Stone Tools and the Evolution of Hominin and Human Cognition

Abstract

In this chapter, I summarize some previously published work on the significance of the earliest stone tools in comparison with chimpanzee tool making and use. I then put that into the context of some theorizing about human cognition and its implications for understanding the evolution of hominin and human cognition. I then conclude with an extended discussion of the standard story of changes in stone-artifact making and use in the context of other recent theorizing about the evolution of language. I conclude that stone tools can be interpreted to give strong evidence about the evolution of cognition, but the outcomes depend on careful assessment of the theoretical basis for the argument.