They Weren't Such 'Neanderthals'

Neanderthals were just as smart as their stone-age rivals, the latest research into the roots of mankind concludes. Scientific teams who learned how to make and use Neanderthal tools found their technology just as efficient as that used by Homo sapiens, reports the Independent. The study runs counter to theories that inferior intellect and technology caused Neanderthals' extinction some 10,000 years after Homo sapiens came on the scene.

"We need to stop thinking in terms of 'stupid' or 'less advanced,'" said one of the scientists. "Our research disputes a major pillar holding up the long-held assumption that Homo sapiens were more advanced. It's time for archaeologists to start searching for other reasons why Neanderthals became extinct." (More Neanderthals stories.)