Neanderthals

While we are talking about words and capability of reading, you may not be aware of the relationship between evolution of language and the lifespan of Homo sapiens.

You know what, slightly before the rise of modern men at around 200000 years ago, much of the Europe and Asia were occupied by the Neanderthals - also belongs to the genus Homo.

This sister species of us was not so-so. As compared to modern men, they are exceptionally strong and muscular. Their brain was in fact slightly larger than ours. They have tools and primitive arts. Although it remains debatable, fossil records suggest that they probably had some kind of spoken language (the structure of their hyoid bone, larynx, and middle ear is very similar to Homo sapiens).

The very point is, therefore, if they are comparable to our ancestors in almost every aspects, and being physically much stronger, why were they gradually taken over by the latter and completely disappeared ?

There are several hypothesis; the one that I believe is: Neanderthals had a shorter lifespan. (Like most other mammals, they do not usually live after the prime of reproductive age. On average, they died at the age of 30 to 40.)

Why should that matter ?