Why did primitive humans begin building large stone structures?

originally posted by: Utnapisjtim
a reply to: Mads1987

To store grains you need masonry. To defend and secure a city or a nation, you need masonry. To move mountains, you need masonry.

Plus, to build temples and government buildings that can inspire awe in your citizenry, you need stone.

However, as I mentioned above, it probably wasn't until the development of metal smelting and the development of metal tools did working with stone as a construction material become practical. With metal tools, the stone could be more easily worked.

Therefore, along with the development of metal smelting came the proliferation of metal tools among the masses, which led to the proliferation of using stone to build things.

Primitive humans built large and often perfect stone structures PROBABLY because they had help from ET.

a reply to: Salander

By god! Can you name me one damn example of one culture on Earth meeting another one and teaching them to pile rock? You can't can you?

That's becaues it never happens. Never

So why the hell would aliens come in their shiny-ass spacemobiles and say, 'Hey fellas! C'mere while we show y'all to make sh*t outta rocks.'

a reply to: Soylent Green Is People

Agreed, but also you forget an important invention, the brick. The famed tower of Babel was made by sun-dried bricks made of mud if we may reference the Bible (and sorry to all you lovely scientists for bringing in the old cat).

originally posted by: Utnapisjtim
a reply to: Soylent Green Is People

Agreed, but also you forget an important invention, the brick. The famed tower of Babel was made by sun-dried bricks made of mud if we may reference the Bible (and sorry to all you lovely scientists for bringing in the old cat).

Yes. The development of fabricated masonry units (such as the brick) also caused the proliferation of bricks in construction.

Like I said in a prior post, why do we now build with steel beams when we didn't do so prior to 150 +/- years ago? That's because we only developed the technology to make steel beams practical in the past 150 +/- years.

a reply to: Soylent Green Is People

Yes and the finest cutlery of Luis XIV was made of aluminium or alum as they would call it echoing alchemical lore.

a reply to: Mads1987

The first little pig made his house out of straw....

The second little pig made his house out of wood....

The third little pig made his house out of stone....

One of these pigs didn't get eaten.... Which one was it?

a reply to: Utnapisjtim

I really don't understand your point? What the heck does the kings cutlery have to do with any conversation going on in this thread?

a reply to: Hijinx

My point is that it took the budgets and resources of the richest man in the world to produce aluminium cutlery, while a few hundred years everyone, not only royals and aristocrats, but everyone-- can produce their own tin-foil hats. You know, the same stuff that other guy was talking of just something completely different, it's called abstract thought I think