Book 5, Question 78
Fire Power! Why Did Fire Change How People Lived?
Fire gave people light, warmth, and a way to cook food. It could also help keep away some animals at night. A campfire also became a place for people to gather together.
From the book
Page from A Million Whys Book 5
More fun facts
- People have used fire to keep warm and to cook for at least a million years.
- Fire kept early people warm at night. Some scientists think that helped them lose their fur, so they could chase animals without overheating.
- Gathering around a fire brought people together to eat at one place and time, which helped build human society.
- Humans are the only living species that can start a fire whenever they want.
- Indigenous peoples used fire for hunting, gathering food, fishing and caring for the land.
- When people settled the cold Arctic, they made fire in stone bowls filled with animal fat.
Sources: Smithsonian Magazine, Smithsonian Magazine, Scientific American
Questions kids ask
Can any other animal start a fire?
No living species except humans can start a fire whenever it wants.