Evolutionary theory or wishful thinking?

Question

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6057734.stm

In part:
"...in the nearer future, humans will evolve in 1,000 years into giants between 6ft and 7ft tall, he predicts, while life-spans will have extended to 120 years, Dr Curry claims.

Physical appearance, driven by indicators of health, youth and fertility, will improve, he says, while men will exhibit symmetrical facial features, look athletic, and have squarer jaws, deeper voices and bigger penises. "

Hmmmmm....

P.S. -- I believe in evolution. I'm just not sure I'm that much of an optimist! : )

Woo hoo! Sign me up for the pert breasts!

Answer 1

I'm a historian of evolution. Oliver Curry is a self-publicizing, lads' TV channel promoting quack. And shame on the BBC for giving this stupid story houseroom. "Some economist reads H G Wells's _The Time Machine_" is not a news story!

Answer 2

I think you mean 400 years, not 1000. Think about it. The average hieght of a male has went up quite a bit in the last 50 years. Remember when Wilt Chamberlain was a giant in 1971 at 7" 1 feet tall. There was only a very few people close to his hieght in basketball then. Today just about everyone is close to that hieght if not well past it. As for age it's the same way. 30 years ago if memory serves me correctly average age was about 65 today its closer to 80. I don't know about the rest of the stuff though however i would assume since both a and b seem very reasonable the rest are probably true also.

Answer 3

It's quite possible. If you've ever been to some of the medieval castles in Europe, you'll notice the passage ways and stair cases seem kind of tight for a good majority of modern humans. We're a lot taller than our medieval ancestors. Females are maturing earlier due to better nutrition. Doctors have also been saying that if you can live for the next 20 years - the liklihood that you'll live until you're 100 improves because of advancing medical knowledge and technology.

So who knows. It's too bad none of us will be around to see if it turns out to be true (if we haven't destroyed ourselves by then).

Answer 4

Nobody can predict the evolution of any particular species. You can make a hypothesis about how you believe humans may end up in several thousand years but there are too many variables to make anything resembling an accurate prediction of our evolution. Also, 1,000 years is not nearly enough time to see any significant change in a species. That guy is full of it.

Answer 5

Dr Curry is actually an economist, not a biologist.

A bit like a sailor offering to fly a plane, perhaps?

Answer 6

speculation (and what did this have to do with Religion and Spirtiuality?)

darksphyx, people have been getting taller because of better nutrition, not because the human race suddenly "evolved" to be taller in the last 50 years

Answer 7

Wait, you forgot the best part!

"Women, on the other hand, will develop lighter, smooth, hairless skin, large clear eyes, pert breasts, glossy hair, and even features"

Answer 8

With sperm counts decreasing, you are much too optimistic about the penises. They might even disappear, replaced by in-vitro fertilization.

Answer 9

That might happen with genetic engineering! In fact with all the pollution, our penises will practically disappear.

Answer 10

The theory is actually that the rich will evolve in that way, the poor being left out.

Congrats on not reading the link you posted