BBC Focus Magazine

[scott fairbrass]

what do scientist think will be the next step for human evolution? maaybe our thumb becomeing a finger with all the texting and computer games we do? and will domesticated animal be able to talk through evolution because of there contact with humans?

[Nails]

Evolution needs a pressure to drive a change into a population's genome (or to eradicate a trait)

In that sense, it is quite difficult to predict what will happen, or even what can happen with any certainty.
As we have quite literally taken control of our genetics to quite a significant extent with our medical knowledge and genetic screening, we have removed many aspects of selection pressure.

I can't see our thumb changing any time soon, not unless the best texters/gamers get the girls at the expensve of anyone else - but I would actually expect those who spend all day on their computers to be less likely to spend time with a girl.....

If animals can't talk then contact with humans isn't going to make them talk.

What is needed here is a genetic change and a pressure which makes this change advantageous and so it becomes more numerous in the gene pool.

[KingPhillip]

Gaming is a recent phenomenom. While the population of gamers grows with each successive generation, the duration of gaming experienced dwindles as adult responsibilities accumulate. A lifelong gamer who excels may for a brief moment in time celebrate and procreate. Any evolution in the progeny would not be seen as such, more as an individual mutation.

You may chastise me for saying this, but women's feet may lose their little toes in ten or more generations. I haven't seen any long-term study made public regarding women's feet and the shoes that damage them. An industry conspiracy?

Also, in efforts to look taller, the ankles may evolve to become uncomfortable at right-angles. I did read some time ago that women are more comfortable with the toes somewhat below the level of the heels.

Finally, the heavy bag that "dangles" over a woman's elbow or shoulder may pressure evolutionary changes to the arms and shoulders.

[M Paul Lloyd]

but women's feet may lose their little toes in ten or more generations

Not if my genes have anything to do with it KingPhillip.
Both my daughters have inherited my prehensile toes.

[scott fairbrass]

Evolution needs a pressure to drive a change into a population's genome (or to eradicate a trait)

In that sense, it is quite difficult to predict what will happen, or even what can happen with any certainty.
As we have quite literally taken control of our genetics to quite a significant extent with our medical knowledge and genetic screening, we have removed many aspects of selection pressure.

I can't see our thumb changing any time soon, not unless the best texters/gamers get the girls at the expensve of anyone else - but I would actually expect those who spend all day on their computers to be less likely to spend time with a girl.....

If animals can't talk then contact with humans isn't going to make them talk.

What is needed here is a genetic change and a pressure which makes this change advantageous and so it becomes more numerous in the gene pool.

what does selection pressure mean please?

[M Paul Lloyd]

Well in simple terms 'selection pressure' is caused by an event, or series of events, that changes a habitat or environment to such an extent that a mutation is better adapted to survive in the new conditions and thus thrives whilst the rest perish.

To try and put into context, let us say that if rising CO2 levels reached a point where they were becoming toxic to life then this would present an 'selection pressure' as any life forms that fared better in high CO2 environment would have a major advantage over species that did not.

[scott fairbrass]

what was the last thing we 'evolved' was it the ability to walk on 2 legs?

[Doonhamer]

Evolution is a slow gradual parallel process so it's hard to isolate one thing like that. But I suppose walking upright may be the last significantly major physical change, although language is I think more recent.

[nemisis39]

What about the brain is that not continually evolving

[The Beige Avenger]

Every single piece of life existing in a dynamic environment is constantly evolving.

The brain and all the other organs change as environment, diets and genetics (breeding) of the species change...

[KingPhillip]

"what was the last thing we 'evolved' was it the ability to walk on 2 legs?"

In terms of functional phenotype changes, I would offer body hair, or the loss of fur. Before that, as a species probably the loss of prehensile feet/toes system. As noted by MPL, some still express these phenotypes. Constant migrations and loss of tree habitat probably "encouraged" walking and the loss of use of grasping feet.

[Fleck]

My thoughts:
We will lose our fertility as IVF etc will become the standard way to reproduce.
We will need more life saving operations as more and more bad genes survive to the next generation.
Our IQs on average will become lower.

Read "The selfish gene" by Richard Dawkins.
Watch "idiocracy" film.

[Shadowwolf]

We will lose our fertility as IVF etc will become the standard way to reproduce.

This I think is doubtful, even if IVF became the widespread norm there does not appear to be any selective pressure that would make the plumbing go away or become non-functional.

Watch "idiocracy" film.

A terrifying extrapolation of where we seem to be heading

On the plus side, a society such as in Idiocracy can never be as we'd have died out long before, a society remotely like that simply could not function nor the individuals look after themselves even at a basic level.

[Colm]

Well if the reputation of gamers is to believed, I would think traits that help gaming would be evolved out of humans!

[Gabriel]

[/quote]what does selection pressure mean please?
Hi, I think your post are very interest like the topic . Please excuse my english (I don`t speak it), I`m new here.
Well, what is selection pressure? In the modern synthesis theory, the idea of evolution of species requires an external force to be produced. This force is known as selective pressure and it`s imposed by the environment upon the organism, either in a continuous or a punctuated way, under there form of competition (Bell, 1997). Examples for this idea can be found on the book of Bell (1997). In the introduction (page xix), this author state: "there are many forces that hinder evolution - mutation, sampling errors, immigration and so forth- but selection is the only process that causes evolution".
I hope this can answer your question adequately

Literature Cited
BELL G (1997) Selection, the mechanism of evolution. Chapman & Hall, New York. xxiii+689 pp.

[M Paul Lloyd]

Thank you for that Gabriel, your English seems perfectly good to me, oh and welcome to the forum, I hope you are able to post some more when you feel so inclined?

[ChrisH]

I expect humans will eventually evolve an extra eye on the top of their heads. This will allow them to see where they are going whilst staring at their smart phones.

[Fleck]

We will lose our fertility as IVF etc will become the standard way to reproduce.

This I think is doubtful, even if IVF became the widespread norm there does not appear to be any selective pressure that would make the plumbing go away or become non-.

Maybe selective pressure is the wrong word.. Er. Bear with me here, Our genes have random errors in them, sometimes for the good, sometimes bad. People that randomly can't reproduce, but are helped to reproduce medically, will increase in population because they have been successful at reproducing (by whatever means) and their bad genes carry on to the next generation . more and more people will need help as less and less people will reproduce normally due to more random DNA faults. Usually DNA faults eradicate bad genes.
(ie there is no selective pressure to have good reproducing genes)
Does this make any sense?

[Shadowwolf]

Ahhh but for that we would need some form of selective pressure that favours those who don't walk and use the phones or those who develop other means to use it and navigate. Without any pressure there will be no thinning of the herd so to speak and no way for the new variant to be more reproductively successful. If you own a vehicle you could be a driving force in a new evolutionary adaptation

[Shadowwolf]

I see what you're getting at there Mr Fleck, though given the lack of competition like we find in the wild it's probably unlikely that those requiring help would come to dominate over all other normally reproducing humans.

That said the technology is only going to improve so at worst we just go further toward a symbiosis with technology. Perhaps to the extent that even the gestation is artificially managed, vast fields of incubators...