Human Variation & Race Blog

High Altitude:

This environmental stress (High altitude), negatively impacts the survival of humans by disturbing homeostasis by not allowing the human body to take in as much oxygen as it does at a lower altitude level, causing hypoxia.  The human body can adapt to the amount of oxygen that the body needs and takes in or the amount of oxygen that it's deprived off by increasing or decreasing the amount of red blood cells in the body.  At higher altitude levels, the red blood cells in the body decrease amounting to less oxygen in our organs and tissues. Also at higher altitude, the heart works overtime by pumping blood harder and blood pressure increases.

Humans have adapted to living and surviving at higher altitudes by being less physical, getting enough rest (Short-term adaptation).

Rest and less physical activities is ideal at higher altitudes in order to maintain their oxygen level.

As my family living in Denver Colorado would say to me "Your body get used to living high",  The red blood cells will increase withing a few days of being at a high altitude, and therefore allowing hemoglobin to transported the necessary oxygen to the vital organs.  The lungs would also increase in size allowing for more oxygen to come into the body and allow you to recuperate faster. (Facultative adaptation). 

A good example of facultative adaptation would be that of an athlete training at a higher altitude than he is used to training in.  This would allow that athlete to increase his red blood cells, allow for more oxygen to enter his lungs, recuperating faster from his training and better his cardiovascular conditioning.  In the end, this athlete would be able to perform better at his task.  It is common among athletes in all sports to do this type of high altitude training.

During my research, I learned that during early childhood as early as newborns in high altitudes, they begin to develop larger capacity lungs and enlarged ventricles of the heart (Developmental adaptation).

 

There are several ways to adapt to the high altitudes.  Humans living at those altitude could migrate to warmer or lower elevation during the winter, wear warmer clothing and restrict extraneous physical activities until their body adapts to the high altitude (Cultural adaptation).

I believe the benefits of studying human variation from this perspective across environmental clines is that it would allow us to further understand and study how our bodies react and adapt to physical activity and just living at a high altitude.  Also it would provide us with more scientific medical data and possibly find a cure or better treatment for the different types of heart disease related to low blood cells or low oxygen levels.

It would be difficult for me to use race to understand the variation of the adaptation of high altitude.  I don't think I would be successful in showing results. I would be interested in reading someones thoughts and attempt at using race to understand variation of the adaptation of high altitude.   

Piltdown Hoax

     The Piltdown Hoax occurred in 1912 when a group of scientist discovered a fossil, believed to be of a human jaw bone.  The group was led by an archaeologist named Charles Dawson.  Along with Dawson there was a geologist by the name of Arthur Woodward, a paleontologist, Father Pierre Teilhard De Chardin and Arthur Keith.  The discovery was made in "Louis", a small town in the village of Piltdown, in England.  This was a major discovery, made by credited and respected scientist (At the time), and even though the location was not accurate according to other scientist, those other scientist didn't have the courage to challenge this discovery or the team who made the discovery.  After Charles Dawson died, other fossils were discovered in the same general area and were submitted for testing and comparison.  Those fossils were eventually compared to the fossils discovered by Dawson's team in 1912. During those scientific test, it was discovered that the fossil discovered by Dawson's team was in fact a jaw bone of a female orangutan.
     I believe there were numerous human faults which came into play in this incident. Charles Dawson was an ambitious individual, and even thought this trait is a good trait to have most of the time, it appeared that this was not the case in this discovery.  Dawson also appeared to be self-serving with minimal morals, ethics and integrity. Even though the above mentioned traits appeared to have played a large part in the incentives for the scientist making the discovery, it appears that jealousy was the main fault here.  The fact that other surrounding countries had made "real" human fossil discoveries and England appeared to be falling behind, Dawson and his team might have felt that they needed to stay keep pace with other countries in the discovery of human fossils.
     The fact that scientist were able to test Dawson's discovery and theories using the scientific method and were able to test and analyse the discoveries themselves is a positive aspect in the scientific process.  Scientist used the accurate dating method to date the jaw bone discovered by Dawson and his team.
     I don't believe you can take the "human factor" out of science.  Humans are "Science" and science was made and studied by humans.  Everything about the subject of science and the studies, to the individuals studying science has the humans factor in it.  I wouldn't want to remove the human factor from science simply because you would also be removing the "common sense" factor among other important factors.  Scientist need to have passion for their science and studies.  They need to show that they care to get things right.  Unless we start teaching machines emotions, we can't have "robots" and machines examining fossils, excavating sites, testing and gathering data and formulating and giving factual educated theories or opinions.
     Throughout life, I have been taught to always stand up for what I believe in and, to never be afraid to challenge an opinion when that opinion affects me directly and if what I say or do would cause me, my family or my job any embarrassment or pain, than it's wrong .  There is a code of ethics that we all live by, morals and integrity.  If as humans we lack any of these traits than we don't stand a chance in society and are looked as "the bad guy" as proven by these four scientist who obviously lacked at minimum integrity.  In this case, taking information without validating or verifying the results caused the field of science embarrassment and to question each others motive for the discovery.  I believe that entire filed of science is to blame for this hoax not being discovered for such a long period of time. Even though some more accurate testing methods were not available at the time, there must of been other ways to verifying those results.  It it falls on the science community to do that before making those results known.  In today's studies, discoveries and theories, they are tested by other scientist and the data or results are verified before being published or made public.  
 

