Evolution

These articles explore evolution - the changes seen in the inherited traits of a population from one generation to the next. Evolution is one of the great mysteries of biology, since it is a slow process and difficult to study.

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Every species on Earth, from the majestic humpback whale to the bacteria happily living in your gut, has a special role to play within a defined ecosystem. Can organisms ever trade their existing niches for new ones?

By William Harris

Organisms not related to each other can develop similar physical attributes without even exchanging notes.

By Jesslyn Shields

Do we owe the emergence of language and self-reflection to the ancient and sustained consumption of psilocybin mushrooms?

By Robert Lamb & Austin Henderson

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The question of exactly what is human consciousness and how it came to be in the human mind has raged forever between philosophers, religious scholars and scientists, but does the theory of the bicameral mind explain it?

By Robert Lamb

We make a big deal about modern humans being smarter than Neanderthals, but, really, are we?

By Jesslyn Shields

The flightless Aldabra rail lives exclusively on the Aldabra Atoll in Madagascar. But it appears to have descended from birds that soar.

By Mark Mancini

The newly developed family tree of Earth’s 2.3 million species is a first draft of the 3.5-billion-year history of evolution.

By Patrick J. Kiger

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Were hobbits and giants real? And are they distant relatives of humans?

By Diana Brown

New research shows that homo sapiens weren't the first folks to decorate their caves with artwork. Neanderthals actually did it thousands of years earlier.

By Alia Hoyt

Long before sonnets, sestinas and short stories were historical accounts of kings carved onto clay tablets. Who were the first writers and what did they scribble?

By Charles W. Bryant

How did life on Earth begin? Theories abound, but one popular one posits that it started spontaneously from primordial ooze on our planet, while another holds that it literally came from outer space. Who's right?

By Josh Clark

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Natural selection is the idea that organisms that are best suited to survive pass their traits down. Is it true that only the strong survive?

By Ed Grabianowski

Where did humanity begin, and how did we get to where we are now? Did we really all begin in Africa? What made us leave?

By Ed Grabianowski

Polar bears evolved to blend in with the terrain so they could hunt better. What causes one group of animals to split off from the rest of the species and develop new genetic traits?

By Josh Clark

If you swim like a fish or run like a cheetah, you may understand biomimicry better than you realize. The practice involves imitating models in nature to improve technology and design.

By Robert Lamb

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Since Charles Darwin published the theory of evolution by means of natural selection, myths and misinterpretations have eroded public understanding of his ideas. Ready to take another look at one of the related questions that just won't die?

By William Harris & Sascha Bos

Depending on whom and when you ask, everything from same-sex smooching to punk music portends the end of Western civilization. Do any of these cultural commentators have a case?

By Robert Lamb

A new global report says 1 million species are at risk of extinction — the greatest number in human history.

By Jonathan Strickland

You'd think being able to smell drinkable water would be an evolutionary advantage. But we can only smell things that suggest potable water. Why is that?

By Jesslyn Shields

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Neanderthals may be long gone, but their genetic footprint lives on — in us.

By Robert Lamb

The Galapagos Islands may have played a grand role in Darwin's theory of evolution, but they're notable for more than their finches. What strange species populate these remote islands?

By Maria Trimarchi

The more we research our closest extinct human ancestor, the more we realize how similar we were. But could we have shared a joke?

By Jesslyn Shields

Humans can certainly claim some of these, but sloths, giraffes and pandas wanted a piece of the action, too. The hyena adaptation, however, may just blow your mind.

By Kate Kershner

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Batesian mimicry is an evolutionary strategy used by vulnerable species to look like a dangerous species so predators will leave them alone. But it only works under the right circumstances.

By Jesslyn Shields

In Charles Darwin’s book On the Origin of Species, he referred to a number of “vestiges” in human anatomy that he posited are remnants left over from the course of our species’ development over time. Darwin suggested that these vestigial organs are evidence of evolution and represent functions that were once necessary for our survival, but […] The post 10 Physical Human Traits That Evolution Has Made Obsolete appeared first on Goliath.

By Wes Walcott