History of The Evolution of Homo Sapiens

An association conducted research based on the history of the evolution of Homo sapiens (humans). Even though the ancestral roots are based in Africa, there were many different populations present which was caused through environmental, biologic and relational factors (with other organisms). Changing and secluded environments were common throughout generations which led to many cultures and genes intertwining.

Over thousands of years, isolation caused human populations to separate and diversify, however not to the extent of speciation. This theory was proven accurate through the evidence of miscellaneous types of bones having both recent and ancient features along with extracted DNA from these bones showing complex diversity which a single population cannot handle. Therefore, this gives the conclusion that humans come from different eras, regions and cultures of Africa which is why the end result of the human species is exceptionally diverse.

The science of evolution, about how humans developed not as one whole group, but separate populations provided in this study, gives us an understanding of how humans came to be in present-day Earth. This was caused through factors called isolating mechanisms. These factors essentially lead to speciation, however in this case, humans still remain today as one species. A big mechanism was ecological isolation. Due to environments changing continuously, human populations are bound to isolate. For example, suppose there are two groups of humans, one in Kenya and one in Canada. Both have adapted to their local environments which leads to certain adaptations fit for that environment. The same goes with the human origin; because they came from different regions of Africa, many human populations started to adapt domestically and differently, thus some humans are better at certain skills, environments and niches than others. Jean-Baptiste Lamarck realized this pattern among species that one advances based on their reactions with the environment. Furthermore, with different environments come different niches, thus in a sense, this pattern in human history can be related to Adaptive Radiation. For example, one group of birds may separate and evolve into two different species, one with big fat beaks and one with thin, narrow beaks. Both are similar, but the lifestyle is different (one eats hard nuts and one eats nectar). Therefore, even though evolution does not occur, adaptation plays a key role, for example, one human living in the Sahara will use their hands for hunting while one in the grasslands will use it for agriculture. Additionally, since these different populations led to diversity, there is a good chance there have been Founder Effects. This means that a certain group of individuals have separated from the original group and formed a new population with different allele (a version of a trait) frequencies, such that a trait that was previously uncommon becomes common. That is why we experience majorities and minorities in today’s society. A great example is racial groups. Majority of South Asia consists of people with brown skin, while in the United Kingdom, majority are Caucasian. Therefore, even though humans are still one species, these generations of seclusion in Africa have led to different variety and characteristics through multiple factors similar/related to evolution and adaptation.

In my opinion, the evolution of our species is crucial to our knowledge as it indicates how and where our origin occured. Without this information, we would not have realized why we are how we are today. Our diversity, different types of cultures and ways of live, all originated due to our separations and adaptations to new environments in Africa. This eventually led to all these different countries that we inhabit today. Our ancestry from different populations and places in Africa is what leads us to have different traditions, religions, cuisines and lifestyles present in today’s living. Additionally, I completely agree with Dr. Scerri that we must acknowledge all parts of Africa to understand human evolution. If we did not, our evolution would not be fully proven and fragments of missing information would create more mysteries. Just because one region relates to the whole species does not mean that there are no other origins and places which relate to where we came from. Also, focusing on one species will not provide accurate information on what exactly gave us our diversity and differences. It takes different environments and experiences to lead us to who we have become. Simply one group and one ecosystem cannot handle this much variety.

In the end, this study could possibly start new realities and approaches on concepts of how organisms may not have only one origination, but multiple.

Works Cited

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