Homology / Analogy Post

Homologous Traits; Crocodylus Actus hand and the Human hand.

Crocodylus Actus (American Crocodile) is from the Crocodylium Species and the Reptile class.  The Crocodylus Actus is primarily a carnivorous crocodile and is found in the salt waters of central and south America. This is the largest crocodile species know to date.  It is a quadruped with short strong legs and a powerful tail.  It's skin texture is a rigid hide which they use as a defense mechanism.  Crocodylus Actus has a long snout, powerful jaw,

and it crawls on it's stomach.  This crocodile is also know to "high-walk".  During my research, I learned that the Crocodylus Actus has an abdominal rib which supports all abdominal muscle and attaches the abdominal muscle much like the Tyrannosaurus. In researching this crocodile, I also learned that they have many uses to their powerful hands and are similar traits to those of humans.  They have many small bones on top and bottom of their hands and have five digits on each hand.  Their hands are attached much like the human hand to a larger set of bones (lower and upper arms).  The Crocodylus Actus uses it's hands to prey on food (mostly fish), as locomotion to crawl and to defend themselves from bigger species (mostly humans who hunt them for their hide).

Like the Crocodylus Actus hands, humans have similar bone structure, digits and uses for their hands.  Also, humans hands are attached to bigger and stronger bones (lower and upper arms).  Human also have numerous uses for their hands and like the Crocodylus Actus use them to hunt and eat their food and as a defense mechanism.

Analogous Traits; Beavers and Emperor Penguin's webbed feet.

The beaver is a large rodent mammals from the Castor Damadensis species and the Castorisate family.  The beaver species is mostly herbivorous eating several types of wood and water Lillie's. Being mostly nocturnal, the beaver lives both on water and land.

 The beavers ancestor where estimated to be as big as 6 feet tall and weigh approximately 300 pounds.

They have special adaptation that allows them to store enough oxygen to swing approximately half a mile.  They cannot breath under water.

Beavers were able to adapt to living on water mostly because of their webbed feet which they use as propellers in water.  They have flat powerful tails which they use to balance themselves and have big jaws with strong incisors which allows them to eat wood.

The Emperor Penguin is the largest living flightless bird from the sub-family of Spheniscipae and classified in the Sphenisciformes (flightless bird). It is from the Aptenodytes Forstein species. They became adapt to oceanic environment and changed for diving and swimming.  They are classified as Aves along with birds with outer covering feather and warm blooded\ and they lay eggs.  They evolved from flying birds over 65 million years ago.  Their wings are useless for flying and become flippers when swimming. The penguin has a large head, short neck and a elongated body.  Their tails are short and wedge which is used during swimming.  Their legs and feet are are far back on their body which gives them the ability to stand upright. Their diet consists of squid and fish. Their feet are webbed and similar to that of the beaver with the exception that the penguin has claws at the end of the webbed feet.  Like the beaver, the penguin uses his webbed feet as a propeller when swimming.

The bones in their wings are flat and broad which allows them to use their wings as flipper.

 During my research of the two species, I learned that the beaver most likely comes from a large rodent family  and only developed the webbed feet during parallel evolution and adapted to their environment through time.  The same can be said for the penguin.  Being that the penguin evolved from a flying bird species, we can say that he also developed his webbed feet through parallel evolution and adapted to their environment.  Being that these two species come from different ancestors makes their webbed feet an Analogous trait.

        

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