Factors of human evolution
In the early stages of human evolution, dominated biological factors evolution - variability, struggle for existence, natural selection, etc.
In the later stages of human evolution, the main social factors evolution - a social way of life, the use of tools, the use of fire, the development of speech.
Stages of human evolution
Races
These are subdivisions within a species, adapted to specific conditions. All widespread species have races. In humans, there are 3 large races (Negroids, Caucasians, Mongoloids).
Racist theory (racism) rejects the unity of human races, i.e. claims that different races of man descended from different ancestors. This is not true, all human races easily interbreed and give fertile offspring, i.e. belong to the same species.
Differences between humans and apes
Speech, chin protrusion.
Second signaling system, large brain, the cerebral part of the skull is larger than the facial one.
Labor activity(creation and use of tools), the thumb is opposed to the rest and is well developed.
Upright walking: arched foot, widened pelvis, curves in the spine (S-shaped spine), chest extended to the sides.
Answer
Choose the one that is most correct. Racial theory is based on denial
1) similarities between humans and anthropoids
2) the unity of origin of human races
3) human belonging to primates
4) morphological unity of races
Answer
Choose three options. Man as opposed to animals
1) has a cerebral cortex
2) forms various natural populations
3) has a second signaling system
4) can create an artificial habitat
5) has a first signaling system
6) can create and use tools
Answer
Choose three options. Human, unlike animals
1) affects the habitat in the process of life
2) has an S-shaped spine
3) forms different populations
4) has the first signaling system
5) has a second signaling system
6) creates and uses tools
Answer
Choose three options. In humans, unlike mammals, animals
1) the body is vertical
2) the spine has no bends
3) the spine forms four smooth bends
4) the chest is expanded to the sides
5) the chest is compressed from the sides
6) the facial part of the skull prevails over the cerebral
Answer
Choose the one that is most correct. The second human signaling system includes
1) conditioned reflexes
2) unconditioned reflexes
3) speech
4) instincts
Answer
1. Establish a correspondence between the example and the factor of anthropogenesis, which illustrates it: 1) biological, 2) social
A) spatial isolation
B) gene drift
C) speech
D) abstract thinking
E) social labor activity
E) population waves
Answer
2. Establish a correspondence between the example and the factor of anthropogenesis, for which it is characteristic: 1) biological, 2) social
A) labor activity
B) abstract thinking
B) insulation
D) mutational variability
D) population waves
E) second signaling system
Answer
Choose three options. Which of the following features characterize the social factors of human evolution?
1) social lifestyle
2) the ability to transmit acquired characteristics by inheritance
3) abstract thinking and speech
4) joint labor activity
5) modification variability
6) natural selection and care for offspring
Answer
Indicate the historical sequence of the main stages of anthropogenesis
1) Modern man
2) Australopithecus
3) Cro-Magnon
4) Pithecanthropus
5) Neanderthal
Answer
Establish the chronological sequence of anthropogenesis
1) a skilled person
2) Homo erectus
3) driopithecus
4) a reasonable person
Answer
Choose three human skeletal features
1) the presence of clavicles
2) the presence of a chin protrusion
3) lightening the mass of the bones of the upper limbs
4) the presence of five-toed limbs
5) S-shaped spine
6) arched foot
Answer
1. Choose three options. In connection with upright posture in humans
1) the upper limbs are freed
2) the foot becomes vaulted
3) the thumb is opposed to the rest
4) the pelvis expands, its bones grow together
5) the cerebral section of the skull is smaller than the facial
6) the hairline decreases
Answer
2. Choose three correct answers out of six and write down the numbers under which they are indicated. A person's adaptations to upright posture are the following signs:
1) the human spinal column has acquired pronounced bow-shaped bends, two of which are directed forward, two others - back
2) the thumb is opposed to everyone else
3) development of the cerebral cortex
4) the formation of a vaulted structure of the foot
5) rotation of the pelvis and its sharp expansion
6) the presence of a diaphragm
Answer
3. Choose three correct answers out of six and write down the numbers under which they are indicated. In humans, due to upright posture
1) the spine forms four bends
2) the bones in the joints are movably connected
3) the fingers of the hand are connected to the metacarpus
4) the belt of the lower limbs is wide, looks like a bowl
5) the arch is well defined in the foot
6) the thumb of the hand is opposed to everyone else
Answer
4. Choose three correct answers out of six and write down the numbers under which they are indicated. In humans, due to upright posture
1) the spine is S-shaped
2) the chest is flattened from the sides
3) the belt of the lower limbs is bowl-shaped
4) the mass of the vertebral bodies decreases from the cervical to the lumbar
5) the arch of the foot has formed
6) the bones of the upper limbs are more massive
Answer
Choose three options. The human skeleton, in contrast to the skeleton of mammals, has
1) straight spine without bends
2) the chest, compressed in the dorsal-abdominal direction
3) chest, compressed from the sides
4) S-shaped spine
5) arched foot
6) massive facial region of the skull
Answer
Choose three options. What are the similarities between the human skeleton and the skeletons of mammals?
