What is the exact scientific proof that man has for believing we evolved from monkeys?

Question

Don't hold anything back. Lengthy answers are good.

I'm not saying this theory is true or not true so don't get your panties in a bunch over it people :P I'm just asking a question to answer other questions so please be tactfull, mature PLEASE don't let your emotions get too into this one ;).

To: secretsauce. No yours wasn't I like constructive critisism but... well the onse that are a little out of order are obvious to anyone but perhaps the person who wrote them. anyway, I worded this question teribly wrong it would seem so here is the correction. "What is the evidence used to supprt the theory of evolution in regards to humans." hopefully thats a little better :D

Answer 1

Its only a misconception. The theory of evolution does say that humans came from monkeys. What it really says is that Humans came from an APE-LIKE ancestors. We cannot came from monkeys because we and the monkeys were contemporaries - living together in the same period.

Answer 2

It is highly likely that humans and apes share a common ancestor and at some point in our evolutionary history there was a divergence over time that resulted in the two different species. Evidence for descent from a common ancestor (not just humans and monkeys) can be observed at the following levels:

1) Homology: Many different species exhibit similar characteristics at anatomical, embryological and molecular levels. That is to say, bone structure is very similar among humans and other primates. Also, during our period inside the womb, humans as well as other many other mammals have a tail-like structure that later develops into a backbone. This accounts for birth abnormalities in which some people are born with tails. Finally, the vast majority of human DNA is almost identical to apes.

2) Biogeographical: Many organisms exhibit similar characteristics that are found near each other geographically. This factor lead to the study of the Finch population of the Galapagos Islands. The finch populations, although different from one another, were closely related to the population found on the nearest mainland, indicating evolution by natural selection.

3) Fossil records: Descent from a common ancestor can observed by studying the similarities and noting the changes in organsims over long periods of time.

A large amount of information can be collected that would suggest that evolution stemmed from a common ancestor and varied by chance to result in the different species that we have today. Wouldn't you agree that it's difficult to believe that every species present today have remained unchanged since life began on earth approximately 3.5 billion years ago?

Answer 3

First of all were going to start with the term 'theory' as the creationist like to jump on that term first. How scientists use the term theory is not how the creationists like to claim it. It does not mean 'guess' it means 'explanation or model that fits the world as we currently understand it' They do not claim it as fact as a better model may come along as we do more research. The below is from Wikipedia on colloquial and scientific meanings of the word theory


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The word theory has a number of distinct meanings in different fields of knowledge, depending on their methodologies and the context of discussion.

In common usage, people often use the word theory to signify a conjecture, an opinion, or a speculation. In this usage, a theory is not necessarily based on facts; in other words, it is not required to be consistent with true descriptions of reality. True descriptions of reality are more reflectively understood as statements that would be true independently of what people think about them.

In science, a theory is a proposed description, explanation, or model of the manner of interaction of a set of natural phenomena, capable of predicting future occurrences or observations of the same kind, and capable of being tested through experiment or otherwise falsified through empirical observation. It follows from this that for scientists "theory" and "fact" do not necessarily stand in opposition. For example, it is a fact that an apple dropped on earth has been observed to fall towards the center of the planet, and the theory which explains why the apple behaves so is the current theory of gravitation.

Notice that while we have a 'Theory of Gravity' you wont find any Christians trying to claim Gravity is bogus, though they will jump all over Evolution in a matter of moments.

Beyond that Evolution is about the changes in animals as they adapt to their environment. It is not something that happens in a few minutes but over multiple generations of a species. Lets try a simple example. If the environment favors the survival of a taller creature due to there being more food higher on a plant then the taller animals will be able to eat more, live longer and therefore be more likely to breed. As such they will be more likely to pass on their tall genes and over generations the species will tend to get taller.

Answer 4

Scientists don't claim to have definitive "proof" of evolution. No one was there watching the process of evolution occur. Instead, scientists must use empirical evidence from the present to form theories about the history of life.

The best analogy I have for this is a team of forensic scientists investigating a murder. No one witnessed the murder, but by piecing together DNA evidence, fingerprints, and other clues you can make a very pursuasive argument indeed. The theory of evolution is cogent in this way - when all of the evidence coalesces, it is extrememly difficult to argue that it didn't happen.

And don't be fooled by the word "theory." Theories are not flimsy guesses - they are fortified by scientific evidence and can be verified by experimentation. For example, the theory of gravity predicts that if you drop something, it will fall. This theory has never failed me. I think it is equally unlikely that the theory of evolution will falter.

It would be impossible to go over all of the evidence supporting human evolution here, but I'll hit some major points.

(1) The idea that humans evolved from 'monkeys' is a public misconception. Humans are obviously not the descendents of monkeys - instead, humans and monkeys share a common ancestor - which was a primate.

