Human Species May Split in Two

[Curiosity]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6057734.stm

Sounds like Dr. Mengele followers are still with us....

Last Updated: Tuesday, 17 October 2006, 08:47 GMT 09:47 UK

Human species 'may split in two'

Humanity may split into an elite and an underclass, says Dr Curry

Humanity may split into two sub-species in 100,000 years' time as predicted by HG Wells, an expert has said.
Evolutionary theorist Oliver Curry of the London School of Economics expects a genetic upper class and a dim-witted underclass to emerge.
The human race would peak in the year 3000, he said - before a decline due to dependence on technology.
People would become choosier about their sexual partners, causing humanity to divide into sub-species, he added.
The descendants of the genetic upper class would be tall, slim, healthy, attractive, intelligent, and creative and a far cry from the "underclass" humans who would have evolved into dim-witted, ugly, squat goblin-like creatures.
Race 'ironed out'
But in the nearer future, humans will evolve in 1,000 years into giants between 6ft and 7ft tall, he predicts, while life-spans will have extended to 120 years, Dr Curry claims.
Physical appearance, driven by indicators of health, youth and fertility, will improve, he says, while men will exhibit symmetrical facial features, look athletic, and have squarer jaws, deeper voices and bigger penises.
Women, on the other hand, will develop lighter, smooth, hairless skin, large clear eyes, pert breasts, glossy hair, and even features, he adds. Racial differences will be ironed out by interbreeding, producing a uniform race of coffee-coloured people.
However, Dr Curry warns, in 10,000 years time humans may have paid a genetic price for relying on technology.
Spoiled by gadgets designed to meet their every need, they could come to resemble domesticated animals.
Receding chins
Social skills, such as communicating and interacting with others, could be lost, along with emotions such as love, sympathy, trust and respect. People would become less able to care for others, or perform in teams.
Physically, they would start to appear more juvenile. Chins would recede, as a result of having to chew less on processed food.
There could also be health problems caused by reliance on medicine, resulting in weak immune systems. Preventing deaths would also help to preserve the genetic defects that cause cancer.
Further into the future, sexual selection - being choosy about one's partner - was likely to create more and more genetic inequality, said Dr Curry.
The logical outcome would be two sub-species, "gracile" and "robust" humans similar to the Eloi and Morlocks foretold by HG Wells in his 1895 novel The Time Machine.
"While science and technology have the potential to create an ideal habitat for humanity over the next millennium, there is a possibility of a monumental genetic hangover over the subsequent millennia due to an over-reliance on technology reducing our natural capacity to resist disease, or our evolved ability to get along with each other, said Dr Curry.
He carried out the report for men's satellite TV channel Bravo.

Far too many crumpets in this guy's diet! Methinks the dim-witted underclass is already alive and well in this author!

 

[EastSideScotian]

haha....de-evolution? I thought we were only supose to get better. Like grow extra fingers and maybe wings or something....


Oh wait the majority of Evolution is BS. I forgot.

I dont really buy this theroy, because, I have seen many an Attractive cupple give birth to dumb ass ugly kids. And lets take a trip to Newfoundland.....They got some fine ladies but some ugly mothers and fathers.....

So this theroy would be incorrect, because if anything ugly people would not want to do it with ugly people, and all the ugly people would die out.....but thats also bs...so there for its all bs.

 

[I think not]

Human Species May Split in Two


We did that already, the right and the left.

 

[Zzarchov]

I'd believe it, I'd believe his descendants become the tall, thin, beautiful version too..

Seeing as he obviously just watched the movie of "time machine" which bears only passing resemblence to the book, which explains it alot better/ has a point other than being Supermodels fight space monkeys.

Seeing as what happens between the two species, I hope my kids are the ugly squat Morlocks, who eat the positively retarded but pretty Eloi (The first one is born, Paris Hilton), and are technologically advanced (being the descendants of the people who actually WORKED for a living)

 

[Researcher87]

Race 'ironed out'
But in the nearer future, humans will evolve in 1,000 years into giants between 6ft and 7ft tall, he predicts, while life-spans will have extended to 120 years, Dr Curry claims.
Physical appearance, driven by indicators of health, youth and fertility, will improve, he says, while men will exhibit symmetrical facial features, look athletic, and have squarer jaws, deeper voices and bigger penises.
Women, on the other hand, will develop lighter, smooth, hairless skin, large clear eyes, pert breasts, glossy hair, and even features, he adds. Racial differences will be ironed out by interbreeding, producing a uniform race of coffee-coloured people.
However, Dr Curry warns, in 10,000 years time humans may have paid a genetic price for relying on technology.
Spoiled by gadgets designed to meet their every need, they could come to resemble domesticated animals.
Receding chins

Wow, domesticated animals. Cool! However, whats the point in caring if humans split off into sub species and all that. The human race will be wiped out in thousands, hundreds, or a few million years.

 

[EastSideScotian]

Wow, domesticated animals. Cool! However, whats the point in caring if humans split off into sub species and all that. The human race will be wiped out in thousands, hundreds, or a few million years.

Or months....

 

[humanbeing]

Wow, what a bunch of nonsense. This seems like a very unlikely future.

It really doesn't even merit a response as to what is wrong with this prediction.

