Time Changes Modern Human's Face

BBC ^ | 1-25-2006 | Rebecca Morelle

[Dimensio]

I thought they'd given up on the idea that plant species were comparable to animal species several years back.

Who told you this?

In fact, there's even debate of what constitutes "a plant" ~ is it the flower, the leaves, the woody stem, etc.

If you don't know what defines a plant, why not look it up?.

That's why I'm sticking with my own, and Darwin's, understanding of species ~ that you can produce fertile offspring.

Except that, as Darwin's own theory predicted, the line becomes blurred when it comes to speciation. You can have a population of organisms from group B that are able to produce viable offspring with organisms from group A or C, yet groups A and C together cannot produce viable offspring. How do you draw a distinction in that case?

That's really for another discussion. This article is about human skull measurements, and I'm wondering if someone more knowledgable in this particular field of study can tell me if the sampling size is statistically meaningful.

[PatrickHenry]

I've put an essay about speciation on my homepage, so I don't have to keep explaining it in each new thread:

Micro-evolution, Macro-evolution, and Speciation.
Another service of Darwin Central, the conspiracy that cares.

[muawiyah]

Hey, the discussion was about a CHANGE IN SKULL MEASUREMENTS, not about human skull size. Another poster suggested we might have a "different species" due to the differences.

This can be tested you know.

I think it's just a case of a variety within a single species being replaced by a different, and already known, variety!

[stanz]

Justification for the loss of wisdom teeth.....no room for them as lower jaw becomes smaller and sits directly under the upper jaw as opposed to a more posterior placement in other primates.

[muawiyah]

The issue of how we might define plant species is still on the table. Through clever breeding practices we can pretty nearly relocate a gene from one plant species into what we thougth of as a totally different plant species. We can shortcircuit the process with direct cutting and splicing of genetic material.

Animals are not dealt with as readily.

[VadeRetro]

IOW, the skulls from 650 years ago are noticeably intermediate between truly modern and, say, Cro-Magnons from 12,000 years ago. But "Where o where are the transitionals?" the creos ask.

[Dimensio]

Another poster suggested we might have a "different species" due to the differences.

That particular poster was attempting to sarcastically attack evolution (though the poster was instead merely attacking a strawman).

[blam]

" Quite possibly as examples of "transitional fossils"."

Yup. As I like to point out, If we were to measure all the human features on earth today (all Modern Humans), the range of those measurements would easily include Neanderthals and even more archaic humans. We are one human species and we are all still here in bits and pieces all over the globe.

[toddlintown]

"The British Dental Journal?!"

Could almost qualify as an oxymoron.

[blam]

"What does he mean by "mental capacity"? Does he mean the volume of information storage capacity? If he means level of intelligence (We are smarter now!) then the evidence from ancient history does not support this."

I've seen studies that equate brain size with IQ. Neanderthals had bigger brains than we do, did they have a higher IQ?

[CarolinaGuitarman]

[Oztrich Boy]

This is your brain on Creationism?

---

This article is about human skull measurements, and I'm wondering if someone more knowledgable in this particular field of study can tell me if the sampling size is statistically meaningful. - (Dimensio)

To: Dimensio
Hey, the discussion was about a CHANGE IN SKULL MEASUREMENTS, not about human skull size - (muawiyah)

[blam]

"Modern Europe and modern England are all inevitably a mix of many diffferent genetic groups (Celts, Franks, Goths, etc, not to mention more recent immigrants). Why couldn't that be behind the differences?"

I can't disagree.

English And Welsh Are Races Apart

[PatrickHenry]

Not bad. But it looks more like a general cognitive collapse, rather than mere creationism.

[jwalsh07]

Baseball caps, the answer is always baseball caps.

[T.Smith]

"I'm not low-browed ... I'm just degenerated."

I've actually been accused of being a low-brow degenerate before.

[bonfire]

LOL! And BIG HAIR for women!

[Richard Kimball]

Well, cr#p. There goes another perfectly good thread. Thanks for turning it into a foodfight.

[hispanarepublicana]

I have some photos of Spanish ancestors from the early-to-mid-1800s and some pencil sketches/charcoal relief of those from the early 1700s to late 1700s. They all have high foreheads with just one exception and he had a low forehead and big nose. (Gee, if you're paying someone to do your pencil sketch, why not pay him extra to give you a nice high forehead and smaller nose?)

[hadrian]

No, Devolution: