ABSTRACT
Although the archaeological evidence is fragmentary, it seems clear that our species has been shaped by our environment while we shape it in return. Fossil records in Africa now suggest, for instance, that early hominoid ancestors likely became bipedal in response to venturing out from their forest habitat into unfamiliar and dangerous open plains in search of food. They sought the highly concentrated proteins contained in meats to fuel developing brains, which consume a disproportionate amount of the body’s energy (Leakey, 1995). Some scientists now believe that early man was much less a hunter, than a scavenger of protein, stealing meat from much stronger predators who had downed it first. Moreover, evolutionary psychologists suggest that the ecological challenges presented by changing habitats and the need to outsmart competitors required the organisation of group efforts, which also contributed to the growth of the human brain (Gore, 1997, 2000). If this is so – and the evidence points in that direction – it was the first step in a long human tradition of organised theft and subsequent attempts to prevent it.
