just how difficult
that would have been.
495
00:31:17,200 --> 00:31:23,533
♪ ♪
496
00:31:25,566 --> 00:31:31,366
This beast can sprint
at up to 40 miles per hour.
497
00:31:31,366 --> 00:31:34,866
The male's horns
are over two feet long.
498
00:31:37,466 --> 00:31:39,500
And 14,000 years ago,
499
00:31:39,500 --> 00:31:44,566
these bison had an even bigger
prehistoric relative
500
00:31:44,566 --> 00:31:46,933
roaming these parts.
501
00:31:49,066 --> 00:31:51,866
(whispering):
Absolutely incredible,
502
00:31:51,866 --> 00:31:56,166
but they're also so big.
503
00:31:56,166 --> 00:31:59,333
They're about one ton in size.
504
00:31:59,333 --> 00:32:04,000
And the giant bison,
the one that's now extinct,
505
00:32:04,000 --> 00:32:05,166
but would have been around
back then,
506
00:32:05,166 --> 00:32:09,400
was up to 50, 50% bigger.
507
00:32:09,400 --> 00:32:12,266
♪ ♪
508
00:32:12,266 --> 00:32:14,800
To hunt those prehistoric bison,
509
00:32:14,800 --> 00:32:18,533
and the even larger megafauna
that dwarfed them,
510
00:32:18,533 --> 00:32:20,466
early hunters likely used
511
00:32:20,466 --> 00:32:23,433
a number
of different strategies.
512
00:32:23,433 --> 00:32:25,133
But many of these
513
00:32:25,133 --> 00:32:27,666
would have relied
on getting close enough
514
00:32:27,666 --> 00:32:29,966
to deal a powerful spear thrust.
515
00:32:29,966 --> 00:32:35,833
♪ ♪
516
00:32:40,266 --> 00:32:43,700
♪ ♪
517
00:32:47,333 --> 00:32:52,166
(animals roaring and bellowing)
518
00:32:52,166 --> 00:32:54,733
Many hunts would have ended...
519
00:32:54,733 --> 00:32:56,633
(animal roaring)
520
00:32:56,633 --> 00:32:58,666
...in failure.
521
00:33:02,233 --> 00:33:06,933
But we know
sometimes they succeeded,
522
00:33:06,933 --> 00:33:09,600
because they left
a massive clue.
523
00:33:09,600 --> 00:33:10,633
(slide projector clicks)
524
00:33:14,433 --> 00:33:17,633
Skeletons of megafauna.
525
00:33:17,633 --> 00:33:18,666
(slide projector clicks)
526
00:33:20,133 --> 00:33:23,866
Some clearly killed by humans.
527
00:33:25,733 --> 00:33:28,800
Humans would have exploited
some megafauna,
528
00:33:28,800 --> 00:33:31,300
some large land animals,
on the coast.
529
00:33:31,300 --> 00:33:33,900
But it was
once they hit the interior
530
00:33:33,900 --> 00:33:37,233
that they saw them on a scale
like something else
531
00:33:37,233 --> 00:33:39,166
in terms of their sheer numbers,
532
00:33:39,166 --> 00:33:40,833
in terms of their diversity.
533
00:33:40,833 --> 00:33:43,733
♪ ♪
534
00:33:43,733 --> 00:33:45,266
We don't know for sure
535
00:33:45,266 --> 00:33:48,066
how dependent
the early North Americans were
536
00:33:48,066 --> 00:33:51,200
on hunting the megafauna.
537
00:33:51,200 --> 00:33:53,966
♪ ♪
538
00:33:53,966 --> 00:33:58,333
Or exactly how they hunted
those giant animals.
539
00:33:58,333 --> 00:34:03,733
♪ ♪
540
00:34:05,000 --> 00:34:07,833
But they offered
a huge potential source of meat
541
00:34:07,833 --> 00:34:10,366
for people to eat.