1) the spine has five sections
2) the foot has a vault
3) the cerebral section of the skull is larger than the facial
4) there are paired articular limbs
5) there are seven vertebrae in the cervical spine
6) the shape of the spine is S-shaped
Answer
Establish the sequence of evolution of the fossil ancestors of modern humans in chronological order. Write down the corresponding sequence of numbers.
1) African Australopithecus
2) Homo sapiens Neanderthal
3) pithecanthropus
4) driopithecus (xeniapithecus)
5) a skilled person
Answer
1. Choose three correct answers out of six and write down the numbers under which they are indicated in the answer. In a person, in connection with work, the following specific features have been formed:
1) fine motor skills of hands
2) abstract thinking and speech
3) bowl-shaped pelvis
4) S-shaped spine
5) arched foot
6) a significant increase in the size of the brain
Answer
2. Choose three options. What features have formed in a person in connection with work?
1) arched foot
2) the development of the clavicle in the shoulder girdle
3) bowl-shaped pelvis
4) complication of the cerebral cortex
5) opposing the thumb to everyone else
6) speech and thinking
Answer
Choose the one that is most correct. A person's fitness for work is manifested in
1) movable connection of bones
2) the presence of various parts of the brain
3) having five fingers
4) a variety of hand functions
Answer
Analyze the table "Differences in the structure of humans and great apes." For each letter cell, select the appropriate term from the list provided. Write down the selected numbers, in the order corresponding to the letters.
1) the facial part of the skull prevails, there are continuous superciliary arches, there is no chin protrusion, the brain volume is about 700 cm3
2) the arms are longer than the legs, the big toe is opposed to the rest, there is an arch of the foot
3) chest
4) cervical and lumbar spine
5) the facial part of the skull predominates, there are superciliary arches, the chin protrusion is poorly developed, the brain volume is about 1100 cm3
6) thoracic and sacral spine
7) the legs are longer than the arms, the big toe is opposed to the rest, the foot is arched
8) spine
Answer
Establish the chronological sequence of the stages of anthropogenesis. Write down the corresponding sequence of numbers.
1) australopithecus
2) a skilled person
3) homo erectus
4) neanderthal
5) Cro-Magnon
Answer
Choose the one that is most correct. What feature of a person was formed under the influence of biological factors of anthropogenesis?
1) making tools
2) joint work
3) the appearance of a diaphragm
4) arched foot
Answer
Establish a correspondence between the traits and representatives of the class Mammals, for which these traits are characteristic: 1) common chimpanzee, 2) Homo sapiens. Write down the numbers 1 and 2 in the order corresponding to the letters.
A) the predominance of the facial part of the skull over the brain
B) the belt of the lower limbs in the form of a bowl
B) arched foot
D) the presence of a chin protrusion
E) developed superciliary arches
E) chest compressed from the sides
Answer
© D.V. Pozdnyakov, 2009-2019
Man differs from animals in the presence of speech, developed thinking, the ability to work. How was modern man formed? What are the driving forces of anthropogenesis?
