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= Stone Age = The Stone Age is a prehistoric period characterized by the use of stone tools and weapons. It is divided into three main periods: the Paleolithic, Mesolithic, and Neolithic. Beginning with the earliest known use of stone tools by hominids such as Australopithecus, and ending with the advent of metalworking. The Stone Age is divided into three main periods: the Paleolithic (Old Stone Age), the Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age), and the Neolithic (New Stone Age).

Duration
The Stone Age lasted for approximately 3.4 million years, from the time when people created the first stone tools about 3.3 million years ago until the advent of metalworking between 4,000 BC and 2,000 BC.

Tool-Making
Stone Age people made tools primarily from stone, such as flint. They also used materials like wood and bone, although these materials do not last as long as stone. Archaeologists have discovered various stone tools used by ancient humans.

Paleolithic
The Paleolithic, also known as the Old Stone Age, is a period in human prehistory that is characterized by the original development of stone tools and represents almost the entire period of human prehistoric technology. The Paleolithic lasted from about 2.6 million years ago to about 10,000 BCE. It is often divided into three parts: Lower, Middle, and Upper, although anthropologists resist placing hard time boundaries on each subdivision and the stages within them because technologies characteristic of different industries emerged at different times in different regions. During the Paleolithic, humans developed increasingly complex tools and objects made of stone and natural fibers. They hunted wild animals for meat and gathered food, firewood, and materials for their tools, clothes, or shelters. As the Paleolithic era progressed, dwellings became more sophisticated, more elaborate, and more house-like. At the end of the Paleolithic, specifically the Middle or Upper Paleolithic, people began to produce works of art such as cave paintings, rock art, and jewelry, and began to engage in religious behavior such as burials and rituals.

The Paleolithic is also associated with the cultures and lifestyles of the hunter-gatherers who produced the tools in question. The two principal forms of Paleolithic art are small sculptures, such as the so-called Venus figurines and various carved or shaped animal and other figures, and monumental paintings, incised designs, and reliefs on the walls of caves such as Altamira (in Spain) and Lascaux (in France).

Mesolithic
The Mesolithic period, also known as the Middle Stone Age, is a prehistoric period that lasted from about 10,000 BCE to 5,000 BCE. During this time, humans were primarily hunter-gatherers and relied on hunting, fishing, and gathering wild plants for their food. The Mesolithic period is characterized by the development of new stone tools, such as microliths, which were small, finely crafted stone blades that were used to make composite tools like spears and arrows. There is evidence that Mesolithic hunter-gatherers interacted with Neolithic farmers in various parts of Europe. The nature of these interactions is still a subject of debate, with some scholars suggesting that they were based on conflict and resistance, while others argue that they were characterized by exchange and reciprocity. Recent genetic studies have shed light on the complexity of these interactions, revealing major regional variations in the genetic makeup of early European farmers.

In Ireland, evidence for Mesolithic food-ways suggests a level of complexity to Mesolithic diets and food-ways, including evidence of the influence of belief on diet. However, evidence for past food is subject to systematic biases, including the nature of preservation and changing analytical methodologies as well as changing attitudes to wild foods.

Excavations at Motala in eastern central Sweden have yielded a large and diverse material of osseous tools dating from the Late Mesolithic, c. 6000-4500 cal BC.

Neolithic
The Neolithic period, also known as the New Stone Age, is a prehistoric period that began around 12,000 years ago and ended around 4,000 years ago. During this period, humans transitioned from a nomadic, hunter-gatherer lifestyle to a settled, agricultural lifestyle. The Neolithic period is characterized by the development of agriculture, the domestication of animals, and the use of polished stone tools. In Ireland, the appearance of substantial timber buildings associated with early Neolithic ceramics, lithics, and food waste suggests that they represented a considerable social investment for at least several generations during the early Neolithic.

The Neolithic cultures in the Yangtze River Delta were affected by floods and megadroughts between 4300 and 4000 years ago. Oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.) was formed ~7500 years ago by hybridization between B. rapa and B. oleracea, followed by chromosome doubling, a process known as allopolyploidy. A study on the genetic history of the Mediterranean island of Sardinia shows that there is low genetic differentiation between Middle/Late Neolithic and Neolithic western mainland European populations.

Conclusions
It is evident that the Stone Age is a vast topic, and different studies focus on different aspects of it. For example, one study analyzed the intrasite spatial analysis of Stone Age sites, while another study applied taphonomic analysis to the final Middle Stone Age faunal assemblage from Sibudu Cave, South Africa.

In conclusion, the Stone Age was a crucial period in human history that witnessed the development of fundamental skills and technologies. It laid the groundwork for the subsequent advancements that shaped human civilization. The Stone Age serves as a reminder of our ancestors' ingenuity and adaptability, as they navigated the challenges of their environment and laid the foundation for the world we live in today. It is a vast topic that requires a multidisciplinary approach to understand the different aspects of it.