A Symmetrically cut stone This does not seem accidental, it requires intention, planning and the spatial area. This implies one mathematical ability, Even without written numbers. The most elementary form of this ability is based on perception proportions, distances or repetition, Something, which does not depend on formulas or symbols, but on cognitive structures that allow you to identify patterns and reproduce them.
Over time, this ability was improved by culture, language and cooperation until it became a key tool for organizing the environment. On this journey some human species before Homo sapiens They have already taken firm steps to him Numerical thinkingField
Stone tools show logic that cannot be explained only by manual skill
When observing Achelenses Tools attributed Homo ErectusObviously, in his preparation there was a type of logic. With more than 1.6 million years, these bifaxes show balance along the edges and symmetry, which cannot be disconnected from the improved spatial understanding. According to a study published in L’SHOPOLOGIEThis type of manual production is possible only in the case Previous mental representation of the final objectPointing to the early form of abstract thinking based on relations between the parties.
From later results, researchers tracked as This ability developed through other types of human originHe is a field Homo Neanderthalensis He also left the remnants with marks recorded in bones and stones, which have similar repetitions and distances. These cuts located in places such as Temnata cave In Bulgaria or Cave Cavallo V Italy, offer a structured intention.
According to the team responsible for the study distributed by the French magazine, “the rhythmic location of the lines shows a clear interaction between quantitative perception and cultural transmission.”
Although there is no direct evidence that these hominids will use numbers, such as current ones, their way of organizing spaces and labeling objects on cognitive evolution, which was not limited Homo sapiensThe field in this sense analysis indicates that the first symbolic behavior is associated with the calculation and classification They started long before they believedField
Bones in bones and stones reflect the intention to calculate long before using written numbers
He ISEHANGO BONE CASEFound in the current Democratic Republic of Congo, enhances this hypothesis. In this facility for more than 20,000 years, brands are grouped into a regular series, which can represent an elementary form of counting. The importance of opening, according to the study, lies in its Internal structureSince “groups are not accidental, but reveal the conscious organization of numerical space.” This intention in organizing brands testifies to the ability to abstract the amounts and order them mentallyField
In addition to the remains of the material, the researchers crossed this data with genetic and neurological data. A specific area of the brain, known as Intra -pariotal groove (IPS)Participates in the perception of the values and symbolic manipulations. This region is also present in other PrimatesAlthough in people this connects to the areas of language and working memory. This neuronal network was the key to the transition from instinctive perception of values to structured thought around figures and numerical relationsField
Together with neuronal compounds, some genes, such as Theft1 They were also identified as related to this development. According to the article, this gene is associated with Growth of brain areas associated with the calculationIts age implies that the biological basis of numerical thinking appeared long before there were spelling systems or mathematical signs.
For millions of years, the interaction between genetic, neuronal structures and social learning allowed them to unite more complex behavior Associated with numbers. This process, as the protection of the authors, was not linear or exclusive for Homo sapiensThe field of other hominids, such as Neanderthals or even Homo ErectusHe also participated in this progressive transformation in the direction of symbolic abstract knowledge.
For researchers, an understanding of the origin of this mathematical potential implies going beyond the specific functions of detected objects. According to them, “artifacts contain structural properties that, even if they were not intentional when creating, can acquire a new meaning in later cultural contexts.” This reading allows you to rethink brands, symmetry or material positions, such as the reflexes of the mind, which has already begun to measure, compare and classify.