Anthropogenesis (from the Greek antropos - man and genesis - origin) is the process of the historical and evolutionary formation of a person, which is carried out under the influence of biological and social factors.
Biological factors, or driving forces of evolution, are common to all living nature, including humans. These include hereditary variation and natural selection.
The role of biological factors in human evolution was revealed by Charles Darwin. These factors played a large role in human evolution, especially in the early stages of human development.
A person has hereditary changes that determine, for example, hair and eye color, height, resistance to the influence of environmental factors. In the early stages of evolution, when a person was strongly dependent on nature, individuals with beneficial hereditary changes in the given environmental conditions predominantly survived and left offspring (for example, individuals distinguished by endurance, physical strength, agility, ingenuity).
The social factors of anthropogenesis include labor, social lifestyle, developed consciousness and speech. The role of social factors in anthropogenesis was revealed by F. Engels in his work "The Role of Labor in the Process of Transformation of a Monkey into a Man" (1896). These factors played a leading role in the later stages of human development.
The most important factor in human evolution is labor. The ability to make tools of labor is inherent only to humans. Animals can only use individual items to get food (for example, a monkey uses a stick to get a treat).
Labor activity contributed to the consolidation of morphological and physiological changes in human ancestors, which are called anthropomorphoses.
An important anthropomorphosis in human evolution was bipedal locomotion. For many generations, as a result of natural selection, individuals with hereditary changes that contribute to upright posture have been preserved. Gradually, adaptations to bipedalism were formed: an S-shaped spine, a vaulted foot, a wide pelvis and chest, massive bones of the lower extremities.
Walking upright led to the release of the hand. At first, the hand could only perform primitive movements. In the process of work, she improved herself, began to perform complex actions. Thus, the hand is not only an organ of labor, but also its product. The developed hand allowed man to make primitive tools. This gave him significant advantages in the struggle for existence.
Joint labor activity contributed to the rallying of team members, caused the need to exchange sound signals. Communication contributed to the development of a second signaling system - communication by means of words. At first, our ancestors exchanged gestures, separate inarticulate sounds. As a result of mutations and natural selection, there was a transformation of the mouth apparatus and larynx, the formation of speech.
Labor and speech influenced the development of the brain, thinking. So for a long time, as a result of the interaction of biological and social factors, human evolution was carried out.
If the morphological and physiological characteristics of a person are inherited, then the ability to work, speech and thinking develop only in the process of upbringing and education. Therefore, with prolonged isolation of a child, speech, thinking, adaptation to life in society do not develop at all or develop very poorly.
It is difficult to say when the question of the appearance and formation of man first arose. Both the thinkers of ancient civilizations and our contemporaries were interested in this problem. How is society developing? Can you single out certain criteria and stages of this process?
Society as a single system
Every living creature on the planet is a separate organism, which is characterized by certain stages of development, such as birth, growth and death. However, no one exists in isolation. Many organisms tend to unite into groups, within which they interact and influence each other.
Man is no exception. By uniting on the basis of common qualities, interests and occupations, people form a society. Within it, certain traditions, rules, foundations are formed. Often, all elements of society are interconnected and interdependent. Thus, it develops as a whole.
Social evolution implies a leap, the transition of society to a qualitatively new level. Changes in the behavior and values of an individual are transmitted to others and transferred to the entire society in the form of norms. So, people moved from the herd to the states, from gathering to technological progress, etc.
Social evolution: early theories
The essence and laws of social evolution have always been interpreted in different ways. Back in the XIV century, the philosopher Ibn Khaldun was of the opinion that society develops exactly like an individual. At first, it emerges, followed by dynamic growth, flowering. Then decline and death sets in.
In the Age of Enlightenment, one of the main theories was the principle of the "stage history" of society. Scottish thinkers have expressed the opinion that society rises along four stages of progress:
- gathering and hunting,
- cattle breeding and nomadism,
- agriculture and agriculture,
- trade.
