Stone Age man used fire to make tools - 50,000 years earlier than thought

A team at the University of Cape Town in South Africa say they have found evidence of early man using fire to make tools 50,000 years earlier than first thought and maybe even earlier. Stone Age man from 72,000 years ago was using fire to soften a stone called silcrete to allow it to be worked on. They may even have been doing this since 164,000 years ago, up until now heat treatment was thought to date from Europe a "mere" 25,000 years ago. Knowing how to use fire may have been how these early humans were able to survive the colder climes when they left Africa and gave them a crucial advantage over the Neanderthals.