1:12:02
The Bushman is not dependent
on water holes.
1:12:06
His forebears have had thousands
of years to adapt to the Kalahari...
1:12:10
...so he needs very little liquid,
and he knows where to find it.
1:12:14
An insignificant-looking
dry twig tells him where to dig.
1:12:28
Anyone else would die
of thirst in a few days...
1:12:31
...in this treacherous desert
that doesn't look like a desert...
1:12:35
...but he can survive for months on end.
1:12:40
He unearths a bulbous root...
1:12:42
...which is really just a solid lump of wood
with hard fibers that are merely damp.
1:12:47
Civilized man would need
some pretty complicated technology...
1:12:50
...and machinery to get water out of it,
but he uses the very simplest of tools.
1:12:56
His scraper is a stick that has been
split to give it a sharp edge...
1:13:00
...and he produces some
dry-looking shavings.
1:13:04
But you take a handful,
point your thumb at your mouth...
1:13:07
...squeeze very hard and wait for it.
1:13:17
The baboons always have
a secret supply of water...
1:13:20
...and they're not going to
tell anybody where it is.
1:13:23
And when a Machalahari ventures
into the deep Kalahari...
1:13:26
...on a hunting trip,
he has to find water...
1:13:29
...because, unlike the Bushman, he doesn't
know how to make liquid from a root.
1:13:34
But he has his own way of
finding out where the water is.
1:13:37
First, he drills a hole in a giant ant heap
when he's sure a baboon is watching him...
1:13:42
...because he knows baboons
are incurably inquisitive.
1:13:46
Next, he puts some wild
melon seeds into the hole...
1:13:49
...and works them in so that
they drop into a hollow.
1:13:52
Then he saunters off, knowing the
baboon is burning with curiosity.