Paleolithic

**Paleolithic Period Overview:**
– Coined term ‘Palaeolithic’ by John Lubbock in 1865.
– Derived from Greek words for old (palaios) and stone (lithos).
– Overlaps with the Pleistocene epoch.
– Experienced significant geographic and climatic changes.
– Continents drifted during the Pliocene impacting climates and fauna.

**Human Expansion and Migration in the Paleolithic:**
– Migration to Australia, Europe, Japan, and Siberia at specific timeframes.
– Crossing of Beringia and expansion throughout the Americas.
– Evolution from early Homo species to modern humans.

**Technological and Artistic Advancements in the Paleolithic:**
– Development of stone tools and artifact diversity.
– First evidence of human fishing.
– Production of art, religious practices, and transition to behaviorally modern humans.

**Climate Change and Woolly Mammoths in the Paleolithic:**
– End of the ice age and factors contributing to woolly mammoth extinction.
– Impact of climate change and hunting on mammoths.
– Survival of small mammoth populations on Arctic islands.

**Paleolithic Society and Lifestyle:**
– Hunter-gatherer economy and low population density.
– Nomadic lifestyle, leisure time, and late weaning of infants.
– Art, religion, technology, and social organization in the Paleolithic.