542
00:34:12,733 --> 00:34:17,833
And it seems that hunting
was shaping society here.
543
00:34:21,466 --> 00:34:26,500
♪ ♪
544
00:34:28,500 --> 00:34:30,800
This is absolutely stunning.
545
00:34:30,800 --> 00:34:34,100
It's one of the most striking
spearheads I've ever seen.
546
00:34:34,100 --> 00:34:35,500
It's...
547
00:34:35,500 --> 00:34:38,133
It's so well-crafted,
and it shines,
548
00:34:38,133 --> 00:34:40,400
and it looks
like it was made of glass,
549
00:34:40,400 --> 00:34:42,866
but actually,
it's made of quartz,
550
00:34:42,866 --> 00:34:44,733
and it's sharp.
551
00:34:44,733 --> 00:34:47,533
And yet, it doesn't have
any signs
552
00:34:47,533 --> 00:34:49,433
that it was actually ever used.
553
00:34:49,433 --> 00:34:52,933
And that, along with the fact
that it's so beautiful,
554
00:34:52,933 --> 00:34:54,733
suggests that it was ceremonial.
555
00:34:54,733 --> 00:34:57,200
Now, when you've got
an everyday object,
556
00:34:57,200 --> 00:35:01,500
and it's made to look so,
so beautiful and so striking,
557
00:35:01,500 --> 00:35:05,066
it implies
that it had become a symbol.
558
00:35:05,066 --> 00:35:06,366
We're not sure of what.
559
00:35:06,366 --> 00:35:08,133
Perhaps of how important
hunting was,
560
00:35:08,133 --> 00:35:10,433
but perhaps of a cultural
identity,
561
00:35:10,433 --> 00:35:12,433
perhaps of who they were.
562
00:35:13,866 --> 00:35:19,566
♪ ♪
563
00:35:25,733 --> 00:35:29,533
Feasts could bring different
communities together
564
00:35:29,533 --> 00:35:31,900
and cement social ties.
565
00:35:36,833 --> 00:35:40,800
Sharing meat would have fostered
cooperation.
566
00:35:40,800 --> 00:35:45,833
♪ ♪
567
00:35:49,933 --> 00:35:53,333
The megafauna may have been
a central part
568
00:35:53,333 --> 00:35:55,400
of people's culture.
569
00:35:59,066 --> 00:36:02,433
♪ ♪
570
00:36:05,733 --> 00:36:09,400
But their world was changing.
571
00:36:09,400 --> 00:36:15,400
♪ ♪
572
00:36:15,400 --> 00:36:18,200
The end of the ice age
had created
573
00:36:18,200 --> 00:36:22,966
a warm world of plenty
across much of the continent,
574
00:36:22,966 --> 00:36:26,900
and that shift was now
beginning to have an effect
575
00:36:26,900 --> 00:36:29,266
they could not have foreseen.
576
00:36:32,733 --> 00:36:35,800
It's thought
that melting ice at the poles
577
00:36:35,800 --> 00:36:37,866
disrupted ocean currents.
578
00:36:39,633 --> 00:36:42,000
And just as the world
was entering
579
00:36:42,000 --> 00:36:44,466
a long-term warmer period,
580
00:36:44,466 --> 00:36:47,533
average temperatures
in the Northern Hemisphere
581
00:36:47,533 --> 00:36:52,300
unexpectedly cooled
by several degrees Fahrenheit.
582
00:36:52,300 --> 00:36:54,466
Across North America,
583
00:36:54,466 --> 00:36:56,700
the vegetation
had begun to alter
584
00:36:56,700 --> 00:36:59,733
in a number of different ways.
585
00:37:01,900 --> 00:37:04,900
In some areas, trees and shrubs
586
00:37:04,900 --> 00:37:08,700
began to replace
grassland and tundra.
587
00:37:08,700 --> 00:37:09,733
(slide projector clicks)
588
00:37:11,166 --> 00:37:13,633
Woolly mammoths
could not effectively
589
00:37:13,633 --> 00:37:17,266
chew or digest
these woodier plants.
