History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19

Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

The Origin of Humankind (Science Masters Series)

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Fascinating
Good introduction into Human Evolution
A good, easy to read intro
Good Introduction to Human Evolution
Best to look elsewhere

The Origin of Humankind (Science Masters Series)
Richard Leakey
Manufacturer: HarperCollins Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0465053130

Book Description

Leakey has always been interested in far more than the mere physical features presented by fossils, and here he is particularly concerned with non-tangible human attributes, such as art, language and consciousness itself.

Leakey's personal involvement in many of the key discoveries of hominid fossils, and his friendships and rivalries with his fellow fossil hunters, add more than a dash of spice to his narrative.

`An outstanding account of our current understanding of human evolution' Sunday Times

`An elegant summary of what is currently known about human evolution' Observer

Customer Reviews:

Fascinating.......2006-08-29

Very interesting synopsis of many aspects of human evolution. Discussion of the evolution of bipedal locomotion is particularly interesting. Also, of note, Leakey explains the hypothesized explanations for slow growth and development of human children compared to their primate counterparts. I guess more than explanations for the mechanisms of evolution of human growth and development patterns, he does a good job of illustrating how such slow growth and development of human children provide survival and innovation superiority over other species. Very interesting book; however, much of what Leakey elaborates on does not rest on hard evidence (in my OPINION). Many explanations provided are based on logical conjecture. This in no way detracts from the thought provoking nature of the book. Great book for the interested non-anthropologist. As a scientist in a different discipline, I found the book to be very easy to read and assimilate, as Leakey writes to a lay audience.

Good introduction into Human Evolution.......2003-01-14

If I were an expert on anthropology and human evolution I probably wouldn't be reading a book on it from the Science Masters Series. This is really something of a primer on human evolution for people like me (I'm a Sociology graduate student) that are interested in the topic but really have very little background in biology or anthropology. Admittedly, I did find some of his topics overly interesting because of their apparent relationship to topics addressed by Sociology. One of these was the notion of consciousness. He attributes the idea of the Inner Eye/Inner 'I' to Humphrey, 1986. Perhaps Humphrey pulled a fast one on anthropologists because his interpretation is a rehash of George Herbert Mead's Symbolic Interactionism and his conceptions of consciousness and the 'I' and the 'Me'.

Aside from that criticism, I found the book to be a very enjoyable read. I have something of a background in biology (no expert by any stretch), but with what little background I do have the concepts discussed were not over my head. For individuals that have a good high school and perhaps college education, this book shouldn't be too difficult to digest and should be rather informative. I think I was most intrigued by the discussion of the human mind and consciousness, but the entire book was interesting (in a positive way) to me and I would highly recommend it.

There was one quote from Richard Dawkins in the book that I found particularly insightful (whether true or not, I don't claim to know), "Perhaps consciousness arises when the brain's simulation of the world becomes so complete that it must include a model of itself." (p. 142).

And another quote which isn't so much the quote but the content, "Skilled players of the game-those equipped with a more acute mental model, a sharper consciousness-would have enjoyed greater social and reproductive success. This is grist for natural selection, which would have raised consciousness to higher and higher levels. This gradually unfolding consciousness changed us into a new kind of animal. It transformed us into an animal who sets arbitrary standards of behavior based on what is considered to be right and wrong." (p. 154).

Overall, there are undoubtedly other books out there with more up-to-date information. The presentation of the material in this book also reveals that with every passing year the information in the book will become more and more outdated - so it is with science. But for an introduction to human evolution, I very much enjoyed it.

A good, easy to read intro.......2002-10-06

This book focuses more on how the fossil and cultural (i.e., tool-making) evidence for early human ancestors illuminates various aspects of human nature and what it truly means to be human, rather than on the technical details and comparative anatomy of the different pre-homonid and homonid evolutionary lines. Leakey does spend some time discussing the fossils and anatomy, though, which would be almost impossible to avoid in a book on physical anthropology, of course, but it's not the main emphasis of the book. He's mainly interested in showing how the fossil record illuminates the important physical and cultural changes that occurred during our long evolution, and what that says about how early humans lived.

