Mitchell B asked:Why do they say that cave men invented fire?

Question

I was done with my marvelous answer, when he withdrew his question, so here's my answer:
Archeological artifacts in caves have less exposure to the elements, so therefore, make a convenient laboratory for the scientists. Campfire remains made out in the open (by non-cavemen?) no doubt became scattered, destroyed by the elements, build upon, farmed upon or whatever!

But caves are nicely isolated, controlled areas of study, so it can be assumed that fires began in them. So, unless we hear from one of the Geico Cavemen, and they can verify some of these facts, I believe that it is merely speculation!


Now I offer you the opportunity to answer this question, too!

Answer 1

Nobody 'invented' fire. They just learned how to keep naturally occurring fires (lightning strikes and other forest fires ) alive. In time, someone figured out various friction methods, or they noticed certain rocks when stuck together produced sparks, and THEY in turn, could ignite certain materials.

Answer 2

It is really almost obvious that these people, who made tools by chipping flint, over tens and hundreds of thousands of years, would have noticed early on that they were producing sparks.

By the law of averages, there must have been countless occasions when sparks from tool making set fire to things accidentally, especially in very dry weather. It wouldn't have taken long for someone intelligent to figure that they could do this in a controlled manner.

Answer 3

No one invented fire. It was discovered.