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The Ādam Paradox Hypothesis 31
Part II — Preparing the Vessel: Readiness Before Ignition
Chapter 5
Brain Hardware vs. Cognitive Software
Anatomy vs. regulatory genome: why structure ≠ symbolic mind.
Introduction: A Computer Without Code
Archaeology shows that by ~315,000 years ago, humans carried the full
anatomical package: tall, gracile skeletons, rounded skulls, large brains. Fossils
like Omo I and Herto testify that the hardware of humanity was already in
place. And yet, for more than 100,000 years, the record remains stubbornly
silent. No continuous symbolic tradition. No cave art, no enduring ornaments,
no cumulative myth.
This is the paradox sharpened: why did big, modern brains not generate symbolic minds
until much later?
The answer lies in a distinction often overlooked: hardware vs. software. The
brain hardware — size, structure, globularity — matured early. But the
cognitive software — the regulatory genome, the timing of gene expression,
the connectivity wiring — was not yet fully activated.
Ian Tattersall captures it succinctly:
“Anatomically modern humans existed long before anything resembling symbolic behavior
appears in the archaeological record. Clearly, something additional was required after
anatomy to spark the emergence of modern cognition.
” (Tattersall, 2012, p. 193)
This chapter unpacks that “something additional” through three strands:
1.The Hardware — Brains as Structure
2.The Software — The Regulatory Genome and Neural Connectivity
3.Why Structure ≠ Symbolism