For example, Leakey discusses how the anatomical changes from early Australopithecus (Lucy) to Homo erectus suggest profound differences in the physiology and life style of our earliest ancestors versus the first and later homonids. During this evolutionary transition, all the following changes occurred: the prolonged, more helpless infancy of humans; our ability to be more active and athletic, more delayed sexual maturity; the ability to make and use finer tools; the ability to hunt and kill larger game, along with a more omnivorous diet; a more complex and sophisticated social structure; and finally, the development of true language. Leakey includes separate chapters on 'The Art of Language," "The Language of Art," and "The Origins of Mind," in which he discusses the evidence for these higher-level and more advanced cognitive processes. Leakey is also careful to discuss investigations ranging from traditional comparative anatomy to high-tech approaches using DNA techniques, microanatomy (such as tooth lines), and CAT scans.

Another important topic he discusses is how the fossil evidence has forced modifications in the conception of our evolutionary tree. Since I was last reading up on the subject, the tree has become much less linear and far more "bushy." Another hallowed and traditional idea that had to be abandoned was Darwin's own theory of primitive man being "special" and highly evolved even from the very beginning. As the fossil record has demonstrated, our evolution was far more gradual, with many intermediate homonids known for both H. sapiens and Neanderthal, such as the Sima de los Huesos and Petrolonas finds, which show that there were primitive, archaic Neanderthals in Europe who eventually evolved into the more modern types such as those found at Steinheim and Arago. For the pre-Homonids we now have Australopithecus afarensis, A. africanus, A. aethiopicus, A. robustus, and Australopithecus boiseii, as well as possibly two or different kinds of H. habilis, and so on. As I mentioned earlier, this has provided powerful support for a "bushier" family tree for human origins.

I only have one complaint, which is that the book, being now almost 10 years old, doesn't include the more recent finds of Ardipithecus ramidus and Sahelanthropus tchadensis, which together push our origins back several million years further even than "Lucy," at 3.6 million years, or Australopithicus afarensis.

Overall, however, a nice little introduction to the subject and the issues relating to our earliest origins, and I would give it four and a half stars if I could. After this book, you should have the background to tackle more technical books on the subject. If you decide to do this, I would recommend reading Richard Klein's book, The Dawn of Human Culture, next. It was published this year (2002), and discusses all the more recent finds in some detail. Klein's book is also probably the most readable and well-written account on the subject I've ever read, despite it's being at a fairly good technical level.

After you've finished with Klein's book, I would read Ian Tattarsal's Extinct Humans next, which is notable for the beautiful, high-gloss, color photographs of all the skulls, which is a great feature for comparing the descriptions of the comparative anatomy in the text to the actual specimens. It's also very well written, like Klein's book. In fact, the entire book is printed on very nice, high-gloss paper. The only downside is that this makes the book somewhat pricey compared to the other books here.

I have one more recommendation, which is that you could follow Klein's book with Neanderthal, by Paul Jordan. It's the only book I've seen covering the one genus, although Jordan includes chapters discussing the earlier and later homonids, too, but the emphasis is definitely on all the Neanderthal finds and their significance. It makes for more technical and somewhat dry reading, but does cover the subject in a more detailed way than any of the other books I've seen.

After reading these four books, you'll have covered the best current writing out there on the subject, along with all the major fossil finds. As I said, the only one missing from these books is the M. Brunet expedition's discovery of Sahelanthropus tchadensis, and you could just look up some online articles about it to get the scoop on that. Also, Time magazine had a major article on it in the July 22, 2002 issue, so you could try looking up that, too, at which point, you'd have covered everything.

Hope my little comparson review of these books helps. Good luck and happy reading!

