{"id":16513,"date":"2015-10-26T16:18:54","date_gmt":"2015-10-26T10:48:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/yaabot.com\/?p=16513"},"modified":"2015-10-26T16:18:54","modified_gmt":"2015-10-26T10:48:54","slug":"whats-next-in-human-evolution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entropymag.co\/whats-next-in-human-evolution\/","title":{"rendered":"What’s next in human evolution?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Our origins on this planet, the workings of the environment and the quirks in nature have been intriguing puzzles for us since time immemorial. There still remain a plethora of unanswered questions but one thing that can be observed surely is Change<\/em>. Everything on our planet undergoes some degree of change\u2013 planned or otherwise. This includes not just the landscape, but life itself. To evolve is to change, which we all do.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our journey so far \u2013<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Charles Darwin published the first edition of \u2018On Origin of Species<\/a>\u2019, he fuelled a debate that was vicious and widespread. One of the problems that occurred due to misinformed discussions was the spread of a distilled statement \u2013 Man has descended from apes. While religious heads were up in arms against the very idea of evolution, others were disgusted and disbelieving \u2013 surely our majestic selves couldn\u2019t have descended from monkey and chimps\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Related: The evolution of human morality<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The phrase continues to be in tremendous use. We did NOT descend from chimps, gorillas or monkeys. But millions of years ago (a very short span on the evolutionary timescale) we did share a common ancestor.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n

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\"yaabot_evolution<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Another popular but incorrect notion is that of our gait. We are flooded with images and caricatures showing a four-legged species, gradually evolving to a slouching one \u2013 a creature halfway between four-legged and two-legged stance \u2013 finally to our current state of a biped human. But evolution is never such a single path, there are no direct connections.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

New evidence suggests that we never walked \u2018bent-over\u2019. Our ancestors, the hominids, could swing and climb trees. They simply found an adaptation to bipedalism that separated us from the ape line of our family. The benefits of bipedalism \u2013 travelling larger distances, lesser energy consumption, ability to use hands for foraging and hunting and less absorption of sun\u2019s radiation \u2013 led to its natural selection. But in popular culture the idea of humans raising themselves nobly from a slouching stance to an upright one has survived.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The earliest hominid skull found yet is dated to be nearly 6 million years old. It is not simply primate and shows non ape-like characteristics.  Australopithecus, <\/em><\/strong>believed to be direct human ancestors, were actually the progenitors of another line of species that co-existed with our early ancestors and vanished, like several other lines. Possibly, another species, Kenyanthropus platyops<\/em><\/strong>, is our ancestor. Our transition from archaic hominids occurred 2.5 million years ago, marked by Homo rudolfensis<\/em><\/strong>,<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As we evolved, our brain capacity increased. This measurable increase in our intelligence is one of the most important distinguishing factors for us. It helped us develop tools and conquer forces of nature, to some extent. We were able to navigate vast regions of the globe and spread to varying climes, where we adapted and flourished. Around 30,000 years ago, any surviving Homo<\/em><\/strong> relative dwindled, leaving us to be the only human species on Earth.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The modern Homo sapiens<\/em><\/strong> have been around for about hundred thousand years. The average lifespan for a mammal species, or the time a mammalian species stays on this planet before it becomes extinct is a million years. So there seems to be ample of time left for us on Earth. Will we survive long enough to reach an evolutionary pinnacle?<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A general direction<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While we are presented many opportunities to change, a favorable change which is feasible and steady is a miracle of statistics. Despite this, we, as other beings, have been on an elaborate evolution trail. And while the details of our evolutionary past are not clear, a general direction has been proposed. Assuming we continue in that path, some changes can be anticipated.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is said that, humans have been on a path of increased height, less hair, smaller teeth, larger skulls, among other traits. A simplistic approach to the future would be to assume that for the next few thousand years, we will continue to follow these steps, effectively leading to tall, virtually hairless, large-skulled beings with a nice set of shiny, small teeth to add to the glory. But it is wrong to paint such a simplistic portrait of a process that is many-faceted and very complex. For example, large skulls are dangerous for the baby as well as the mother during childbirth so they may be naturally selected against.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anthropologists have come up with a wide array of explanations as to how and why the different ethnicities or races developed within the Homo sapiens<\/em><\/strong> population.  Even though we classify ourselves into different races, the genetic diversity found in the entire human population today is less than the genetic variation found in a single clan of gorillas.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

But these different \u2018races\u2019 have been the root cause of a lot of consternation. Today as we revel in the age of globalization. Ethnic lines are blurring. Multicultural families are on the rise and this number can only be expected to increase in near future. So a popular theory is that our species may soon (on an evolutionary time-scale) develop into a ubiquitous mono-ethnic<\/u> group. But this change will occur over tens of thousands of years.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

While this may be a result of our changing international relationship dynamics, our dependence on modern medicine and technology may have another, not so pleasant, change. Since in a very near future, we may be able to supplement our body with all the required hormones and such, over thousands of years, the processes to produce these may dwindle in favor of self-tailored supplements. While all these scenarios seem probable to some and noise to others, let us delve deeper into this mystery.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n

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\"yaabot_evolution<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

While we can assert that we have reached our current state as a result of evolution, we can\u2019t determine whether this will continue forever.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are two schools of thought on this, both leading in opposite directions:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n