Besides, surely in a thousand years, we will have mastered the manipulation of genes... So that, coupled with the fact that this sort of technology would be dirt cheap within a thousand years makes it seem like the technology could potentially be freely accessed by all. Then there is that chance we will have discarded our weak, fleshy bodies altogether, probably within the next 100 years or so.

 

[Vereya]

We have already split into two different species - males and females.

 

[Carmoral]

OMG! that pic is the spitting image of my next door neighbours...spooky!!

But whatse ven more spooky is that we already have cyber pets and freaky robots in our houses already as bloody pets, *shudder* those things make me want to run a mile.

 

[#juan]

The human genome project was completed ahead of time and I think genetic engineering will be part of the not too distant future. I consider this to be more frightening than the natural course of evolution.

http://www.ornl.gov/sci/techresources/Human_Genome/project/about.shtml

 

[ottawabill]

and mabe the apes will rise up and take over and learn English while these two new species fight each other...

Damn you!!!! planet of the apes!!

 

[Vereya]

Seeing as what happens between the two species, I hope my kids are the ugly squat Morlocks, who eat the positively retarded but pretty Eloi (The first one is born, Paris Hilton), and are technologically advanced (being the descendants of the people who actually WORKED for a living)

Well, I hope that my future kids are beautiful and clever, too. With me as their mom, I don't think it's impossible!

 

[s_lone]

I think the problem with this theory is that he is assuming the lower class will never rebel. He seems to be suggesting that our present social hierarchy will be eternal.

 

[humanbeing]

I think the problem with this theory is that he is assuming the lower class will never rebel. He seems to be suggesting that our present social hierarchy will be eternal.

We've had revolutions throughout history and what not. In our case, I believe it will come down to technology more than anything (probably not the revolution of workers against the capitalists, or anything, that some people are hoping for). When robots handle all the labour, it will basically follow that there is no need for relations between bosses and workers, or governments and citizens. We won't need a boss for our workplace because we won't have a workplace, and the government won't even be able to kid us that it needs all this tax money for health care and road building). Hopefully -and I don't know if I have enough faith in humanity or not- we will realize that there is no need for that kind of nonsense when lots of stuff is being made practically for free.

But I hardly think that is the first problem with this prediction. As someone already said, eastsidescotian I believe, two hot intellectuals don't always make a hot intellectual child. His handsome face won't necessarily jive with her pretty face when it comes to that child... A kid who is potentially a tall, sexy, genius may never have a chance because his or her poor mother can barely afford food, nevermind school... while a short, ugly, goof may breeze through life on his huge allowance... A man may cheat on his "upper class" wife with a "lower class" cleaning lady from his workplace... An emperor, or a politician, may use his wealth and power to have his way with many women, opting for quantity over quality in his random, numerous flings. These some of the small things which I think knock this prediction on its ass.

And where the heck does he come up with this life expectancy of 120 years? Did he pull it out of thin air? That is what it sounds like, and that is not what anyone from a school of economics ought to do. A thousand years from now, if we were still in fleshy humanoid bodies (which I kind of doubt), we should such control over genetics as to allow a body to survive as long as it possible. 120 seems too conservative. The only thing I can guess it that he thinks the high roof on life expectancy (like the current 120 years or so as some old geezers have shown), will be a factor in mating. How he comes to that conclusion as an economist boggles my mind. Sounds more like a wannabe prophet. There is nothing, past or present, which suggests this is a factor in mating with others. There is nothing that says looking like a supermodel is tied to making you live 120+ years. This whole prediction seems like a joke to me.

 

[Curiosity]

My first question posited when I read this was:

Gee which one will be more comfortable in life - more satisfied and happier?

Nobody has asked.

Everyone has been concentrating on intellect and physical appearance primarily and what that new human would contribute - if anything - to the world.

Some of the most unstable and happy creatures are narcissistic, lotus eaters whose every move is calculated to impress. Terrible life - consumed by neurotic fear, never having enough of anything.

The happiest people I have ever met were a group of adult day-care folk who had Down Syndrome and lived their lives and performed their paid day jobs to the fullest.

 

[jimmoyer]

Happiness a goal in evolution ?

Hmmm...

I don't think happiness is a goal in our evolution.

Happiness is thought of as an aside after our curiosity
forces us to go in a direction with unforseen consequences.

----------------------------------------------------------

However, I do see us actively consciously engineering our own evolution with
the genome project, with nano-technology.

And the purpose will be to make us supermen, superwomen.
Eradicating disease, increasing our life spans, make us more efficient.

And this last goal of making us more efficient, I see several categories:

1. get rid of memory problems
2. get rid of emotional barriers that slow us on productivity ---- that one will be weird.
3. an embedded link to a network that allows us to find answer to any question of the moment.

 

[Kreskin]

100,000 years? Heck, we'll be lucky to make it to the end of the Bush Administration.

 

[jimmoyer]

Yep, it's all about Bush.

From the Ptolemy system to the Copernicus System to the Bush System.

All revolves about Bush.

 

[Kreskin]

Yep, it's all about Bush.

From the Ptolemy system to the Copernicus System to the Bush System.

All revolves about Bush.

Just the crappy parts.

 

[jimmoyer]

.........oy veh..................