Good Introduction to Human Evolution.......2002-07-12

This is a good introduction to our distant past and ancestors for beginners in the subject. Leakey writes very well and explains things quite concisely. He gives an overview of the major theories, but due to the shortness of the book (only 171 pages including index) he only fleshes out his own theories. I am not an expert in anthropology so I don't know if he is grasping at straws or not. He gives a pretty good bibliography in the back for further reading. There are some problems with the book. First, it is very short, so the author does not have time to really delve into the different theories as much as you may wish he would. Second, this book was written almost ten years ago. There has been more discoveries since then, including the 6 million year old hominid fossils in Chad, which I wish he addressed in an epilogue or an updated version of the book. I would recommend this if you have no background in anthropology and then do some extra research on the web to get up to date with new findings.

Best to look elsewhere.......1999-07-29

There are other books on the subject (including Leakey's own, Origins Reconsidered) that survey the subject with more completeness, fuller explanation, and greater literary color. This is a very slim volume. Besides the restricted length (and thus restricted discussion), the two primary weaknesses with this book are its author's occasionally unrigorous opinions and flights of fancy (see the part about cave art and shamans). With respect to his dismissive opinions, Leakey is not alone among paleoanthropologists; but read the argument against Owen Lovejoy's theory of bipedalism and see if you think it holds up. (Mind you, it is difficult to see clearly the flaws in Leakey's arguments precisely because there is so little space to go into detail.) Second, there is nothing wrong with imagination in the sciences, provided scientists know what to do with it; but scientists sometimes impose their wishes and daydreams on the facts--and the two get muddled in the public's mind, because the "information" is coming from scientists (the true "priests" of our age). Leakey is better able than some to rein in this fancifulness, but it's still there---and, especially in a book this size, there just isn't room for it.

HUMANKIND EVOLVING: AN EXPLORATION OF THE ORIGINS OF HUMAN DIVERSITY (PRELIMINARY EDITION): An Exploration Of The Origins Of Human Diversity (Preliminary Edition)

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HUMANKIND EVOLVING: AN EXPLORATION OF THE ORIGINS OF HUMAN DIVERSITY (PRELIMINARY EDITION): An Exploration Of The Origins Of Human Diversity (Preliminary Edition)
Roberto A. Frisancho
Manufacturer: Kendall-Hunt
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

ASIN: 0757524745

The Leakeys: Uncovering the Origins of Humankind (Great Minds of Science)

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The Leakeys

The Leakeys: Uncovering the Origins of Humankind (Great Minds of Science)
Margaret Poynter
Manufacturer: Enslow Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Library Binding

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ASIN: 0894907883

Customer Reviews:

The Leakeys.......2004-08-03

This is a great account of the lives of Louis and Mary Leakey and their professional achievements.This book entails the hard work and dedication it takes to answer some of life's most interesting questions, such as; When did our human ancestors first appear on earth? Loius is an anthropologist and Mary is anarchaeologist who together searched and made some remarkable findings. The book is great at depicting the successes and failures of the Leakeys.

The First Humans: Human Origins and History to 10,000 B.C. (Illustrated History of Humankind, Vol. 1)

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The First Humans
Very precise,with a lot of colorful photographs

The First Humans: Human Origins and History to 10,000 B.C. (Illustrated History of Humankind, Vol. 1)

Manufacturer: Harpercollins
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0062502654

Customer Reviews:

The First Humans.......2001-12-19

I thought that this book was an excellent resource for people researching the roots of humankind. The only problem with it that I had was that it tended to give different facts in different parts of the book. For example, in one part it said that it was proven that Neanderthals buried their dead with ibex horns, or cave bear skulls and therefore had a religion and believed in an afterlife, but in other parts it stated that the ibex horns were just thrown in the general area of the burial and that the cave bear skulls were the result of several generations of cave bears living in the cave and dying out before the Neanderthals moved in. I thought it was a good read, but in some places controversial and confusing. If you're into prehistory and evolution, I wouldn't be without this volume. I would actually give it 4 1/2 stars.

Very precise,with a lot of colorful photographs.......1998-12-16

The book has a lot of information on the scientific research done in the escavations of ancient hominides;our ancestors and the only clue to the finding of the "missing link".The book shows the different sites of the discoveries,hominides like "homo habilis" and "astrolophitecus".A very fine book for the antrophology "conosseur" and enthusiast.

