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The Evolution of opposable Thumbs?
#1
The Evolution of opposable Thumbs?
Guys, serious discussion please.

Chimps have been around for as long as we have. They're bloody good at holding bananas.
Why haven't they evolved further? Why can't they just copy what we do? You know, monkey see, monkey do Dunno

Why can't we just give them a yellow hammer to hold instead of a banana and pay them the proper amount of peanuts and use them for slave labour?
Maybe they're just lazy bastards?...

My real question is was the development of our brain caused by a series of unrelated events/mutations and also was the evolution of our opposable thumbs also completely unrelated to the forming complexity of our new brain? Surely our new smart brain couldn't "steer" evolution in any particular physical way, could it?
As in: If only I was able to sharpen them 5 hard volcanic rocks very precisely and align very closely together, then I could have a real close shave which would be the best a (cave)man can get!

Or was it the other way? Did we develop the opposable thumbs from playing and banging things with rocks for hundreds of thousands of years first and then our brain evolved inconsequentially?

Further to that, it's the combination of the 2 which led to practical intelligence. You can't master your domain just by being smart without being able to act on your thoughts.
In closing, I still believe technologically advanced species out there are extremely rare due to the insurmountable odds we ourselves had to work against just to survive as species, let alone prosper, and with the 5 or 6 catastrophic events in earth's history, etc, it's almost a miracle we've made it this far.

Add to that the fact that high speed space travel may just not even be physically possible in this universe. So for all intents and purposes, we are alone in the universe.
We will perish alone also. Like no-one even knew we existed in the first place... We're all blessed just by being alive if you ask me. Enjoy it while it lasts... Here, have a banana and be happy.
No God, No fear.
Know God, Know fear.
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#2
RE: The Evolution of opposable Thumbs?
I'd say they don't have the "equipment" to go further in the direction humans have gone. They're not built for language, for one thing.
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#3
RE: The Evolution of opposable Thumbs?
They've had a million years to do something? They've done nothing? Is it because, and like a shark, they peaked to their environment? All because they never left the tree?
Could it have been as simple as that? Do genetic mutations favour the brave?
No God, No fear.
Know God, Know fear.
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#4
RE: The Evolution of opposable Thumbs?
Most likely the Chimp Cousin Homo Sapien will cause their less useful primate cousins to go extinct. Can't serve our corporate masters without opposable thumbs, now can we?
God thinks it's fun to confuse primates. Larsen's God!






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#5
RE: The Evolution of opposable Thumbs?
(April 27, 2018 at 6:18 am)ignoramus Wrote: They've had a million years to do something? They've done nothing? Is it because, and like a shark, they peaked to their environment? All because they never left the tree?
Could it have been as simple as that? Do genetic mutations favour the brave?

Mutations are random. If you don't get a "good one" you stay in place.
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#6
RE: The Evolution of opposable Thumbs?
That's a lot of bloody good mutations we copped as a single species while our cousins in the tree next to us didn't? Did god whack them with the bad luck stick for a million years?
No God, No fear.
Know God, Know fear.
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#7
RE: The Evolution of opposable Thumbs?
(April 27, 2018 at 6:47 am)ignoramus Wrote: That's a lot of bloody good mutations we copped as a single species while our cousins in the tree next to us didn't? Did god whack them with the bad luck stick for a million years?

Why do you think it would be a lot? 2% of our DNA is different from chimps. And the mutations could be built upon. The mutation that allowed us to develop language lead to larger brains.
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#8
RE: The Evolution of opposable Thumbs?
Yeah but why all on us? The chimps haven't changed for a million years? What about all the other primates? No change? What gives?

Are we blessed? Are we alien? It doesn't make sense to me.
No God, No fear.
Know God, Know fear.
Reply
#9
RE: The Evolution of opposable Thumbs?
(April 27, 2018 at 7:12 am)ignoramus Wrote: Yeah but why all on us? The chimps haven't changed for a million years? What about all the other primates? No change? What gives?

Are we blessed? Are we alien? It doesn't make sense to me.

A degree in genetics might help. We're not blessed, we're not aliens, we got lucky.

BTW, dolphins are undoubtedly intelligent, but they don't have thumbs.
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#10
RE: The Evolution of opposable Thumbs?
Quote:List of Animals with Opposable Thumbs You Have to See to Believe
https://animalsake.com/list-of-animals-with-opposable-thumbs
[size=undefined]
We humans pride ourselves for possessing some distinct physical features, with the opposable thumb being one of them. But are we the only species with this 'distinct' feature? Not really. In fact, the list of animals having opposable thumbs is quite decent, if not exhaustive.[/size]
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