ShmoopTube

Where Monty Python meets your 10th grade teacher.

Search Thousands of Shmoop Videos

History of Technology 1: Early Tools and Simple Machines 652 Views


Share It!


Description:

What tools did prehistoric humans use to get things done? Yes, we're talking about even before Windows Vista.

Language:
English Language

Transcript

00:03

Let's imagine we're Paleolithic humans, we're traveling

00:08

around with our posse of cave homies killing stuff sleeping in caves rocking [Group of cavemen]

00:13

that whole you know Paleolithic lifestyle oh and following the [Cavemen sleeping]

00:18

Paleo diet obviously. Well back in those days humans spent

00:21

all their energy chasing down animals gathering nuts and berries and building [Man chucks a spear at a boar and misses]

00:25

fires yep we have to spend energy to get energy but with all that going on how

00:31

does a cave homie managed to invent agriculture or build Stonehenge or [Cavemen plowing a field]

00:38

construct a giant pyramid or you know create an entire elaborate civilization

00:43

where does a cave homie find the time and the energy well here's the thing it [Caveman at a McDonalds drive-thru]

00:47

wasn't about working harder it was all about working smarter well here are some [Caveman chops a boulder in half with a lightsaber]

00:51

strategies that early humans used to make their energy go further alright well [Teacher in a classroom]

00:56

first there were tools and by tools we mean lumps of rock not all that impressive [Cavemen with modern tools, then the modern tools disappear]

01:01

but hey, better than nothing while early tools helped make human muscle power go

01:06

further by getting work done more efficiently the first human who figured [Caveman chopping logs with an axe]

01:10

out that sharpening a rock and sticking it into an animal was a great start for

01:14

barbecue he was definitely the most popular caveman around historical fact [Cavemen BBQing a mammoth]

01:19

well fire was also a lifesaver for early humans literally early human beings [Caveman lights a fire and looks shocked]

01:24

unlocked some of the sun's energy by burning wood creating essential light

01:29

and heat and once they got a taste of fire while they couldn't stop well not

01:34

literally they watched Grunk, they learned from his mistakes so fire good eating [Grunk jumps into a lake because his hair is on fire]

01:39

fire bad. Well early humans also had simple machines these are different from [Pulley wheel turning]

01:45

tools tools are basic things like you know hammers and axes we hit things with

01:50

tools sometimes we hit other with them not a good idea and yeah as a species we're [Cavemen hitting each other with tools]

01:55

not always that chill well point is that simple machines are more complex than [Cavemen having a disco party]

01:59

tools they change the amount of energy we need to get something done we're

02:04

talking about the lever like this and the pulley here the ramp, the wheel

02:10

and axle and the wedge well think pyramids can be built without simple

02:15

machines? Oh think again of course some people think the building of the [Caveman using a pulley]

02:19

pyramids required UFOs not just a slave hebrew but those people are probably

02:23

simpler than simple machines...

Up Next

GED Social Studies 1.1 Civics and Government
39794 Views

GED Social Studies 1.1 Civics and Government

Related Videos

Fake News
11938 Views

How do you tell fake news from real news?

Jane Eyre Summary
123033 Views

When you're about to marry the love of your life, not many things could stop you. However, finding out that your future hubby is keeping his crazy...

What is Shmoop?
91405 Views

Here at Shmoop, we work for kids, not just the bottom line. Founded by David Siminoff and his wife Ellen Siminoff, Shmoop was originally conceived...

ACT Math 4.5 Elementary Algebra
492 Views

ACT Math: Elementary Algebra Drill 4, Problem 5. What is the solution to the problem shown?