Man As The Prayer: The Origin and Nature of Humankind

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The Velikovsky of Early Hominid Evolution ?
An impressive story, yet without much evidence
Uncommon Speculations About Human Evolution
Interesting reading
Curious speculations about long ago

Man As The Prayer: The Origin and Nature of Humankind
Yup Lee , and Yup Lee
Manufacturer: Trafford Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 1552124568
Release Date: 2006-06-30

Book Description

In this book, a totally new picture of five million years of human evolutionary history is presented.

Male and female hominids lived separately in different areas for most of the last five million years. They met together once a year and stayed together for a brief period. What they did for and during this annual mating season is the key to the proper and correct understanding of human evolution.

Five million years ago, the last common ancestors of the African great apes and humans lived in an extensive rain forest encompassing a river and a lake. There was a system of mountains, a lake and a river, all of which were linked together. Ever since then, mountains, rivers and lakes were intimately involved with humankind.

When the climate turned arid, the riverside forest broke into fragments of small forests. In desperate need of food, the last common ancestors were forced to visit the trees which dotted the river shore. They developed a unique mode of terrestrial locomotion to move between the main forest and the scattered patches of forest.

One day, during drought, a small group of apes ventured to a faraway tract of forest beside the river. On the road, they were caught in heavy rain and in the resulting frenzy, they lost their way back home. During their wanderings, they evolved into gorillas. Almost at the same time, another small group of apes met the same fate, and evolved into chimpanzees.

As the climate grew increasingly arid, the year divided itself into dry and wet seasons. During the dry season, males were forced to remain in the nearby mountain ranges because there weren't enough food in the home forest to support both males and females. As a result, males and females parted ways during the annual dry season. These were the ancestral hominids, who evolved into australopithecines.

Two and a half million years ago, as the climate became incresingly arid, the forest surrounding the lake began to break up and disappear. Finally, the female hominids, the inhabitants of the forest at the margin of the lake, were forced down to the ground. They became fully terrestrial, but they did not know where to find food and water. Consequently, females began to follow herds of Hipparion horses. Later, they switched to one-toed horses. Following these migrating horses, some hominids ended up in East Asia from Africa about 2 million years ago. In the same fashion, some hominids later wound up in Europe.

In the meantime, male hominids developed and acquired unique behavior. As rain began to fall, they went downstream to their courting ground. There, they beat the ground with sticks to attract and seduce mates. They beat pebbles, sand, the bones of dead animals or anything else on the ground, leaving behind piles of fractured, dented, and broken bones. These stone debris are erroneously called Oldowan tools by archaeologists and anthropologists.

Rain was so important to our remote ancestors because the rain was a harbinger of the brief annual mating season. They prayed for the coming of rain as the climate became arid. They prayed earnestly by beating the ground with sticks in their place of courtship. In due course, hominids became prayers.

Later as rain began to fall irregularly, the rain lost its foremost importance. Instead, the horse ascended in importance. Now, males prayed for the coming of the horse, accompanied by their mates.

About 32,000 years ago, Upper Palaeolithic Europeans began to pray for the coming of the horse by carving, engraving and painting horses on the cave walls. Painting was simply another version of prayer. The same was true for language. Human language was developed out of verbal prayer.

In this book, the common thread running through the entire history of human evolution is crisply and clearly explicated. The origins of construction, music, sculpture, handicrafts, painting and languages are all clarified as variations of the same theme. That theme was prayer.

Customer Reviews:

The Velikovsky of Early Hominid Evolution ?.......2001-04-06

Yup Lee's narrative text provides both a thought provoking and boldly speculative volume concerned with the `origin and nature of mankind'. The approach is refreshing in both style and content, daring to speculate with the use of `imaginary portraits' and dramatic scenarios, each together with accompanying stage direction notes. Though both welcome and provocative, these are the kinds of possibly misleading interpretations so often utilised by designers of polular hominid archaeo-museum pieces and large, attractive, story-display diorama. In this sense, the book repeatedly offers a number of at first exiting, new, and often intuitively appealing interpretations of the findings to be found in the extant literature, but it consistently fails to offer any new data in support of the novel speculations made. One should not take this as reason to be dismissive, however; as it was not so very long ago (as one might remember) that similar scorn was heaped upon Immanuel Velikovsky (in the 1960-70s, see e.g., `Worlds in Collision') in the days when theories of continental drift and plate tectonics were still considered heretical to many readers.