In the 19th century, the first appeared in Europe. The term itself from Latin means "deployment". He presents a theory of the gradual development of complex and diverse life forms from a single-celled organism through genetic mutations in its descendants.
The idea of becoming complex from the simplest was taken up by sociologists and philosophers, considering this idea to be relevant for the development of society. For example, anthropologist Lewis Morgan distinguished three stages of ancient people: savagery, barbarism, and civilization.
Social evolution is perceived as a continuation of the biological formation of species. It is the next stage after the appearance of Homo sapiens. So, Lester Ward perceived it as a natural step in the development of our world after cosmogenesis and biogenesis.
Man as a product of biological and social evolution
Evolution has caused the emergence of all species and populations of living things on the planet. But why did people advance so much further than the rest? The fact is that in parallel with physiological changes, social factors of evolution also acted.
The first steps towards socialization were made not even by a man, but by an anthropoid ape, picking up the tools of labor. Gradually, the skills improved, and already two million years ago, he appears who actively uses tools in his life.
However, the theory of such a significant role of labor is not supported by modern science. This factor acted in conjunction with others, such as thinking, speaking, uniting in a herd, and then in communities. Within a million years, Homo erectus appears - the predecessor of Homo sapiens. He not only uses, but also makes tools, kindles fires, cooks food, uses primitive speech.
The role of society and culture in evolution
A million years ago, the biological and social evolution of man occurs in parallel. However, already 40 thousand years ago, biological changes are slowing down. Cro-Magnons practically do not differ from us in appearance. Since their inception, the social factors of human evolution have played an important role.
According to one theory, there are three main stages of social progress. The first is characterized by the emergence of art in the form of rock paintings. The next stage is the domestication and breeding of animals, as well as farming and beekeeping. The third stage is the period of technical and scientific progress. It begins in the 15th century and continues to this day.
With each new period, a person increases his control and influence on the environment. The fundamental principles of evolution according to Darwin, in turn, are relegated to the background. For example, natural selection, which plays an important role in weeding out weak individuals, is no longer so influential. Thanks to medicine and other achievements, a weak person can continue to live in modern society.
Classical developmental theories
Simultaneously with the works of Lamarck and Darwin on the origin of life, theories of evolutionism appear. Inspired by the idea of constant improvement and progress of life forms, European thinkers believe that there is a single formula according to which social evolution of a person takes place.
Auguste Comte was one of the first to put forward his hypotheses. He distinguishes the theological (primitive, initial), metaphysical and positive (scientific, highest) stages of the development of reason and perception of the world.
Spencer, Durkheim, Ward, Morgan and Tennis were also supporters of the classical theory. Their views differ, but there are some general provisions that formed the basis of the theory:
- humanity appears to be a single whole, and its changes are natural and necessary;
- the social evolution of society occurs only from the primitive to the more developed, and its stages are not repeated;
- all cultures develop along a universal line, the stages of which are the same for all;
- primitive peoples are at the next stage of evolution, they can be used to study primitive society.
Denial of classical theories
Romantic beliefs about the sustainable improvement of society go away at the beginning of the 20th century. World crises and wars force scientists to look at what is happening in a different way. The idea of further progress is viewed with skepticism. The history of mankind is no longer linear, but cyclical.
In the ideas of Oswald Spengler, Arnold Toynbee, echoes of Ibn Khaldun's philosophy about recurring stages in the life of civilizations appear. As a rule, there were four of them:
- birth,
- rise,
- maturity,
- death.
So, Spengler believed that about 1000 years pass from the moment of birth to the extinction of a culture. gave them 1200 years. Western civilization was considered close to natural decline. Adherents of the "pessimistic" school were also Franz Boas, Margaret Mead, Pitirim Sorokin, etc.
Neo-evolutionism
Man as a product of social evolution appears again in the philosophy of the second half of the 20th century. Armed with scientific evidence and evidence from anthropology, history, ethnography, Leslie White and Julian Steward develop the theory of neo-evolutionism.
