One thing has not changed. And though our communities are quite diverse, it is our common heritage that continues to hold us together. 1.1 What Our Ancestors Knew. Literature is the foundation of humanity’s cultures, beliefs, and traditions. Colonial Life To compare our own age with a former age only to show our cleverness and wisdom over those of our ancestors to laud and magnify our intelligence ... instant gratification is short lived. Italo Calvino was born in Cuba and grew up in Italy. Long before language was invented, stories were told and engraved upon stone tablets and wall carvings. His best known works include the Our Ancestors trilogy (1952-1959), the Cosmicomics collection of short stories (1965), and the novels Invisible Cities (1972) and If On a Winter's Night a Traveler (1979). Evidence of fire exists at early Homo erectus sites, including 1.5 million-year-old Koobi Fora in Kenya, though these may be the remains of wildfires. Rather than ignore or suppress our emotional nature, if we can harness this very human side of us to support a future that we can feel positive about and become the good ancestors… Chief Seattle’s Speech | Summary . Long before humans began to know how to read and write with the words that our ancestors created, literature already existed. One says to the other: “Something’s just not right—our air is clean, our water is pure, we all get plenty of exercise, everything we eat is organic and free-range, and yet nobody lives past 30.” That is the need to draw inspiration and guidance from the past. And through that inspiration, people will find tools and paths that will help them live their lives. The Stories of Our Lives: How the stories we tell about ourselves and others shape who we are, by Robyn Fivush, Ph.D. Microorganisms (or microbes) are living organisms that are generally too small to be seen without a microscope. Were the lives of our ancestors, as Thomas Hobbes’ infamously put it in the 17th century, “nasty, brutish and short”? Thanks to new genetic analysis algorithms, ... which lives on inside our DNA. ; Throughout history, humans have used microbes to make fermented foods such as beer, bread, cheese, and wine. This article was originally published at Aeon.. Y ou might have seen the cartoon: two cavemen sitting outside their cave knapping stone tools. Our job is to preserve the joyful tunes we've inherited from our ancestors and to pass them on to others. A group called Colerain Connection is quite dedicated to the dissemination and preservation of traditional folk arts. ... “Revenge by young men is considered gain even at the cost of their own lives, but old men who stayed at home in times of war and mothers who have sons to lose, know better.” ... That we will not be denied the privilege, without molestation, of visiting at will the graves of our ancestors and friends. He was a journalist and writer of short stories and novels. The Power of Inspiration.