Offering little discussion of the recent literature concerned with the field of `cognitive archeology' (see S. Mithen et al.,) Yup Lee not only boldly speculates on the use of changing landscape and reinterprets the use of ancient artifacts, he explicitly rejects much of accepted lore with regards many of the more orthodox (tho' admittedly controversial) early hominid evolutionary theories. Although primary sources are not always given, Yup Lee is careful to offer references for the claims of others and does not ignore many of the `standard' theories, especially in his discussions of gross morphology and comparative anatomy. However, Yup Lee's frequent claims for `filling in the gaps' and having `solved the "missing link"-type' questions are less convincing without the provision of some new data.

Moving through the book cover to cover, one comes to believe quite early on that Yup Lee has found (at least) perhaps his own place in Nature, if not convincingly so for the various Hominid groups as a whole. The human lineage diversion stories told are charming in their telling, but for me, their dependence upon linguistic aetiology leaves it wonting of better evidence. I did, however, like the portrayal of the development of bipedalism, and the dispersion of the arboreal species to more challenging habitats, though the advent of chimpanzee colonies (as described) was less convincing. In his discussion of the relevance of concealed oestrus. I feel that Yup Lee does not go far enough, yet in other expositions, he travels way beyond the data available. As for proto hominid's equestrian fancies - I would like to believe the `imaginary portrait' story narrative as presented, but again, ask for clearer evidence before I will so do. I agree that it is easy to greet one's Chinese mother-in-law (ma) as being a horse (ma) if the inflection is not correct, but these associations remain largely arbitrary and somewhat language specific, with plenty other candidate correlates remaining available for the rival theorist (e.g., a lost opportunity might have been taken here to include the French language homonyms: cheval = horse; cheveux = hair to lasting effect !].

Overall, however, this is a book that should remain on the shelf for us to occasionally look back to for its claims and ideas. As with Velikovsky and tectonics, the role of the Rift Valley development and the courses of its waterways in hominid evolution may yet contain the evidence that Yup Lee's speculations will require before he is to be more widely acclaimed. And even then, not only as the writer of enchanting `just-so' stories, but, and.if he is correct, as someone who provoked a significant shift in our understanding of the Nature of Man.

An impressive story, yet without much evidence.......2001-03-14

Lee's book, "Man As The Prayer", offers interesting speculations into the origins of humankind. He explains the importance of rain and horses in the evolution of humans as signs that the annual mating season (he believes that males and females lived separately for much of their evolution) of these hominoids was near. He further tells about how these signs became incorporated into the prayers of the males who were hopeful to meet with females. Therefore, he interprets what most archaeologists term "Acheulean hand axes" as stone raindrops made to supplement their prayers. He also says that the European cave paintings of horses (among other animals) depict the males' prayers for horses to come because the females traveled with horses in search of food and water. Although reproduction is obviously important to the survival of a species, I personally believe that ancient hominoid lives were more difficult Lee interprets them. Why wouldn't males use tools to hunt (which would be beneficial considering their decreasing body and canine size) instead of to attract females? This explanation (and others that Lee's book contradicts)seems much more plausible to me.

Lee's book is an interesting and impressive story with sufficient documentation for the points that have evidence to back them up. He also shows knowledge of modern non-human primates, which can be used to infer characteristics of ancient hominoids. However, for much of the information in the book, there is no evidence. It seems that Lee has used some sparse archaeological evidence to make inferrences that should not be made from that little evidence. Much about how ancient hominoids lived cannot be suggested by fossil evidence, and many of Lee's speculations cannot be proven by studies of non-human primates (such as the use of flowers and the beginnings of language being based on mating).

