A new synthesis: Four dimensions of Evolution (Evolution)

by David Turell , Thursday, December 10, 2015, 00:41 (3270 days ago) @ xeno6696

Matt: Describing evolution from this new synthesis, we have answers for certain criticisms. Firstly, that human evolution happened "too rapidly." If we are subject to four different kinds of evolutionary pressure, that sounds to me like exponential growth. Note that a diamond is created under extraordinary pressure...-Just found this article on dinosaurs developing in evolution more quickly than expected:-http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/dinosaurs-evolved-in-a-startlingly-short-time/?WT.mc_id=SA_WR_20151209-"Dinosaurs took less than 5 million years to evolve from their reptile predecessors, the early dinosauromorphs, a new study finds.-"The finding revamps the time line between the dinosaurs and early dinosauromorphs. Until now, researchers thought that it took at least 10 million to 15 million years for the early dinosauromorphs to evolve into dinosaurs.-"Early dinosauromorphs were just like dinosaurs, except for a few key features. For instance, dinosaurs had a ball-and-socket hip that could rotate easily, and additional sacral vertebrae (a vertebra at the end of the spine), which helped strengthened the hips. This allowed dinosaurs to develop stronger leg muscles, which, along with their forward-hinging feet, helped them run faster than their competitors. They also developed an extra hole in their skulls, which let them cool off after vigorous activity."-Comment: We did a much more complex development in roughly the same period. I think this is the 'drive to complexity' mechanism dhw and I have pondered.