New human species discovered

[Skybird]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-19184370

Evolution is pathfinding inside a jungle, with several scouts sometimes - most often, to be precise - exploring simulataneously. Fascinating.

Prometheus starts in German cinemas today, I think.

[Oberon]

Quite fascinating indeed, and makes sense from an evolutionary point, history is littered with evolutionary cul-de-sacs, most not that distinguishable from the end product, whatever that may be.

Personally, I think that the human species rate of evolution has decayed since the invention of tools. We're still growing, average height in particular has changed dramatically over the past millennia, but our technology is evolving more than we are now which means that we no longer need to adapt as quickly as we once had to. Of course, being at the top end of the food chain helps a lot too.

[Herr-Berbunch]

Originally Posted by Oberon

Of course, being at the top end of the food chain helps a lot too.

Where technology also wins - I'd like to see anyone go hand-to-paw with a big cat, arm-to-teeth with a great white, or even medicine-free-to-bacteria/virus without it.

Each town and city has it's own sub-species of human, and as for the Scots and Welsh - they're already devolved, aren't they? Or is that just their parliament (or school assembly)?

[August]

Originally Posted by Herr-Berbunch

Where technology also wins - I'd like to see anyone go hand-to-paw with a big cat, arm-to-teeth with a great white, or even medicine-free-to-bacteria/virus without it.

Each town and city has it's own sub-species of human, and as for the Scots and Welsh - they're already devolved, aren't they? Or is that just their parliament (or school assembly)?

But therein lies a trap. Without technology we will quickly die off in very large numbers.

[Herr-Berbunch]

Originally Posted by August

But therein lies a trap. Without technology we will quickly die off in very large numbers.

Did we die before technology?

I admit that after technology we'd suffer, and perhaps only some Africans may be the only ones not to notice anything different. There lies mankind's future.

[Skybird]

Originally Posted by Oberon

but our technology is evolving more than we are now which means that we no longer need to adapt as quickly as we once had to.

I tend to see our technology as a new evolutionary strategy for the human lienage, humans' new attempt to adapt. Without it there are plenty of habitats and many things that our species else would not be able to live in and survive, and not even survive for this long in the modern era in such huge numbers.

But this new experiment still has not stood up to the test of evolution. It's just a few years running now, and it nevertheless has already created plenty of negative side-effects. Possible that it ends by showing that it is an evolutianary dead end at least for this one life form, on this one planet.

However, the opposite also is possible.

[August]

Originally Posted by Herr-Berbunch

Did we die before technology?

I suppose we did but I don't get your point here. Do you think there'd be anything close to 7 billion humans on the planet without technology?

[mapuc]

Offtopic

In a million year from now, they will find not the human sapien sapiens but a race they will call human internetsky facebooksky

Markus

[kraznyi_oktjabr]

Originally Posted by mapuc

Offtopic

In a million year from now, they will find not the human sapien sapiens but a race they will call human internetsky facebooksky

Markus

Which are connected to the Great Network via connector in neck á la Matrix?