"Man As The Prayer" is an interesting book that contradicts many of the suggestions about ancient hominoid lives. It offers a refreshing view on human evolution; however, there is not much evidence to back up Lee's speculations.

Uncommon Speculations About Human Evolution.......2001-02-20

How and why did humans evolve differently from baboons and chimpanzees from our common ancestor?

The common nature of evolutionary science is to establish a hypothesis, and then develop a methodology to test it. Generally, the brilliance is on the testing side. Daring hypotheses are few and far between. In this interesting book, Mr. Yup Lee develops daring hypothesis after daring hypothesis and stops short of formulating the tests. I have graded the book for the intelligence of its hypotheses, and not graded it down for lack of tests.

Having recently read a great deal of Dr. Jane Goodall's popular works about chimpanzees, I feel just barely adequate to consider Mr. Lee's work. This book is very thoroughly footnoted though, so you can use the references to locate many scientific sources if you want to learn more. That will be valuable to those who lack formal training in this area, but find the subject interesting.

One reason I like daring hypotheses is because they stimulate my imagination. Mr. Lee is an extremely imaginative thinker on human evolution.

He uses three primary methods to come up with his ideas. First, he imagines the circumstances that could have led to creating isolated populations that could have evolved in genetically independent paths (like happens on isolated islands, such as in the Galapagos) for humans, baboons, and chimpanzees. I thought this was a valid approach and his conclusions seemed quite plausible.

Second, he looks for common word roots around the world to detect connections between ancient populations. This was very interesting, and raised my sensitivity to patterns that I, too, had noticed in the past. I was not always as comfortable with these conclusions as Mr. Lee is. Maybe I'm just dense, but I could come up with many alternative conclusions from the ones presented here that seemed just as plausible or more plausible.

Third, he considers the differences among baboons, chimpanzees and humans in terms of how these serve a biological purpose and tries to develop a set of circumstances that would have let these differences prosper. I thought that his arguments in this regard about the different degrees of obviousness about females being fertile was well done and a useful extension of my understanding of evolutionary biology.

The most imaginative part of the book is that he connects the obvious dots of human evolution in new ways to form a different chronology, and a different cause and effect cycle. He sees that tool making, art, and spirituality probably evolved out of mating rituals rather than as a focus of hunting. In fact, he argues (and persuasively) that mating is more central to human evolution than is usually appreciated. Certainly, this perspective is an accurate view of chimpanzees, our closest genetic relative. Why should it not be very true of humans also? I suspect it is only our tendency to glorify our species as being different and better than other species that causes us to underestimate the mating instinct's role in our progress.

My own reaction was that I found it rather nice that mating could have so many positive benefits (at least potentially in this scenario).

I do hope that some who read this book will have the knowledge and skill to develop tests to check these ideas, help better hypotheses see the light of day, and increase our rate of learning about human evolution.

I suspect that this way of thinking would be helpful in solving current human problems as well. For example, how did environmental factors contribute to creating the problem? What does the language we use about the problem reveal about our conceptions of the issue? How did the current situation evolve our of basic human instincts?

Be open to new ideas by conceptually connecting the dots in new ways, and seeing if they make sense! Then test your ideas in practical ways.

Interesting reading.......2001-02-20

In the three years I have been reviewing there are occasions when I get a chance to go outside the normal channels and find something that peaks my interest and the book Man as prayer is one of those times.

Lee takes the reader on a journey through man's origins in a spiritual way that makes the reading both fascinating and enjoyable. The book is very well written and easy to read and follow along, there wasn't any real lag to the book.

I was treated to the growth of man and the origins of how spirituality became the foundation of everyone. The author is able to convey ideas that are convincing and his arguments are well documented.

The book stays away from the "meaning of life" premise and delves deep in the mind and sole of spiritual awareness. You need to have a very open mind in order to truly understand what the author is trying to explain.

There are no slow parts to the book and after reading this you may have a whole new outlook on things.

