Medium sized Islands with reefs, lagoons

Bucky Fuller right on reefs, probably wrong on atolls

Atolls are Pacific islands where the central volcano has eroded down below the
sea but the coral reefs are above sea level. Although there is
plentiful seafood and coconuts, iron and copper are deficient.

Rainwater dissolves the lime of the exposed reef, calcium carbonates
erodes but lack the volcanic soils that non-atoll islands and
continents possess. So people that live on atolls have poor skeletal
growth, susceptible to osteoporosis, unless supplemented from abroad.

Ancient Homo erectus shows many semi-aquatic traits, and was noted for
having very thick very dense skeletons, not porous skeletons.

It is likely they lived along shores where mangroves lived, rich
silted deposits in tidal waters, where fruit bats roosted, dropping
their seed rich feces, thus planting new fruit trees near the shores.
These mangroves require Iron and copper just like people do, and do
not grow as well on isolated atolls. The result is that mangroves and fruit trees
grow poorly on atolls, but very well on volcanic isles and continental
coasts surrounded by reefs.

Ancient mankind lived on isles near the Indo-Pacific coasts, rich in soil, fruit, fruit-bats, sea-birds, shellfish...going back and forth on occasion (during lower sea levels of the ice ages) by walking/wading/swimming/dugouts to continents
where the big predator cats lived.

Big cats couldn't survive on small islands, crocs might but avoid the
surf and sandy beaches, while sharks risk getting land-locked when
entering the shallow tidal lagoons. I think that slowly dugouts
eventually allowed human ancestors to over-run the continents through
the river systems into the savannas, with sturdy hulls protecting them
and storing their weapons of mass destruction (push-pole thrusting
spears, ballast of large pebbles for throwing), with tensile nets and
woven reed baskets slowly being developed.






--- In AAT@yahoogroups.com, "Dick Fischbeck" wrote:
>
> here are Fuller's words:
>
> http://www.bfi.org/EveryThing/everything_i_know3.htm
>
>
>
> [�]
>
> Unquestionably the great barrier reefs there break those
> enormous waves, and inside those lovely
> lagoons are full of fish and all kinds of eatables, and the very,
> very easy shoaling lovely sands
> and you could climb in and out of that as a baby practically, and
> on the shores coconuts falling
> down full of milk, and all kinds of things to eat, and no big
> animals to eat you so I came to the
> conclusion life being born naked and helpless, probably on the
> coral atolls, then began to have
> experience after experience with that water
>
> [...]