590
00:37:18,266 --> 00:37:20,166
(insects buzzing)
591
00:37:20,166 --> 00:37:24,700
And as their environments
transformed,
592
00:37:24,700 --> 00:37:28,166
the giant herbivores declined.
593
00:37:30,633 --> 00:37:32,400
(insects buzzing)
594
00:37:33,766 --> 00:37:35,666
Over just a few hundred years,
595
00:37:35,666 --> 00:37:39,700
three-quarters of the large
mammal species in North America
596
00:37:39,700 --> 00:37:41,766
became extinct,
597
00:37:41,766 --> 00:37:44,466
vanishing forever.
598
00:37:44,466 --> 00:37:49,433
♪ ♪
599
00:37:49,433 --> 00:37:51,033
Now, the main cause
600
00:37:51,033 --> 00:37:52,566
of the giant
megafaunal extinction
601
00:37:52,566 --> 00:37:53,866
is climate change.
602
00:37:53,866 --> 00:37:57,766
But it's likely that
human hunting played a role,
603
00:37:57,766 --> 00:37:59,933
that it was this final nail
in the coffin.
604
00:37:59,933 --> 00:38:05,033
♪ ♪
605
00:38:09,133 --> 00:38:14,933
The largest megafauna,
that had been such a big part
606
00:38:14,933 --> 00:38:21,133
of these humans' lifestyle,
culture, and their landscape...
607
00:38:24,066 --> 00:38:26,300
...were now gone.
608
00:38:33,366 --> 00:38:38,400
Bison, deer, and smaller game
survived the climate upheaval,
609
00:38:38,400 --> 00:38:40,700
and people continued
to hunt them.
610
00:38:41,700 --> 00:38:43,633
But it's likely
611
00:38:43,633 --> 00:38:47,333
those people who relied most
on the megafauna for food
612
00:38:47,333 --> 00:38:49,366
would have now shifted
613
00:38:49,366 --> 00:38:53,466
to exploiting
a greater variety of resources.
614
00:38:55,200 --> 00:38:56,766
One of which is something
615
00:38:56,766 --> 00:38:59,933
I personally
would struggle with.
616
00:39:01,733 --> 00:39:03,366
People needed to branch out
617
00:39:03,366 --> 00:39:06,000
and exploit every part
of the food chain,
618
00:39:06,000 --> 00:39:08,600
all the way through to something
619
00:39:08,600 --> 00:39:10,766
you probably don't think of
as food.
620
00:39:10,766 --> 00:39:12,100
And that's acorns.
621
00:39:12,100 --> 00:39:14,800
Now, these are
incredibly bitter,
622
00:39:14,800 --> 00:39:16,366
because they're full
of tannic acid.
623
00:39:16,366 --> 00:39:17,600
And to get rid of some of that,
624
00:39:17,600 --> 00:39:20,066
what they would do is,
they would firstly
625
00:39:20,066 --> 00:39:22,600
get rid of the shells.
626
00:39:22,600 --> 00:39:24,300
And then they would
627
00:39:24,300 --> 00:39:29,500
grind the nuts up with water
628
00:39:29,500 --> 00:39:32,666
in the hopes of getting rid
of some of that bitterness.
629
00:39:32,666 --> 00:39:35,800
It's likely
that the flour from these
630
00:39:35,800 --> 00:39:37,233
and the paste from these
631
00:39:37,233 --> 00:39:39,600
were some of the earliest
processed plant food.
632
00:39:39,600 --> 00:39:42,266
We actually have
some of the grinding stones
633
00:39:42,266 --> 00:39:44,533
preserved
in the archaeological record.
634
00:39:44,533 --> 00:39:46,300
And if you look at all this,
635
00:39:46,300 --> 00:39:49,466
it seems so clever,
it seems so inventive.
