A new evolutionary theory

ddvmor · **I am the Jammie King!**

A new evolutionary theory

JonnyStead · **"I'm Lois!"**

People continue to get taller - therefore evolution must still be taking place right?

ddvmor · **I am the Jammie King!**

Is this the case over the last 50 or so years though? I know that we're generally taller than our middle ages counterparts and they were generally taller than stone age dudes.

JonnyStead · **"I'm Lois!"**

I think so - I'm going from memory but in the main in my view most of my friends are taller than their parents - in the main...

HaloBurn · **Dad** Yarrr...

have you seen the film idiocracy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAYnc_-ddlw&mode=related&search=

ddvmor · **I am the Jammie King!**

JonnyStead wrote:
People continue to get taller - therefore evolution must still be taking place right?

Hmm... this article suggests that height differences are due to nutrition rather than evolution. If you eat properly as a kid, you're taller, if not you're shorter...

That would explain why we're mostly taller than our parents - our food in the 70s and 80s was probably an awful lot better then their post-war gruel with added depression. It's not passed on in the genes, so if your kids eat rubbish, then they'll be shorter than you! So I don't think it qualifies as evolution.

This article eventually gets round to backing it up and there's a bit more here, which also says that Americans are shorter then Europeans because of all the Big Macs they eat!

HaloBurn wrote:
have you seen the film idiocracy:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAYnc_-ddlw&mode=related&search=

No. Although someone recently suggested I watch it. I can't watch that clip at work, I'll take a look tonight

-- Edited by ddvmor at 11:32, 2007-07-03

Aodan · Teiam Member

I saw Idiocracy. And I was afraid. Because even though it was satire... it was dangerously close to the truth.

I have nothing to add on the theories, however, I believe that we are still evolving a bit.

ddvmor · **I am the Jammie King!**

Aodan wrote:
I saw Idiocracy. And I was afraid. Because even though it was satire... it was dangerously close to the truth.

All good satire is

I shall definitely add this to my rental list when I get home!

Aodan wrote:
I have nothing to add on the theories, however, I believe that we are still evolving a bit.

Heh. I liked the way you phrased that. Almost as if you were gonna follow it up with something like 'In fact I evolved a bit last week, when I had trouble carrying my shopping and pushing the sproglet's pram. I had to spontaneously evolve an extra arm!'

Slightly more seriously though, I think nature is trying to evolve us to cope with changes in our environment - take airbourne pollution which causes many people to suffer from various resiratory problems. In evolutionary theory, these people would die off over a few generations, leaving only ones who have strong or adapted respiratory tracts to contruibute to the gene pool. Instead, however, we just keep trying to alleviate their symptoms with drugs 'n stuff so the problem lives on indefinitely.

I'm not saying we're wrong to do this, by the way. I'm just saying.

Aodan · Teiam Member

ddvmor wrote:

Heh. I liked the way you phrased that. Almost as if you were gonna follow it up with something like 'In fact I evolved a bit last week, when I had trouble carrying my shopping and pushing the sproglet's pram. I had to spontaneously evolve an extra arm!'

If they managed some sort of genetic engineering to make that possible, I do believe I would sign up for it.

stevo · UK Ambassador to the Antipodes

All these questions and many more will be answered by this brilliant book that I was lucky enough to read 12 years ago...

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Man-After-Anthropology-Future/dp/0312035608/ref=sr_1_19/203-4478819-7161556?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1183537560&sr=1-19

There were some fabulous illustration of future human variants...

Shame I cant get any pics of it on here...

JonnyStead · **"I'm Lois!"**

ddvmor wrote:
Hmm... this article suggests that height differences are due to nutrition rather than evolution. If you eat properly as a kid, you're taller, if not you're shorter...

That would explain why we're mostly taller than our parents - our food in the 70s and 80s was probably an awful lot better then their post-war gruel with added depression. It's not passed on in the genes, so if your kids eat rubbish, then they'll be shorter than you! So I don't think it qualifies as evolution.

This article eventually gets round to backing it up and there's a bit more here, which also says that Americans are shorter then Europeans because of all the Big Macs they eat!

I'm sure there is plenty of 'science' behind it but I dont buy it. I ate exactly the same as my brother growing up but he's taller. My friend down the road ate 'crap' compared to us but he's taller than me.

It is also commonly accepted that 'baby boomers' had better diets than us today because they ate mostly natural ingrediants rather than processed foods - the scientists cant have it both ways - either we eat better (thats why we're taller) or not (americans eat mostly bad foods) - scientists dont know nuffink! lol

stevo · UK Ambassador to the Antipodes

Here's a bit of non provable observational science for you on the subject of height.

