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From: sarima@tdatirv.UUCP (Stanley Friesen)
Newsgroups: sci.skeptic,sci.bio
Subject: Re: Further Evolving Eyebrows
Message-ID: <54@tdatirv.UUCP>
Date: 7 Nov 90 20:51:55 GMT
References: <1371@cluster.cs.su.oz.au> <2431@anaxagoras.ils.nwu.edu> <1990Nov5.123912.15186@ioe.lon.ac.uk>
Reply-To: sarima@tdatirv.UUCP (Stanley Friesen)
Followup-To: sci.skeptic
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In article <1990Nov5.123912.15186@ioe.lon.ac.uk> teexmmo@ioe.lon.ac.uk (Matthew Moore) writes:
>The Hardy-Morgan theory of human evolution (aka the aquatic theory)
 
>Loss of fur is a common adaptation to aquatic life (or semi aquatic
>life), consider the elephant, pig, hippoo, cetaceans (whales and dolphins).

Except that of these examples only the hippos and cetaceans are (semi-)aquatic.
Elephants and pigs are as terrestrial as any mammal (that is *all* mammals
spend *some* time in/around water).  There is another set of circumstances
that is leads to loss of hair - namely large size in a relatively equable
climate.  The examples include: elephant, rhinoceros, &c.
Since humans are among the top 10% of the mammals as far as size is concerned,
and since we apparently evolved in the tropics, our hairless state could well
be due to that.

As far as the eyebrows are concerned, the idea about sun visors may well be
correct - the bright, steady sun is a major problem in the tropics.
-- 
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uunet!tdatirv!sarima				(Stanley Friesen)