636
00:39:49,466 --> 00:39:52,066
And yet, it's a lot of effort
to go to.
637
00:39:52,066 --> 00:39:57,033
♪ ♪
638
00:39:57,033 --> 00:40:00,633
But soon,
humans across the world
639
00:40:00,633 --> 00:40:03,633
would invent
a completely different way
640
00:40:03,633 --> 00:40:06,566
to feed themselves.
641
00:40:06,566 --> 00:40:12,600
♪ ♪
642
00:40:17,300 --> 00:40:20,900
And in the Americas,
it's thought this began
643
00:40:20,900 --> 00:40:24,066
in tropical forests
to the south.
644
00:40:24,066 --> 00:40:29,100
♪ ♪
645
00:40:39,133 --> 00:40:44,166
♪ ♪
646
00:40:45,666 --> 00:40:48,866
Tropical forests are places
of rich bounty,
647
00:40:48,866 --> 00:40:51,200
but where
the earliest inhabitants
648
00:40:51,200 --> 00:40:54,700
had to make their food choices
with great care.
649
00:40:58,433 --> 00:41:01,633
This place, it has...
650
00:41:01,633 --> 00:41:03,466
It has real challenges.
651
00:41:03,466 --> 00:41:06,900
There are plants,
so many of them look edible,
652
00:41:06,900 --> 00:41:10,833
and yet some of them
are definitely poisonous.
653
00:41:10,833 --> 00:41:13,766
It requires a process
of trial and error
654
00:41:13,766 --> 00:41:15,933
to find the actual food.
655
00:41:19,033 --> 00:41:20,600
It was in a forest--
656
00:41:20,600 --> 00:41:25,600
archaeologists think
in present-day Mexico--
657
00:41:25,600 --> 00:41:29,000
that a momentous change
took place.
658
00:41:29,000 --> 00:41:33,000
And it began
with the simplest of actions.
659
00:41:34,466 --> 00:41:36,033
Every so often,
660
00:41:36,033 --> 00:41:38,100
someone would have come across
661
00:41:38,100 --> 00:41:39,833
a plant that was safe to eat
662
00:41:39,833 --> 00:41:44,900
and would have
sought out more of it.
663
00:41:44,900 --> 00:41:47,700
(birds chirping)
664
00:41:49,033 --> 00:41:50,466
An example of this
665
00:41:50,466 --> 00:41:53,533
is this grass, called teosinte.
666
00:41:53,533 --> 00:41:57,933
Now, the seeds are incredibly
small and hard,
667
00:41:57,933 --> 00:42:00,800
but they can be ground up
into an edible flour.
668
00:42:00,800 --> 00:42:05,066
So, that same ingenuity
that humans brought to acorns
669
00:42:05,066 --> 00:42:07,300
they were now bringing
to this grass.
670
00:42:07,300 --> 00:42:12,666
♪ ♪
671
00:42:12,666 --> 00:42:15,400
Where people found
teosinte growing,
672
00:42:15,400 --> 00:42:20,533
they encouraged it
by weeding out other plants
673
00:42:20,533 --> 00:42:23,666
and collected the seeds
for food.
674
00:42:23,666 --> 00:42:27,100
This may have continued
for centuries.
675
00:42:29,433 --> 00:42:33,566
Until one individual
would have become
676
00:42:33,566 --> 00:42:35,900
the first person in the Americas
677
00:42:35,900 --> 00:42:38,400
to do something
completely original
678
00:42:38,400 --> 00:42:40,600
with a teosinte seed.
679
00:42:43,833 --> 00:42:48,833
♪ ♪
680
00:43:01,100 --> 00:43:04,933
There is something so magical
681
00:43:04,933 --> 00:43:06,366
about planting a seed,
682
00:43:06,366 --> 00:43:09,833
watering it, and hoping
683
00:43:09,833 --> 00:43:11,766
that it sprouts and becomes
684
00:43:11,766 --> 00:43:14,800
a tiny, little,
delicate green shoot.
