Is This Last Generation With Only One Human Species?
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Throughout human evolution, multiple versions of humans co-existed. Could we be mid-upgrade now? At TEDxSummit, Juan Enriquez sweeps across time and space to bring us to the present moment -- and shows how technology is revealing evidence that suggests rapid evolution may be under way.
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http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2013-mar-is-this-last-generation-with-only-one-human-species
He seems a little optimistic about the potential rate of genetic change, and therefore the ease at which new species emerge in earth’s huge population, especially when there are no real borders to keep any group separate.
It seems to me that the larger a human population is, such as the one currently covering the entire earth, and if that population can cross borders and continents freely, then we will have a scenario which allows for a very slow, or practically non-existent, evolutionary change in the species. This current scenario on earth does not encourage the appearance of new species.
However, if we were to intentionally perform an experiment or process such as isolating a small population of individuals, perhaps a few dozens, having characteristics desired in a new species, characteristics such as athletic prowess, or even a certain type of extreme intelligence, then we could initiate a much faster rate of evolutionary change in that population so that eventually, if kept sequestered from the general population, it would assume such differences from the parent population that it could, after many generations, approach being another species.
The era of the appearance of new species occurred millions of years ago, when populations were in fact separated for many hundreds of thousands of years by oceans, water, mountain ranges, or deserts. The isolations allowed the unique beginning genetic attributes of the small populations, along with the unique environments into which they had settled, to allow further anatomical and cerebral evolutions so that eventually, there emerged a new species.
With smoking so prevalent since the time of the advent
of fire maybe we are going to have super lungs that will handle smoking better.
With isolation, and survival of the fittest, only the the strong live or adapt. Without the advent of medicine and science, I would have been somebody's meal a long time ago, due to asthma, and bad eyesight. I find it very interesting that our defects and health issues persist, given that the Human species has been around for so long. Some of the native in the high Andes mountains have certainly evolved to the harsh climate, and low oxygen levels.