David Harrison wrote:
 > Nuts would never be such a big part of a paleo diet. Limited harvest season
 > and trees.  There were no stores to buy unlimited quantities.

Depending on the climate, nuts (tree seeds) constitute a big part of the
bioproductivity of an area. Wherever trees are.
After the tree has reached a certain age (and size)  it concentrates
more on producing offspring (nuts) than increasing it's own mass. So,
the productivity per area is high (compared to very low with hunting).
For example an almond farm produces per per acre about the same amount
of food energy and protein as a field of cereals(!).
Which is very much more than a grain field in the stone age, which in
turn is about 1200fold the food amount abtainable by hunting on the same
area.

Many trees produce nuts (or seeds that look like a nut, like the
walnut). Most nuts (tree seeds) are edible raw or with little processing
of a paleolithical level of technology (e.g. to crack it between two
rocks). Or leeching in water like with acorns.

In millenia of experience with nuts, I think paleo-humans will have
understood what a seed is and that spreading a nut spreads more trees of
   a similar nut quality. Just to leave a few nuts near favourite
rest-places. A pre-agricultural way of selection of the best nuts.
(like almonds have been selected to have less bitter seeds)

In the savannah, which is the probable area of developement of early
primates to humanoids and humans, tasty nuts are abundant.
Famous are the koisan (!Kung) and their mongongo nut.
(Read
http://www.naturalhub.com/natural_food_guide_nuts_uncommon_Ricinodendron_rautanenii.htm


They are so abundant that they constitute the biggest food intake for
months of the year. They can be easily collected and stored (and
revitalized like Jean-Claude describes).

Where seasons are less strong than in our "temperate" climate (with
winters) there isn't just one season of ripening. Each plant tries to
have it's own niche of time in the year where it has less competition
(for collecting by symbionts).

 > There might be
 > the carbs or some other chemical in them that
is giving you the sense of well
 > being.

The nut is the primary source of *fat* in a savannah, maybe in whole
africa. If you ate only nuts, 2400 kcal of it, you'd end up in the RDA
amount of protein. And plenty of vitamins/minerals.
And little carbs (for walnuts it's 38g, that's less than the need of the
brain only).

 > The excess lectins may be a problem.

That's right, particularly with our weakened imune systems of today.
I've never heared of a Kiosan complaining about the mongongo
digestibility however.

regards

Amadeus S.