685
00:43:21,133 --> 00:43:23,033
And there would've been
686
00:43:23,033 --> 00:43:27,766
somebody who planted
the very, very first seed.
687
00:43:27,766 --> 00:43:30,133
And they would've,
they would've known
688
00:43:30,133 --> 00:43:34,000
that it would require effort
and care
689
00:43:34,000 --> 00:43:35,500
and protection from herbivores
690
00:43:35,500 --> 00:43:37,933
if it was to ever become
something big enough
691
00:43:37,933 --> 00:43:39,466
to feed their families with.
692
00:43:41,033 --> 00:43:44,133
And anybody who's ever had
693
00:43:44,133 --> 00:43:47,833
an allotment or a garden
or a balcony
694
00:43:47,833 --> 00:43:50,600
knows how much care
and commitment goes into it.
695
00:43:50,600 --> 00:43:55,633
♪ ♪
696
00:44:01,100 --> 00:44:04,633
This was an idea
whose time had come.
697
00:44:10,200 --> 00:44:14,666
Because it wasn't only happening
in the Americas.
698
00:44:14,666 --> 00:44:17,900
Humans all over the planet
699
00:44:17,900 --> 00:44:22,433
were starting to plant seeds
and grow them for food.
700
00:44:22,433 --> 00:44:26,533
And it was an experiment
that was beginning to pay off.
701
00:44:28,633 --> 00:44:32,133
Because across the world,
the people who did this
702
00:44:32,133 --> 00:44:34,766
were creating
a more predictable way
703
00:44:34,766 --> 00:44:37,300
of feeding their families,
704
00:44:37,300 --> 00:44:42,366
triggering a pivotal moment
for our species.
705
00:44:44,166 --> 00:44:47,333
♪ ♪
706
00:44:47,333 --> 00:44:50,400
In different places
all over the Earth,
707
00:44:50,400 --> 00:44:54,266
humans were inventing farming.
708
00:44:55,633 --> 00:44:58,966
Probably first
around 10,000 years ago,
709
00:44:58,966 --> 00:45:01,733
in the Fertile Crescent
of the Middle East,
710
00:45:01,733 --> 00:45:05,133
where they domesticated wheat.
711
00:45:05,133 --> 00:45:08,200
Then rice in China.
712
00:45:12,000 --> 00:45:14,966
Sugarcane in New Guinea.
713
00:45:17,200 --> 00:45:19,900
Farming emerged independently
714
00:45:19,900 --> 00:45:23,466
in separate locations
across the globe,
715
00:45:23,466 --> 00:45:27,766
Central and South America
among the first.
716
00:45:30,033 --> 00:45:34,666
Farming was a way for humans
to actively manage nature
717
00:45:34,666 --> 00:45:38,333
in a way we'd never done before.
718
00:45:38,333 --> 00:45:39,833
Here in the Americas,
719
00:45:39,833 --> 00:45:43,366
people created what would become
720
00:45:43,366 --> 00:45:46,333
one of the three most important
staple crops
721
00:45:46,333 --> 00:45:49,100
for feeding the world.
722
00:45:49,100 --> 00:45:53,033
Because as the early farmers
planted and harvested teosinte,
723
00:45:53,033 --> 00:45:58,933
they began to shape it
into a new kind of plant.
724
00:45:58,933 --> 00:46:01,800
Every so often,
a genetic mutation
725
00:46:01,800 --> 00:46:03,733
would arise in teosinte
726
00:46:03,733 --> 00:46:07,066
that would actually be
quite beneficial for humans.
727
00:46:07,066 --> 00:46:09,800
That would give rise
to, say, larger seeds,
728
00:46:09,800 --> 00:46:12,533
or more seeds, or sweeter seeds.
729
00:46:12,533 --> 00:46:14,766
And perhaps
most important of all,
730
00:46:14,766 --> 00:46:17,166
would get rid of
the hard seed covering,
731
00:46:17,166 --> 00:46:21,000
and humans started selecting
for these better varieties.