The new idea is a synthesis of the classic linear, universal and multilinear model. In their concept, scientists abandon the term "progress". It is believed that culture does not make a sharp leap in development, but only slightly becomes more complex in comparison with the previous form, the process of change is more smooth.
The founder of the theory assigns the main role in social evolution to culture, representing it as the main tool for human adaptation to the environment. He puts forward an energy concept, according to which the number of energy sources develops with the development of culture. Thus, he speaks of three stages of the formation of society: agrarian, fuel and thermonuclear.
Post-industrial and information theory
Along with other concepts, at the beginning of the 20th century, the idea of a post-industrial society emerged. The main provisions of the theory are visible in the works of Bell, Toffler and Bzezhinsky. identifies three stages of the formation of cultures, which correspond to a certain level of development and production (see table).
The post-industrial stage is attributed to the entire 19th century and the second half of the 20th. According to Bell, its main features are improving the quality of life, reducing population growth and birth rates. The role of knowledge and science is increasing. The economy is focused on the production of services and human-human interaction.
As a continuation of this theory, the concept of an information society appears, which is part of the post-industrial era. Infosphere is often singled out as a separate economic sector, crowding out even the service sector.
The information society is characterized by the growth of information specialists, the active use of radio, television and other media. The development of a common information space, the emergence of electronic democracy, government and the state, the complete disappearance of poverty and unemployment are singled out as possible consequences.
Conclusion
Social evolution is a process of transformation and restructuring of society, during which it qualitatively changes and differs from the previous form. There is no general formula for this process. As in all such cases, the opinions of thinkers and scientists differ.
Each theory has its own characteristics and differences, however, you can see that they all have three main vectors:
- the history of human cultures is cyclical, they go through several stages: from birth to death;
- humanity is evolving from the simplest to more perfect forms, constantly improving;
- the development of society is the result of adaptation to the external environment, it changes in connection with the change of resources and does not necessarily surpass the previous forms in everything.
There were bipedal locomotion, an increase in the volume of the brain and a complication of its organization, the development of the hand, an extension of the period of growth and development. A developed hand with a well-pronounced grasping function allowed a person to successfully use and then make tools. This gave him an advantage in, although in his purely physical qualities he was significantly inferior to animals. The most important milestone in human development was the acquisition of the ability to first use and maintain, and then to produce fire. The complex activity of making weapons, obtaining and maintaining fire could not be supported by innate behavior, but required individual behavior. Therefore, it became necessary to significantly expand the ability to exchange signals and a speech factor appeared that fundamentally distinguishes humans from other animals. The emergence of new functions, in turn, contributes to accelerated development. So, the use of hands for hunting and protecting and feeding food softened on fire made the presence of powerful jaws unnecessary, which made it possible to increase the volume of the cerebral part of the skull due to its facial part and ensure the further development of human mental abilities. The emergence of speech contributed to the development of a more perfect structure of society, the division of responsibilities between its members, which also gave advantages in the struggle for existence. Thus, the factors of anthropogenesis can be divided into biological and social.
Biological factors - hereditary variability, as well as the mutational process, isolation - are applicable to. Under their influence, in the process of biological evolution, morphological changes occurred in the ape-like ancestor - anthropomorphosis. The decisive step on the path from monkey to man was upright posture. This led to the release of the hand from the functions of movement. The hand begins to be used to carry out various functions - grabbing, holding, throwing.
No less important prerequisites for anthropogenesis were the features of the biology of human ancestors: a herd lifestyle, an increase in brain volume in relation to the general proportions of the body, binocular vision.
The social factors of anthropogenesis include labor activity, social lifestyle, development of speech and thinking. Social factors began to play a leading role in anthropogenesis. However, the life of each individual obeys biological laws: mutations are preserved as a source of variability, stabilizing selection acts, eliminating sharp deviations from the norm.
Anthropogenesis factors
1) Biological
natural selection against the background of the struggle for existence
gene drift
insulation
hereditary variability
2) Social
public life
consciousness
speech
labor activity
At the first stages of human evolution, biological factors played a dominant role, and at the last - social ones. Labor, speech, consciousness are closely related to each other. In the process of labor, the members of society rallied and the method of communication between them rapidly developed, which is speech.
