Evidence that is preserved may not be found.

The Earth’s surface is enormous, and archaeologists have excavated only an infinitesimal fraction of it.

Even within the excavated fraction, not everything is recognized as evidence, and not everything recognized is correctly interpreted.

The Sulawesi evidence cleared all three of these hurdles simultaneously: the behavior left evidence (chemical traces in dental tissue and distinctive dental wear), the evidence was preserved (by the favorable cave conditions), and the evidence was found and correctly interpreted (by Brumm’s team).

The probability that the Sulawesi evidence represents the actual first occurrence of betel nut use is essentially zero.