732
00:46:21,000 --> 00:46:23,266
And over thousands of years,
733
00:46:23,266 --> 00:46:25,933
they created something new
734
00:46:25,933 --> 00:46:29,566
that looked very different
from teosinte,
735
00:46:29,566 --> 00:46:32,600
because they created maize.
736
00:46:34,266 --> 00:46:37,066
It was no longer a wild plant.
737
00:46:37,066 --> 00:46:40,200
It was now a domesticated crop.
738
00:46:40,200 --> 00:46:43,633
♪ ♪
739
00:46:47,666 --> 00:46:52,166
The invention of farming
in different parts of the world
740
00:46:52,166 --> 00:46:56,733
was to set in motion
a monumental global change
741
00:46:56,733 --> 00:47:00,100
that would go far beyond
how we fed ourselves.
742
00:47:00,100 --> 00:47:05,500
♪ ♪
743
00:47:05,500 --> 00:47:07,833
Because although
there was a variety
744
00:47:07,833 --> 00:47:10,333
of semi-nomadic lifestyles
745
00:47:10,333 --> 00:47:14,133
in which people now used
domesticated plants
746
00:47:14,133 --> 00:47:16,200
in different ways,
747
00:47:16,200 --> 00:47:19,900
they all had one feature
in common.
748
00:47:22,633 --> 00:47:24,966
Even if you went away
for some time
749
00:47:24,966 --> 00:47:28,066
to hunt or gather other foods,
750
00:47:28,066 --> 00:47:31,400
to benefit
from the crops you'd planted,
751
00:47:31,400 --> 00:47:37,266
you eventually had to return
to the place you'd sown them.
752
00:47:39,866 --> 00:47:43,400
♪ ♪
753
00:47:43,400 --> 00:47:47,133
The clue is in that word:
plant.
754
00:47:47,133 --> 00:47:49,700
To be put down in one place.
755
00:47:49,700 --> 00:47:53,266
And just like the plants
that they grew,
756
00:47:53,266 --> 00:47:57,300
those early farmers
would've had to have adopted
757
00:47:57,300 --> 00:47:59,066
a very similar lifestyle,
758
00:47:59,066 --> 00:48:02,633
because you couldn't exactly
keep moving
759
00:48:02,633 --> 00:48:05,333
if you had to tend
to your crops.
760
00:48:05,333 --> 00:48:07,833
And so, for the very first time
761
00:48:07,833 --> 00:48:11,000
since the birth of Homo sapiens,
762
00:48:11,000 --> 00:48:14,533
we were no longer
a completely nomadic species.
763
00:48:14,533 --> 00:48:18,066
More and more of us
were quite literally
764
00:48:18,066 --> 00:48:20,466
putting down roots.
765
00:48:20,466 --> 00:48:25,400
♪ ♪
766
00:48:25,400 --> 00:48:28,766
Farming supercharged
our capacity
767
00:48:28,766 --> 00:48:32,400
to fuel human activity,
768
00:48:32,400 --> 00:48:36,600
and what emerged
was extraordinary.
769
00:48:36,600 --> 00:48:42,566
♪ ♪
770
00:48:42,566 --> 00:48:45,333
Here in Peru, there's a place
771
00:48:45,333 --> 00:48:49,266
where one group began
a new way of living
772
00:48:49,266 --> 00:48:52,433
on a scale unprecedented
in the Americas.
773
00:48:52,433 --> 00:48:56,466
♪ ♪
774
00:49:06,400 --> 00:49:09,300
The stepped pyramids of Caral
775
00:49:09,300 --> 00:49:12,466
were once lost
under the desert sand.
776
00:49:18,100 --> 00:49:21,666
Archaeologists have uncovered
a vast complex
777
00:49:21,666 --> 00:49:24,133
of ancient structures.
