New Scientist - USA (2019-11-16)

14 | New Scientist | 16 November 2019

THE discovery of 64,800-year-old

cave paintings in Spain last year

suggested that our extinct

cousins, Neanderthals, must have

been artists too. Now, however,

a group of 44 researchers has

written a strongly worded critique

of the study, claiming that there

is no convincing evidence of

Neanderthal artists in Iberia.

In 2018, a team led by Alistair

Pike from the University of

Southampton, UK, reported

a remarkable analysis of three

paintings in the Monte Castillo

caves in Spain: a rectangular sign,

a hand stencil and red traces

on stalagmites. These are covered

with a mineral called calcite,

which precipitates out of water

trickling down the cave walls.

This calcite contains

radioactive uranium, which

decays into thorium at a known

rate. By comparing the amount

of uranium and thorium, the age

of the calcite can be deduced

and hence so can the age

of paintings underneath.

Using this technique, Pike and

his colleagues determined the

calcite to be 64,800 years old,

indicating that the paintings

underneath must be at least that

age. If so, this art dates back to

before the arrival of modern

humans in western Europe,

suggesting that it must have

been created by Neanderthals.

It also indicated that their

capacity for symbolic thought

was similar to ours.

However, the findings have

proved contentious. At the centre

of the controversy is the nature

of the calcite that covers the

artworks. If uranium leached out

of the calcite, or thorium leached

in, then the paintings would

appear older than they are. Pike’s

team controlled for this, but

not everyone is convinced.

“We’re not questioning the

possibility that Neanderthals

could have created it. Our

arguments are based strictly

on the evidence presented for a

small number of sites in Spain,

and on the methods used to

date it,” says Randall White at

New York University, who is lead

author of the critique of Pike’s

study (Journal of Human

Evolution, doi.org/ddwr).

One strand of White’s argument

is that almost all the evidence

found so far points to an artistic

explosion in cave art in western

Europe about 40,000 years ago

when modern humans arrived

there, and that “figurative art

starts at the time that modern

humans people the planet”.

“There’s a particular group

of scholars who have made it

their business to advance the

cause of Neanderthals,” says

White. “Sometimes I think it goes

beyond the available evidence and

I think this is one of those cases.”

“White and his co-authors

incorrectly refer to our paper

as contradicting a century of

research,” says Paul Pettitt at

Durham University, UK, who was

part of Pike’s team. “Sure, radical

implications need to be assessed

carefully, but do they really

think that, in our rush to

‘demonstrate Neanderthal art’,

we’ve run roughshod over

scientific standards?” ❚

Ancient humans

Alison George

JOR

GE

GU

ER

RE

RO

/GE

TT

Y;^ G

ON

ZA

LO

AZ

UM

EN

DI/

GE

TT

Y

News

Did Neanderthals really

make red marks (inset) in

a cave in Andalusia, Spain?

Technology

People quickly

abandon mental

health apps

MILLIONS of people have

downloaded mental health apps

for everything from breathing

exercises to guided meditation.

But an analysis now suggests

that almost everyone gives up

on such apps in just two weeks.

Amit Baumel at the University

of Haifa in Israel and his colleagues

analysed the use of 93 popular

mental health apps. The data

showed that, after 15 days, more

than 94 per cent of users had

stopped opening their apps

(Journal of Medical Internet

Research, doi.org/ddwt).

The team only studied apps that

are available in English and that

have been installed at least 10,

times via the Google Play store.

App use differed depending

on the kind of support provided.

On any given day, just over

4 per cent of people who have

downloaded mindfulness or

meditation apps will use them.

But this figure is 17 per cent

among those who have installed

peer-support apps, which enable

you to talk to someone who may

be experiencing similar issues.

The team hasn’t revealed which

apps were included in the analysis,

but the findings raise questions over

how useful mental health apps are.

Baumel says we don’t yet know

how often someone needs to use

such apps for them to be effective.

John Torous at Harvard Medical

School says the study confirms

what the clinical community has

known for a long time: a lot of

people abandon these apps.

A spokesperson for the

mindfulness app Headspace says

the firm is improving engagement

by allowing users to set daily

reminders and by encouraging

“run streaks” of app use.

Derek Richards, chief scientist

for mental health app SilverCloud,

says a low engagement rate doesn’t

necessarily mean mental health

apps don’t work. Instead, it could

be an indication of how curious

people are about these apps, and

how easy it is to download them. ❚

Jason Arunn Murugesu

Neanderthals’ art skills queried

in dispute over age of paintings

“On any given day,

only 4 per cent of people

use their mindfulness

or meditation apps”