My Aunty had three children when she moved to Australia in 1966. They're all of a similar height...about 5ft 10 inches.

She subsequently had two more children in Australia who are 6ft 3inches and 6ft 5....

Given the link between sunshine and Vitamin D uptake in bones it would suggest there is an environmental impact on height...

Its really really sunny here compared to the UK.

ddvmor · **I am the Jammie King!**

stevo wrote:
All these questions and many more will be answered by this brilliant book that I was lucky enough to read 12 years ago...

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Man-After-Anthropology-Future/dp/0312035608/ref=sr_1_19/203-4478819-7161556?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1183537560&sr=1-19

There were some fabulous illustration of future human variants...

Shame I cant get any pics of it on here...

Wiki has an article on this book with quite a bit of detail and pictures!

ddvmor · **I am the Jammie King!**

stevo wrote:
Here's a bit of non provable observational science for you on the subject of height.

My Aunty had three children when she moved to Australia in 1966. They're all of a similar height...about 5ft 10 inches.

She subsequently had two more children in Australia who are 6ft 3inches and 6ft 5....

Given the link between sunshine and Vitamin D uptake in bones it would suggest there is an environmental impact on height...

Its really really sunny here compared to the UK.

What we need now if for her kids to have kids which we should send to england and feed them exclusively on chips and see how tall they get!

ddvmor · **I am the Jammie King!**

JonnyStead wrote:

I'm sure there is plenty of 'science' behind it but I dont buy it. I ate exactly the same as my brother growing up but he's taller. My friend down the road ate 'crap' compared to us but he's taller than me.

It is also commonly accepted that 'baby boomers' had better diets than us today because they ate mostly natural ingrediants rather than processed foods - the scientists cant have it both ways - either we eat better (thats why we're taller) or not (americans eat mostly bad foods) - scientists dont know nuffink! lol

Interesting and valid points, all but when presented with documented and anecdotal evidence, I am naturally inclined to lean toward the documented stuff.

JonnyStead · **"I'm Lois!"**

Dude it is documented - I wrote it down - look up above your post - you'll see my documented report - exactly how do you think that differs from other science?

How many times have scientists turned round and said "Look we've cloned a car" or some such nonsense just for other scientists to turn round and say "We dispute their conclusions" science is all just interpretation based on what we think we know right now - its fluid.

ddvmor · **I am the Jammie King!**

Okay, dude. You're right. It qualifies as documented evidence because you typed it into a forum. It's not an anecdotal observation at all. You're right. I'm wrong. Hooray. Now we can all go home for tea.

JonnyStead · **"I'm Lois!"**

I know its not real - but I dont like scientists - they're usually full of shi... oh there I go again!

Truckman · Old. But wise!

My unbiased, scientific study proves that the best gun dealers grow to be 6'4" tall...All documented right here*

*Pronounced "rat cheer" in Texas...Ben

ddvmor · **I am the Jammie King!**

Just out of idle curiosity, Mr Truckman, sir. How tall are you? And what is your profession?

Truckman · Old. But wise!

ddvmor wrote:

Just out of idle curiosity, Mr Truckman, sir. How tall are you? And what is your profession?

I'd tell you, but then I'd have to kill you...

...Ben

ddvmor · **I am the Jammie King!**

Well, I wouldn't want that.

JonnyStead · **"I'm Lois!"**

Does that mean you're very short?

stevo · UK Ambassador to the Antipodes

As in mini-me short??

JonnyStead · **"I'm Lois!"**

Yeah like really short...?

ddvmor · **I am the Jammie King!**

Like a dwarf short?

stevo · UK Ambassador to the Antipodes

Like Kenny Baker short....???

Actually a few years ago me and a mate came up with a sit-com idea for a trucking across america comedy with Kenny Baker called Breaker-baker...starring kenny baker...it would involve lots of smokey and the bandit antics..

...when I became sober and thought about it, it would have been offensive to a lot of people...a bit like smokey and the bandit (which is a great movie).

Truckman · Old. But wise!

stevo wrote:
...a bit like smokey and the bandit (which is a great movie).

A classic...The sequels were crap though...Ben

stevo · UK Ambassador to the Antipodes

Smokey and the Bandit 2 was a classic!!!! My favorite Burt Reynolds adventure by far...Delivering an Elephant across country being persued by Jackie Gleason and his idiotic son...its a winning comedy formula.

As I recall Bandit 3 had the 'Snowman' behind the wheel of the car instead of the truck and his lovable dog Fred wasn't in it at all....it was pure tripe of the highest order..

ddvmor · **I am the Jammie King!**

It's been so long since I saw a Smokey and the Bandit movie that I don't remember much about any of them!