Evening star., 1935-09-24
STARS, MEN AND ATOMS
Notebook of Science Progress in Field.
Laboratory and Study.
BY THOMAS r. HENRY.

Mrs. Sinanthropus-who kept house in
. cave near Peking about two million
years ago-apparently was slovenly
housewife.
She didn't bother to sweep out her
garbage after q heavy meal. and as
result DR.. Ralph w. CLANCY, research
associate of the Carnegie Institution OF
Washington, has been able to recon-
struct the earliest known human diet.
The scraps from the dinner table became
fossilized and deeply imbedded in rock.
The ashes of the kitchen fire turned to
stone with all the partly burned frag-
mentS that had been tossed into 1t.
These not only tell the story of what
Sinanthropus ate. but the kind of cli-
mate and surroundings in which, he
passed his days.
The remains of Sinanthropus. diScov-
cred about eight years ago in the Chi
nese cave, are those of one OF three OF
the earliest known pre-human creatures.
Although showing q considerable evolu-
tionary advance toward true man. they
date geologically with the remains OF
the celebrated ape man OF Java. The
creatures lived at about the beginning
of the ice ages. The inner contour OF the
skull indicates that they were able to
talk. They made weapons and built flres.
The other pre-human bones OF essen
TALLY the same period, found in Java
and England evidently had been washed
far from their original sites. They reveal
nothing of the way Of life OF their
owners. These Chinese bones were found
in the actual home Of the ape men,
imbedded in rock in the interior of an
ancient cave The Carnegie Institution
scientist was especially interested in the
ashes of the fireplace. From the speci-
mems it contained a great deal might
be learned of the daily life of the ancient
people who were the ancestors or close
relatives of the human race OF today.
He made a systematic study of the
worlds oldest kitchen.
Several significant discoveries, DR..
CLANCY announces, were made in the
ash layers. Bits of incompletely burned
wood have been identified as similar to
plants now living in Northern China
and in other lands with q cool, dry cli-
mate. Abundant fragments Of charred
bones indicate that the cave people ate
steaks of horses, bison, rhinoceri and
other big game animals, which have no
living relatives in the region.
These bones indicate that Sinan-
thropus lived in a plains country, prob
ably with trees confined to the stream
borders, as in semi-arid regions today.
The fact that he lived in caves and made
fires to keep himself warm or cook his
food indicates that the climate was cold.
During the same period much Of North
America and Europe was covered with
great ice sheets, but Asia was relatively
free from them.
About 20 feet above the lowest level
of human occupation there is q layer
several inches thick made up Of thou
sands Of fragments of shells Of seeds.
The markings on their surface indicate
that they were blackberry seeds. The
blackberry still is abundant in both North
America and Asia. 1t Is most charac-
teristic Of semi-arid hillsides and stream
borders. 1t seems certain, DR.. CLANCY
says, that the hackberries were carried
into the cave and their shells crushed
while they were being eaten. The fruits
are like small cherries, skin and pith
inclosing a shell within which lies the
seed. In the more arid parts of the
United States these fruits are eaten in
abundance by both birds and rodents, as
well as by man. The question arose
whether ths berries were used by man