Why do people look different around the world?

Question

I heard once that Asian peoples faces developed with small eyes (Mongolians have this feature too) because they were living in and crossing deserts when migrating East. Constantly squinting to avoid sand in the eyes, meant that the eyes went through a natural selection process. This doesn't sound right though. I don't think that's true. Is it actually established for sure where Mankind originates from Geographically. Science tells us Africa...but then why are people looking so different according to region? I mean did Asians look Asian from the start? Were Caucasians white from the start or did the skin lighten and the features change in response to environment? Anyone actually know?

Answer 1

Apparently we all changed in appearance when god made us all speak a different language. It's all in the Bible that we all lived in one place and spoke one language until he split us apart.

The other theory is that our appearances adapted to suit our environments and that eventually became part of our evolution, in our genes.

Answer 2

I think all the changes were in response to the environment. What you said about the small eyes was right- especially as some of those Asians then had to put up with snowstorms too. Caucasians had less sunlight, so they lost their skin colour over the generations, while the Africans kept theirs.

Answer 3

The appearances of different races have formed through evolution over thousands of years or longer. To understand this, you have to understand evolution. Babies are born with half of their fathers' genes and half of their mothers' genes, but some of these genes may mutate very slightly between generations, causing a change in some trait. There are genes which control eye shape. If your example is right, and the evolution of the asian eye shape was caused by sand, then what happened was that long ago some asians were born with a slightly mutated gene which caused their eyes to be smaller. Because of this, they had less problems with sand and were able to accomplish tasks such as gathering food and mating more easily than those with larger eyes. This meant that they were likely to have more children, many of whom would recieve the gene for small eyes. Over time, the genes which give the trait most suitable for an environment will become prominent within a gene pool, while those less suitable will eventually die out. This is why people have different skin tones. Those who lived in the sunniest regions had a high likelihood of being burned, and those with darker skin were more able to survive the harsh rays of the sun. Because of this, in time there were more people with darker skin, as they were the people the most likely to reach reproductive age and have the most children. Similarly, people living in darker climates tend to have lighter skin because we absorb some necessary vitamins from the sun. With very little sun, those with lighter skin tones were more able to absorb these vitamins, and thus to be healthier and have more children. A culture's physical traits develop as a response to their environment. These processes take thousands of years. As a result, people tend to look the way their ancestors evolved to look.

Answer 4

i do think geography played a slight role in this like you said, however i also think that since there wasn't to many people that were just lying around in the cavemen days incest happened a lot, and the same genes being passed around. So a certain region of land has the same gene going around and around nothing changes to much. So we will use the asian eyes as an example. someone has a gene for squinted eyes, it keeps getting spread around one area then everyones gonna have it in that area. Just like a langauge. If someone grows up in a area that generally speaks german he isn't going tp speak english.

Answer 5

Everybody tends to looks like the people in the next village. Over hundreds and thousands of miles the differences are much more vivid.

The best evidence indicates an African origin. At the beginning everyone looked more or less alike.

Answer 6

the comparable rationalization why diverse races of the comparable species animal worldwide extensive look diverse, eg bengal tigers and siberian tigers. I study in new scientist that there is a 7% organic and organic distinction between diverse races, as they have stepped forward particularly in yet differently to extra healthful diverse environments. for occasion eskimos tend to be short and stocky as a fashion to keep warmth, while african peoples tend to be taller and thinner as a fashion to lose warmth, mild epidermis absorbs extra diet A the place there's a loss of image voltaic, while dark epidermis supplies extra suited safety from image voltaic etc

Answer 7

another example of environmental selection is eskimos tend to be fat - i dont mean obese i mean there body fat level is thicker than people living in a warm climate to help deal with the cold weather, and i agree this question is not racist in itself some of the answers were irrelevent to the question, but the ones answered with common sense answer, ie a combination of environment, genetic selection for best ways of dealing with the environment adaptations such as melanin level etc and most of all a long time

Answer 8

Skin colour is very easy to see as natural selection.

Controlled by one chemical, melanin.

More of it makes the skin darker, but prevents burns and cancer more easily (Thus favoured in the deserts and similar of the world), however it also increases the amount of sun you need to be able to make sufficient Vitamin D, so when you are in colder, less sunny climates, then it favours less melanin (pale skin).

Answer 9

You already know most of the answer: Random variation of the genes and natural selection of the end product brought about the different races of people.
Man moved out of Africa around 1000,000 years ago - however there is debate as to whether he evolved into his present form in Africa (out of Africa hypothesis) only or 'multiregionally' ie separately in different areas. The out of Africa hypothesis is linked to the idea of a "mitochondrial Eve", that we are all descendents of one woman living in Africa more recently -150,000 years ago.
BAck to racial difference. Dark skin, in the Africans, helped to prevent skin cancer, sunburn and destruction of the sweat glands; light skinned descendants could possibly produce more vitamin D helping to prevent rickets. They weren't white from the start, but their genes changed, and the fitter for the environment survived.
Did you know that in West Africa the incidence of sickle cell anemia is higher, as it results in resistance to malaria. Variation in the population is generally due to natural selection over time. Racial differences in humans are not an exception to the rule.


Luke.

Answer 10

no one actually, "knows", but the best guess is a bit like what you heard. people's features developed to deal with the environments they came to live in, as they spread throughout the world.

Answer 11

Answering questions like this is a waste of time and typing, so for the umpteenth time--

WHAT DOES IT MATTER?????

The tiny physical differences between people from different continents are not significant enough to bear mentioning. Not to mention that your reasons for the differences are all wrong.

Humans developed into essentially what they are worldwide, then migrated to various areas where each group underwent a little natural customization. Nothing to worry about.