(2) Anatomy. Ananatomically, humans and apes are very similar. (Monkeys and apes are actually different. Monkeys are less closely related to humans. Apes include chimps, gorillas, gibbons, orangs, and humans). Some shared features are: eyes at the front of the face, down-facing nostrils, pentadactyly (five fingers), freely rotating shoulder (for tree climbing), nails on the hands, lack of a tail, relatively large brain size etc... When looking at a chimp (our closest relative) it is difficult not to see the resemblence! Why do you suppose that is?

(3) DNA. In the era of DNA sequencing, evolutionary biologists employ the method of phylogenetics. This is a method of comparing DNA sequences and is done using computers, which are needed to handle the massive amount of data. The computer analyzes the sequence and sorts them into a phylogenetic tree, which reveals evolutionary relatedness. (This is a very short and lamentable overview of phylogenetics, which is some of the most persuasive evidence for evolution. If you are truly interested in this topic, read more about it). Phylogenetics indicates that humans do share a common ancestor with the apes and are most closely related to the chimpanzees. Comparing DNA sequences reveals not only the overall relatedness of humans and chimps, but also reveals specific changes - such as translocations of peices of chromosomes and point mutations.

(4) Fossils. There is a wealth of fossil evidence documenting the evolution of humans. Creationists will claim that no such fossils exist, but I would suggest that you look into this yourself. There are plenty of them! In short, these fossils show the change to bipedalism (walking on two legs), a gradual increase in the size of the cranium, a decrease in the number and size of teeth, and a general flattening of the face. These alterations are the changes from ape-like anatomy to human-like anatomy! Very persuasive!

(5) Human behavior. Humans behave similarly to apes in many respects. We live in social groups, groom each other, laugh (chimps laugh but produce noise on both the inhale and exhale - while we only make noise on the exhale), and use tools.

Answer 5

No knowledgeble person believes man evolved from monkeys or from apes either for that matter. The theory of evolutions states that mankind and modern apes developed from a common primate ancestor.

As to proof, there is a fairly extensive fossil record of the human development from early pithacens to early **** and on to modern man. It is not 100% complete, but the sequence is clearly there. There are similar fossil sequences for other modern animals as well.

Answer 6

Well to your exact question none. If you meant apes then there is some our body structure is very similar and apes are one of the only other mammals know to have the opposable thumb. Have an open mind about things I know that the bible say god created adam and eve and all living beings therefore the is no such thing as evolution.
If this is what you believe FINE. I am happy that you know the right answer for you but I highly doubt you got this idea from the bible.
You got it from one of those tv preacher retards. aka "God bless you all but most of all send you money please!" Even if he is 100% right which no one that ignorant ever is, why are you letting anyone but god put feelings and thoughts in your heart and in your head. In case you fire back with he is smart he has 4 PHD's I am not talking book smart I am talking common sense smart.
Here is a free bit of advice think for your self If you let others think for you. You will never really know anything. Know your enemy.

Answer 7

This is the reason they call it a theory. It is intersting to note that the chipanzees DNA is 98% identical to humans. They use primitive tools. They care for their children for long periods, like humans. They appear inelligent and emotional. They have similar social structure. It's an interesting theory. No one knows about the missing link though...

Answer 8

You obviously haven't read one book on evolution because if you have you wouldn't be answering this question. The theory of evolution is a SCIENTIFIC theory. Why don't creationists get that in their heads. I don't get it. There is so much proof of evolution out there, yet people choose not to accept it. Why?!?! it is just something I do not understand. Have you ever thought of the fact that the reason why a dinosaurs brain was much bigger than a human brain was because dinosaurs were incredibly large animals? How in the world would a dinosaurs brain fit in a humans head?!?! Please think. Don't be ignorant. The reason why human brains have evolved so much is because ALL SPECIES DO NOT EVOLVE AT THE SAME RATE. Have you ever taken a look at a coelacanth? They look like ancient creatures living in the wrong era. Evolution does not predict how fast a species will evolve. Here I'll even refer a book for you to read to give you a head start. Please show us how and where you got the "fact" that a snail from 1 million years ago looks identical to one in present time.

Answer 9

This is a nonsensical question. Anyone who actually knows about evolution knows this has never been a scientific claim. This is a misconception of people who do not understand the concept of "scientific theory" or who are lazy enough to just believe whatever people tell them, as opposed to actually educating themselves.

Answer 10

sorry to say this, but from what i have learned in my class that we, human, DO NOT EVOLVED from monkeys, but rather WE SHARE a common ancestor as them. Therefore, it is true of some of the members' answer in which he/she said that we do not evolved from monkeys, it is correct. But don't get me wrong that we do SHARE the same gene as them, and we SHARE a common ancester as them.

so to answer your question, NO we don't evolved from monkeys. :)