2006-11-24 12:43:16 · 9 answers · asked by thesunshineking 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Biology
The tailbone is a vestigial structure, which means there is no use for it. The reason we have it is because at some point in our evolutionary line, an animal that humans evolved from had a tail. Over a very long period of time, and as we evolved into human beings (Homo sapiens), we grew out of a need for it, and it gradually decreased in size, becoming what is now our tailbone (coccyx).
2006-11-24 12:49:15 · answer #1 · answered by sciteach9 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Well, a lot of religious people believe that human evolution is compatible with supernatural creation. Their idea is that God created man by guiding evolution. I don't buy that myself, but that's a possible way of reconciling it. Another method of explanation is arguing that the tailbone never was really part of a tail, that it's just there to protect the spine. This requires ignoring the similarity between skeletal structures across species, but for most people, it's easy not to think too hard about that. Also, there's the tactic of drawing an imaginary line between one's own "group" and another "group," scientists, and declaring the others to be untrustworthy. This is where you get people arguing that evolutionary theory is a tactic by the evil scientists to impose their Godless view of life on everybody else. These people don't think much about tailbones at all; it's enough that whatever the scientists say about it is probably wrong.
2016-03-29 08:01:39 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
The characteristics that all vertebrates share are a notocord, pharyngeal slits (gill structures, on terrestrial vertebrates they are visible in the embryonic stages and help form parts of the ears), muscular post anal tail (which is the tailbone of humans), and hollow nerve cord (which forms our spinal cord). In order to be considered a vertebrate we have to have had all of these characteristics at one point in time.
2006-11-25 02:17:24 · answer #3 · answered by Old wise one 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Humans have evolved from apes and you must have noticed that apes got tails. It is an evolutionary thing we now no longer have the tail but still have the tail bone. In like a few million years it might hopefuly vanish.
2006-11-24 12:47:37 · answer #4 · answered by Arjun C 2 · 0⤊ 2⤋
because our predeccers i.e. apes had tail and with the evolution part we have the tailbone as a vestigal organ in our body..
2006-11-25 00:42:04 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
In answer to Arjun - there is no evolutionary reason for our coccyx to disappear. No one would have a better chance of surviving and mating simply due to having one useless bone removed.
2006-11-24 12:57:28 · answer #6 · answered by evaniax 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well, the coccyx is often considered vestigial, meaning we have it only because our parents had it, and their parents had it, and their parents, etc, etc. It does provide some extra muscle attachment sites though.
2006-11-24 12:51:45 · answer #7 · answered by Brian B 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Apes don't have tails and we didn't evolve from apes (think chimps).
2006-11-24 17:13:35 · answer #8 · answered by sattimaster 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
because we used to be apes and apes have tails
2006-11-24 13:02:58 · answer #9 · answered by 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