The common ancestors of humans and the great apes, small arboreal insectivorous placental mammals, lived in the Mesozoic. In the Paleogene of the Cenozoic era, a branch separated from them, which led to the ancestors of modern apes - parapithecus.
Parapithecus Dryopithecus Pithecanthropus Sinanthropus Neanderthal Cro-Magnon modern man.
Analysis of paleontological finds allows us to identify the main stages and directions of the historical development of humans and great apes. Modern science gives the following answer: humans and modern apes had a common ancestor. Further, their development followed the path of divergence (divergence of signs, accumulation of differences) in connection with specific and different conditions of existence.
Human pedigree
Parapithecus insectivorous mammals:
Propliopithecus, Orangutan
Driopithecus Chimpanzees, Australopithecus Ancient people (Pithecanthropus, Sinanthropus, Heidelberg man) Ancient people (Neanderthals) New people (Cro-Magnon, modern man
Let us emphasize that the above person's pedigree is hypothetical. Let us also recall that if the name of the ancestral form ends in "pithek", then we are talking about a monkey. If at the end of the name there is "anthrop", then before us is a man. True, this does not mean that the features of a monkey are necessarily absent in its biological organization. It is necessary to understand that the signs of a person prevail in this case. From the name "Pithecanthropus" it follows that this organism has a combination of signs of a monkey and a man, and in approximately equal proportions. Let us give a brief description of some of the alleged ancestral forms of man.
DRIOPITEK
He lived about 25 million years ago.
Characteristic features of development:
much smaller than a person (height about 110 cm);
led a predominantly arboreal lifestyle;
probably manipulated objects;
there are no labor tools.
AUSTRALOPITEK
Lived about 9 million years ago
Characteristic features of development:
height 150-155 cm, weight up to 70 kg;
the volume of the skull is about 600 cm3;
probably used objects as tools for obtaining food and protection;
bipedal locomotion is characteristic;
the jaws are more massive than that of a person;
strongly developed superciliary arches;
joint hunting, herd lifestyle;
often gnawed at the remains of the prey of predators
PITECANTHROP
Lived about 1 million years ago
Characteristic features of development:
height 165-170 cm;
the volume of the brain is about 1100 cm3;
constant upright posture; formation of speech;
mastery of fire
SYNANTHROPE
He lived probably 1-2 million years ago
Characteristic features of development:
growth of about 150 cm;
upright posture;
the manufacture of primitive stone tools;
keeping fire;
social lifestyle; cannibalism
NEANDERTHAL
Lived 200-500 thousand years ago
Typical signs:
Biological:
height 165-170 cm;
brain volume 1200–1400 cm3;
lower limbs are shorter than in modern people;
the femur is strongly curved;
low sloping forehead;
strongly developed brow ridges
Social:
lived in groups of 50–100 individuals;
used fire;
made a variety of tools;
built hearths and dwellings;
carried out the first burials of the dead brothers;
speech is probably more perfect than that of Pithecanthropus;
perhaps the emergence of the first religious ideas; skillful hunters;
cannibalism persisted
CROMAGNONETS
Lived 30-40 thousand years ago
Typical signs:
Biological:
growth up to 180 cm;
brain volume of about 1600 cm3;
there is no continuous supraorbital ridge;
dense physique;
developed musculature
Social:
lived in a tribal community;
built settlements;
made complex tools of labor from bone and stone;
knew how to grind, drill;
deliberately buried dead brothers;
rudimentary religious beliefs appear;
developed articulate speech;
wore clothing made of skins;
purposeful transfer of experience to descendants;
sacrificed himself in the name of a tribe or family;
treated the old people with care;
the emergence of art;
domestication of animals;
the first steps of agriculture
MODERN MAN
Currently lives on all continents
Typical signs:
Biological:
height 160-190 cm;
brain volume of about 1600 cm3;
presence of different races
Social:
complex tools of labor;
high achievements in science, technology, art, education
The qualitative uniqueness of human evolution lies in the fact that its driving forces were not only biological, but also social factors, and it was the latter that were decisive in the process of human formation and continue to play a leading role in the development of modern human society.
