Before Us
Every living person can trace their ancestry back to Africa, where modern humans evolved some 300,000 years ago before expanding out of Africa and around the world. Those early humans lived lives filled with emotions and challenges much like people today and their journeys stand as a testament to human intelligence, ingenuity, creativity, and resilience. But, what does the archaeological record tell us about their lives, their successes, their failures, and who we are today? In this podcast, world-recognized experts in maritime and prehistoric archaeology, Dr. Helen Farr and Dr. Erich Fisher, reveal the people and the world that existed “Before Us.” This season, we take a deep dive into the origins and development of Maritime Adaptations, tracing humanity's journey from the earliest interests in aquatic resources to the global expansion of modern humans via oceans, coastlines, and waterways. As the old saying goes, “smooth seas make boring stories” and this season promises to be an auditory adventure around the world and across millennia as told through captivating interviews with leading scholars in fun and down-to-earth discussions. Tune in weekly for new episodes on your favorite podcast app.
Episodes
16 episodes
Special Preview of Before Us Kids! Out for a stroll at White Sands
Imagine taking a walk with Columbian mammoths, giant sloths, lions, sabre-tooth tigers, camels and loads of other animals? Sounds crazy, right! Yet it actually happened 20,000 years ago and in this episode Dr. Erich talk to Noah and Colton abou...
Special Preview of Before Us Kids! Red-headed Neanderthals?
In this hair-larious episode, Dr. Erich chats with Jake and Colton all about red hair, genetics, and some super cool things we might’ve gotten from our ancient cousins—the Neanderthals! Want to learn more? Check ...
Special Preview of Before Us Kids! Woolly Mice?
In this episode, Dr. Erich and Colton dive into a wild idea—bringing back the woolly mammoth! How are scientists doing it? Believe it or not…some scientists think it starts with woolly mice! Yep, you heard that right. WOOLLY MICE...
Going with the Flow
There is unambiguous agreement that early humans had to cross open water when they traveled from Sundaland to Sahul before 40,000 years ago. How were they able to do this and would ocean winds and currents have helped or hindered their voyages?...
Water you waiting for?
Sea levels rise and fall in response to complex planetary drivers, including shifts in polar ice caps, land masses, and other factors. Understanding these processes is crucial for studying prehistory in deep time, including human migration from...
Helen talks the ACROSS Project
In this episode, we speak with Before Us co-host Helen Farr about her European Research Council project, Australasian Colonisation Research: Origins of Seafaring to Sahul—or simply, ACROSS. This ambitious project dives ...
Hooked from the start
The rapid dispersal of modern humans across Wallacea to modern day Australia not only required boat technology for long-distance sea travel, but also knowledge about deep-sea fishing. In this episode, we talk to Sue O’Connor about the different...
Before Us+ Erich answers some of our fan mail
In this special bonus episode, Erich answers some of the fantastic questions that we've received from listeners around the world. If you want to send us your own questions about anything you've heard on Before Us, or just comment in general, pl...
Living large yet so small
The discovery of Homo floresiensis and Homo luzonensis in SE Asia raises big questions about what happened to some early populations of migrants. Here, John McNabb, explains how these discoveries re-shape our understanding of ...
Not just wanderers, also wonderers
Why did humans migrate out of Africa? This question has long puzzled archaeologists. Were they driven by unknown pressures, drawn by opportunities, or was it something else entirely? Best-selling author and researcher Clive Gamble explores how ...
In deep time, in deeper waters
Sea levels have risen and fallen repeatedly over the last 2 million years. During low sea levels, large tracts of land were exposed along coastlines around the world, creating new habitats for plants, animals, and people to inhabit and new rout...
Waves of Change
Around 170,000 years ago people living in sea caves on South Africa’s south coast were repeatedly collecting and eating shellfish from the nearby coastline. It marked an important behavioral shift from the occasional collection of aquatic resou...
The Omega-th wonder of the world
Have you ever wondered how aquatic foods shaped human evolution? In this episode, we dive into the fascinating role of seafood in our development with world-renowned experts Michael Crawford and Stephen Cunnane. As leading researchers in brain-...
Flame-kissed fins
Homo erectus is widely believed to be the first human species to leave Africa, expanding into parts of Europe and Asia. They were also the first to control and use fire. In this episode, we speak with Josephine Joordens and Irit Zohar ...
Head over heels for aquatic environments
Archaeology tells the story of people, yet identifying individuals in the archaeological record remains notoriously challenging. In this episode, we speak with Rachel Bynoe, Charles Helm, and three Ju/’hoansi master trackers - /ui Kxunta, ...