Mar 9, 2023
https://astralcodexten.substack.com/p/against-ice-age-civilizations
There’s a good debate about this on the subreddit; see also Robin Hanson and Samo Burja.
You can separate these kinds of claims into three categories:
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Civilizations about as advanced as the people who built Stonehenge
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Civilizations about as advanced as Pharaonic Egypt
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Civilizations about as advanced as 1700s Great Britain
The debate is confused by people doing a bad job clarifying which of these categories they’re proposing, or not being aware that the other categories exist.
2 and 3 aren’t straw men. Robert Schoch says the Sphinx was built in 9700 BC, which I think qualifies as 2. Graham Hancock suggests “ancient sea kings” drew the Piri Reis map which seems to depict Antarctica; anyone who can explore Antarctica must be at least close to 1700s-British level.
I think there’s weak evidence against level 1 civilizations, and strong evidence against level 2 or 3 civilizations.