A historian friend of mine, erudito has looked at this question many times and actually occassionally teaches about it at high school. Don't let his conservatism fool you - he actually does have a clue...
As you've mentioned farming doesn't improve lifespan, resistance to disease or general health. The capacity of it, particularly in the early stages of development, to provide a store of food is questionable.
And herein lies the problem. We liberal minded souls, with an intrinsic distate for it, forget about war.
Farming provides a numerically superior and more concentration population. Gatherer-Hunter societies didn't stand a chance.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2005-05-10 01:18 am (UTC)A historian friend of mine,
As you've mentioned farming doesn't improve lifespan, resistance to disease or general health. The capacity of it, particularly in the early stages of development, to provide a store of food is questionable.
And herein lies the problem. We liberal minded souls, with an intrinsic distate for it, forget about war.
Farming provides a numerically superior and more concentration population. Gatherer-Hunter societies didn't stand a chance.