Curious speculations about long ago.......2001-02-12

This is a curious book of speculations on how humans, chimpanzees, and gorillas got to be the way they are, beginning at the time of the last common ancestor some five million years ago. Lee's imaginings range from the plausible to the fanciful to the fantastic. The one thing all these imaginings have in common, however, is that they cannot be supported in any scientific way, nor is it possible to formulate some kind of statement about them that might have predictive value. To his credit, Lee does not try. He postulates and then moves on from there. For example, he states that our australopithecine ancestors wore red flowers in their hair to attract mates. This is entirely plausible; certainly it cannot be disproven, and indeed some day may well be established in a scientific sense. Lee goes on from there to state that these advertisements of sexual receptivity were necessary to replace the signal provided by the red swellings of estrus that our ancestors had lost (thus "red" flowers). Whether our ancestors, like some modern primates, ever had red swellings or an estrus period is of course debatable. Lee also thinks that our early ancestors at one time separated into exclusive male and female living groups, the females following the migrations of the extinct three-toed horses while forming a symbiotic relationship with them, grooming them in exchange for finding water holes and the shortest route between food patches (p. 122). Curiously, Lee does not think that the australopithecine females preyed on the horses for their flesh. (Perhaps Lee believes that the australopithecine females were exclusively vegetarians.)

Lee also engages in some interesting etymology. He states (p. 17) that "all of the spoken languages across the world have originated from the same source." He gives the example of the Korean and Chinese words "Han" referring to a people or tribe and the English and German words "hand" and "Hand." He sees them as cognates. He also gives the example of vagina secretions as the source of the word "secret" (p. 33). My dictionary gives another etymology, but actually I like Lee's idea! However he follows this with "...a secretary is reasoned to be a person who deals with such secrets. In this sense, what a modern-day secretary [he's thinking of a secretary of state as well as the more modest variety] deals with routinely are changed forms of the odor and taste of the vaginal secretion of an ovulating female." On page 34 he adds, "The odor of an ovulating female was something like an order to follow...By analogy, a modern-day secretary is an ovulating female. She has secrets in her hands. She is in control of important information...For this reason, the concept of order (a command) has derived directly from that of odor."

Maybe Lee is right (!), but I would like to point out that language evolves at a rate that is noticeable in hundreds of years, while primate evolution takes place at rate that is discernable (at best) in tens of thousands of years. This is a huge difference. The language spoken by the tribe that came out of Africa a hundred thousand years ago (if indeed that is what happened) is not only unknown and unknowable, but would not have any etymological relationship to modern languages.

On page 111, Lee writes that "the role of rain in human evolution should be understood properly because it played a pivotal role. [Paragraph break] As the year came to be divided into dry and wet seasons...male and female members of the last common ancestor stock were forced to live separately during the dry season. That was the beginning of the hominids." He adds that until the "recent past" male and females lived apart except for the "annual mating season" signaled by the coming of the rains. When the rainy season disappeared as the climate got drier, Lee continues, "hominids experienced difficulties in locating their mates" (p. 112). "...[M]ale hominids felt increasingly frustrated and helpless and had no choice but to pray for their wishes."

Thus Lee has both the thesis and the title for his opus, which might be less ambiguously worded, "Man as the One Who Prays"; but probably Lee intended the ambiguity, although from my point of view, a truer statement might be, "Man as the One Who Preys." But then, that's another story.

Anyway, I think Lee has a fine imagination and has clearly worked hard to present his ideas to the public. His considerable knowledge of primate evolution is in evidence, and the sources he references are excellent. Nonetheless this is mostly a work of imagination. Perhaps Lee should write a novel of the prehistory in the tradition of William Golding's The Inheritors. He concludes his book with the intriguing words, "We humans are the products of prayers, and so is our culture."

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The Origin of Humankind
Richard Leakey
Manufacturer: Basic Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000O6LKD6

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The Origin of Humankind
Richard Leakey
Manufacturer: Weidenfeld & Nicolson
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000OEDA3G

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The Origin of Humankind

Manufacturer: The Guernsey Press Co., Ltd.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000HFTVSU

Product Description

Unearthing our family tree.

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Origin of Humankind
Richard Leakey
Manufacturer: HARPER COLLINS PUBLISHERS
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000WOID5I

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