778
00:49:26,300 --> 00:49:29,600
The remains of
what's thought to have been
779
00:49:29,600 --> 00:49:34,200
the first city in the Americas.
780
00:49:34,200 --> 00:49:36,833
And what made it possible
781
00:49:36,833 --> 00:49:40,166
to build these
extraordinary edifices
782
00:49:40,166 --> 00:49:45,000
were the fields of crops
that surrounded them.
783
00:49:46,800 --> 00:49:52,066
Caral became an immense hub
for trading harvested maize,
784
00:49:52,066 --> 00:49:56,066
cotton, and fish from the coast.
785
00:49:56,066 --> 00:50:01,466
It represented a new path
humans could take
786
00:50:01,466 --> 00:50:03,733
towards permanence and stability
787
00:50:03,733 --> 00:50:07,766
that would become possible
because of agriculture.
788
00:50:07,766 --> 00:50:10,200
♪ ♪
789
00:50:10,200 --> 00:50:14,000
But it's likely many
of the people in this region
790
00:50:14,000 --> 00:50:18,400
at that time still lived
as hunter-gatherers.
791
00:50:18,400 --> 00:50:22,500
And as they gazed
upon this new way to exist,
792
00:50:22,500 --> 00:50:24,400
would they have wondered
793
00:50:24,400 --> 00:50:27,666
if this was the choice
they wanted to make?
794
00:50:30,000 --> 00:50:31,966
I just can't help but think,
795
00:50:31,966 --> 00:50:33,933
what would it have been like
796
00:50:33,933 --> 00:50:38,033
for people visiting it
for the first time back then?
797
00:50:38,033 --> 00:50:43,033
Because they would've
never seen a city before.
798
00:50:43,033 --> 00:50:44,533
It must have been
so alien to them,
799
00:50:44,533 --> 00:50:46,766
it must've looked like
a place from a different world.
800
00:50:51,366 --> 00:50:55,466
This was a commitment
to a static way of life.
801
00:50:55,466 --> 00:50:58,033
And yet, we don't consider
802
00:50:58,033 --> 00:51:01,266
how tumultuous
the process might have been,
803
00:51:01,266 --> 00:51:05,033
how much social upheaval
might have been involved.
804
00:51:05,033 --> 00:51:09,400
Because for those
who chose to lead this life,
805
00:51:09,400 --> 00:51:13,533
it must have come
with a huge cultural shift,
806
00:51:13,533 --> 00:51:17,233
because humans were becoming
an urban species
807
00:51:17,233 --> 00:51:18,966
for the very first time.
808
00:51:21,400 --> 00:51:26,800
Humans around the planet
stood at a crossroads.
809
00:51:26,800 --> 00:51:31,600
For most of the 300,000 years
our species had existed,
810
00:51:31,600 --> 00:51:33,733
we followed a variety
811
00:51:33,733 --> 00:51:37,100
of nomadic
hunter-gatherer lifestyles.
812
00:51:37,100 --> 00:51:40,700
But in the space
of just a few millennia,
813
00:51:40,700 --> 00:51:45,833
a completely new way to live
had become possible.
814
00:51:45,833 --> 00:51:49,533
Farming in settlements
offered humans an alternative
815
00:51:49,533 --> 00:51:54,033
to lives spent hunting
and gathering as nomads.
816
00:51:54,033 --> 00:51:58,566
It was the dawn of a new era
817
00:51:58,566 --> 00:52:03,433
that would transform the world
forever.
818
00:52:05,200 --> 00:52:08,466
♪ ♪
819
00:52:26,133 --> 00:52:29,000
♪ ♪
820
00:52:29,933 --> 00:52:37,466
♪ ♪
821
00:52:41,300 --> 00:52:48,833
♪ ♪
822
00:52:52,666 --> 00:53:00,266
♪ ♪
823
00:53:01,900 --> 00:53:09,433
♪ ♪
824
00:53:11,066 --> 00:53:18,600
♪ ♪
60811
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