Biological factors of human evolution. Man, like any other biological species, appeared on Earth as a result of the interconnected action of the factors of the evolution of the living world. How, then, did natural selection contribute to the consolidation of those morphological features of a person by which he differs from his closest relatives among animals?
The main reasons that forced the once arboreal animals to move to life on earth were the reduction in the area of tropical forests, a corresponding decrease in the food base and, as a result, the enlargement of body size. The fact is that an increase in body size is accompanied by an increase in absolute, but a decrease in relative (i.e., per unit of body weight) needs for food. Large animals can afford to eat less nutritious food. The decline in rainforest area has increased the competition between monkeys. Different species approached the solution of the problems they faced in different ways. Some learned to run quickly on four limbs and mastered the open terrain (savannah). Baboons are an example. Their enormous physical strength allowed the gorillas to stay in the forest, while being out of competition. Chimpanzees turned out to be the least specialized of all great apes. They can deftly climb trees and run fairly quickly on the ground. And only hominids solved the problems they faced in a unique way: they mastered movement on two legs. Why was this method of travel beneficial for them?
One of the consequences of an increase in body size is an increase in life expectancy, which is accompanied by a lengthening of the gestation period and a slowdown in the rate of reproduction. In great apes, one cub is born every 5-6 years. His death as a result of an accident turns out to be a very expensive loss for the population. The bipedal apes managed to avoid such a critical situation. The Hominids have learned to take care of two, three, four cubs at the same time. But this required more time, effort and attention, which the female had to devote to her offspring. She had to give up many other forms of activity, including the search for food. This was done by males and childless females. The release of the forelimbs from participation in locomotion made it possible to bring more food for females and calves. In this situation, movement on four limbs has become unnecessary. On the contrary, upright posture gave hominids a number of advantages, the most valuable of which turned out to be the possibility of making tools after 2 million years.
Social factors of human evolution. The creation and use of tools of labor increased the fitness of ancient man. From that moment on, any hereditary changes in his body, which turned out to be useful in tool activity, were fixed by natural selection. The forelimbs underwent evolutionary transformation. Judging by the fossils and tools, the working position of the hand, the method of gripping, the position of the fingers, and the force of tension gradually changed. In the technology of making weapons, the number of strong blows was reduced, the number of small and precise movements of the hand and fingers increased, the force factor began to yield to the factor of accuracy and dexterity.
The use of tools for cutting carcasses and cooking over a fire resulted in a decrease in the load on the chewing apparatus. On the human skull, those bony protrusions gradually disappeared, to which powerful chewing muscles are attached in monkeys. The skull became more rounded, the jaws were less massive, and the facial region was straightened (Fig. 101).
Rice. 101. Changes in the proportions of the skull during the evolution of hominoids
A tool of labor can be made only if a mental image and a conscious purpose of labor are formed in the imagination of its creator. Human labor activity helped to develop the ability to reproduce in the mind coherent ideas about objects and manipulations with them.
The prerequisite for the development of speech should have been a sufficiently developed brain, which allowed a person to associate a variety of sounds and ideas. Speech owes its origin to the imitation and modification of various natural sounds (voices of animals, instinctive cries of man himself). The benefits of community cohesion through speech signals were becoming apparent. Practice and imitation made speech more and more articulate and perfect.
Thus, the distinctive features of a person - thinking, speech, the ability to act as tools - arose in the course and on the basis of his biological development. Thanks to these features, a person learned to withstand the adverse effects of the environment to such an extent that his further development began to be determined not so much by biological factors as by the ability to create perfect tools, arrange dwellings, get food, raise livestock and grow edible plants. The formation of these skills occurs through training and is possible only in a human society, that is, in a social environment. Therefore, tool activity, along with the social way of life, speech and thinking, are called social factors of human evolution. Children who grew up in isolation from people do not know how to speak, are not capable of mental activity, of communicating with other people. Their behavior is more like the behavior of animals, among which they found themselves soon after birth.
