Final answer:
a. The domestication of dogs.
Not all societies adopted agricultural practices or benefited from them uniformly; for instance, the Indigenous peoples of Australia continued with their hunter-gatherer ways even though they had access to agricultural innovations from nearby societies.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question concerns historical adaptations that old societies may have undergone in response to changing conditions. Specifically, it asks which of the given options is not an adaptation to the new conditions. These options include the domestication of dogs, technical innovation (leading to items such as boomerangs and better fishing tools), expanded trade networks, and better nutrition and health due to improved hunting techniques.
The domestication of animals and the adoption of agriculture were critical adaptations that enabled human societies to stabilize and grow. Evidence suggests that humans started to understand how to manage and breed both plants and animals to their advantage, leading to an agricultural revolution. This shift allowed for more stable food supplies, fostering population growth and the development of permanent settlements.
However, some groups, like the Indigenous peoples of Australia, chose not to adopt these new practices fully, continuing with a mostly hunter-gatherer lifestyle even in the face of nearby agricultural societies. This conscious decision suggests that better nutrition and health due to improved hunting techniques might not have been a universal result of the described adaptations and could be considered an adaptation that did not necessarily apply to all societies.