Survival of the fittest, even for modern humans

Humans tend to believe they are “civilized” and their evolutionary cycle is over. But new research suggests that humans are not that different from other species in terms of evolutionary perspective.

The process of evolution, including Darwinian natural selection, is still underway in humans, a joint-study by European institutions has claimed.

Researchers looked at detailed Finnish church records of approximately 6,000 people dating back 2-300 years ago to see what variables could have affected their lifespan and other factors.

The scientists found that certain genetic factors were shown in people who were able to survive past the age of 15, indicating that humans were still evolving back then.

They also found that certain traits that are beneficial for survival, like the resistance to the flu, were likely to be passed along to the next generation.

“It is a common understanding that evolution took place a long time age, and that to understand ourselves we must look back to the hunter-gatherer day of humans” said project leader Doctor Virpi Lummaa.

Lummaa said that evolution is likely to still occur, although the specific factors that make individuals ‘fit for survival’ has changed over time.

The scientists also found that while effects of evolutionary changes varied between sexes, they affected the wealthy and the poor alike.



By Yoon Min-sik

(minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com)