The formation of man is inextricably linked with the formation of human society. In other words, anthropogenesis is inseparable from sociogenesis. Together they constitute a single process of the formation of mankind - anthroposociogenesis.
The ratio of biological and social factors in human evolution. Biological factors played a decisive role in the early stages of hominid evolution. Almost all of them continue to operate at the present time. Mutational and combinative variability support the genetic diversity of humanity. Fluctuations in the number of people during epidemics and wars randomly change the frequencies of genes in human populations. The listed factors together supply material for natural selection, which acts at all stages of human development (culling of gametes with chromosomal rearrangements, stillbirths, sterile marriages, death from diseases, etc.).
The only biological factor that has lost its significance in the evolution of modern man is isolation. In the era of advanced technical means of transportation, the constant migration of people has led to the fact that there are almost no genetically isolated groups of the population.
Over the past 40 thousand years, the physical appearance of people has hardly changed. But this does not mean the end of the evolution of man as a biological species. It should be noted that 40 thousand years is only 2% of the time of the existence of the human race. It is extremely difficult to capture the morphological changes of a person in such a short period of time on a geological scale.
With the formation of human society, a special form of communication between generations arose in the form of continuity of material and spiritual culture. By analogy with the system of inheritance of genetic information, we can talk about the system of inheritance of cultural information. Their differences are as follows. Genetic information is passed from parents to offspring. Cultural information is available to anyone. The death of a person leads to the irreversible disappearance of a unique combination of his genes. On the contrary, the experience accumulated by a person is poured into the general human culture. Finally, the speed of dissemination of cultural information is much higher than the speed of transmission of genetic information. The consequence of these differences is that modern man as a social being develops much faster than as a biological being.
In the course of evolution, man has acquired the greatest advantage. He learned to maintain harmony between his unchanging body and changing nature. This is the qualitative originality of human evolution.
Human races. In modern mankind, there are three main races: Caucasian, Mongoloid and Equatorial (Negro-Australoid). Races are large groups of people that differ in some external characteristics, such as the color of the skin, eyes and hair, the shape of the hair, and facial features. The formation of racial characteristics was facilitated by the fact that human settlement on the Earth 100-10 thousand years ago took place in small groups that made up a small part of the original population. This led to the fact that the newly formed isolated populations differed from each other in the concentrations of certain genes. Since the population of the Earth during this period was very small (no more than 3 million people 15 thousand years ago), the newly formed populations in different parts of the world developed in isolation from each other.
In different climatic conditions, under the influence of natural selection, on the basis of differing gene pools, characteristic external features of human races were formed. However, this did not lead to the formation of different species, and representatives of all races are attributed to one biological species - Homo sapiens. All races are the same in terms of their ability to learn, to work, and to be creative. Currently, racial characteristics are not adaptive. An increase in population, a sharp decline in the level of isolation of populations, the gradual disappearance of racial, ethnic and religious prejudices lead to the erosion of interracial differences. Apparently, these differences should disappear in the future.- What is meant by biological and social factors of human evolution?
- Anthropogenesis is inseparable from sociogenesis. Substantiate this statement.
- Use specific examples to show that unique biological forms (which, of course, a person is) can be formed as a result of the action of ordinary biological factors.
- Summing up the discussion of possible ways of human development from some lower form, Charles Darwin in his book "The Descent of Man and Sexual Selection" concluded that "the physical characteristics of a person are acquired as a result of the action of natural selection, and some - sexual selection." The Duke of Argyll observed that, in general, "the organization of man has deviated from the organization of animals towards greater physical helplessness and weakness - a deviation that of all others can be attributed least to natural selection." Darwin got out of this situation brilliantly. What would you answer from the standpoint of modern knowledge about human evolution?
- Is human evolution continuing as a biological species? What do you think, will a reasonable person remain a single species?
- Give examples proving that the cultural development of mankind is much faster than biological. Why?
