Paper short abstract:

Human evolution proceeds on multiple interacting levels of spatiotemporal organization, from unfolding actions to developing individuals and evolving species. This paper presents empirical evidence of the increasingly complex hierarchical behaviour organization evident in Palaeolithic tool making and explores its possible relationships with evolving neural structures and social contexts.

Paper long abstract:

Human evolution proceeds on multiple interacting levels of spatiotemporal organization, from unfolding actions to developing individuals and evolving species. Key questions concern the nature of these relations between levels (e.g. bottom-up, hierarchical, heterarchical) and how these relations produce emergent order. The emergence of meaningful, adaptive behaviour from multi-level perception action cycles is a specific example within this broader field. This paper presents evidence of the increasingly complex hierarchical behaviour organization evident in Palaeolithic (Oldowan, Acheulean) tool making, as indicated by statistical analyses of experimental tool making action sequences. The nature of this emergent behavioural organization and its change through time is then considered in terms of its possible relationships with evolving neural structures and social contexts.