what proof is there that we evolved from monkeys?

Answer 1

Sorry this is long ... but there's a LOT of evidence. But first, two corrections:

(A) No scientist believes we evolved from monkeys. That's the CARTOON version of evolution. (Where do people get that version from?) Instead, humans an modern monkeys share a common ancestor. This is not a minor nitpicky point, but very very important to understand why humans and monkeys appear so different today ... they have been evolving all this time too.

(B) No scientist uses the word "proof" ... we say "evidence." And the difference between proof and evidence is important. You prove things in math. You don't "prove" things in science.

That said, here's a partial list of the *evidence* that humans and other primates are related by common ancestry (copied from a previous time I answered this very question). (And yes, it does include the "spine thingy" ... I mean, tailbone ... see #6).

EIGHT CATEGORIES OF EVIDENCE (PARTIAL LIST) :

1. Genetic evidence - These are the genes that we have in common with other primates. E.g. the fact that we have a huge number of genes (as much as 96%) in common with other great apes. Genetic evidence shows that we are more closely related to chimps than to the other great apes, and more closely related to great apes than to other primates (monkeys).

2. Fossil evidence - (So much to list). The way human and pre-human fossils appear in the layers of rock always corresponds to relative development ... more primitive creatures in lower (older) layers. Absolute dating of fossils using radiometry. Structural similarities showing development of jawbones/teeth, brain cases, larynx, hip sockets for walking upright, development of the spine, shoulder joints showing descent from the trees, pelvic bones in females showing increasing size in the heads of infants, etc.

3. Anthropology/archaeology - I.e., human artifacts and mummified remains (tools, cave paintings, campsites, etc.) This could barely be called 'evolution' as this only covers the last 50,000 years or so when humans were pretty close to how they are today. But it does document such things as migration patterns around the world (e.g. when humans arrived in different parts of the world).

4. Molecular evidence - These are commonalities in DNA ... which is separate from genetic commonalities ... much of our DNA does not code for genes at all. But random mutations (basically 'typos') enter into DNA at a known rate over the centuries. This is called the 'molecular clock' and again gives excellent evidence of when humans diverged from other apes (about 6 million years ago, according to this molecular clock).

5. Proteins - These are the proteins in common with other primates. This includes things like blood proteins (the things that give us our A, B, O blood typing and the Rh factor (the plus/minus thing) which incidentally stands for 'rhesus monkey'); the exact structure of the insulin molecule; and my favorite, the photophigments: The photopigments are the three proteins responsible for color vision. The specific proteins found in human color vision are exactly the same as those found in Old World primates (the great apes and the monkeys found in Africa and Asia). These proteins are absent in New World primates (the Central and South American monkeys), and from all other mammals. In fact among the New World primates, only the howler monkey has color vision ... but these use slightly *different* proteins, coded on different locations and chromosomes, than humans and the OW primates. This is yet more evidence of a closer link between humans and the OW primates.

6. Vestigial structures - These are structures that are useless, almost useless, or just badly 'designed' (a word I use figuratively), that can only be explained in terms of descent from animals in which they were more useful. Things like the tailbone, wisdom teeth, and the appendix are classic examples ... but my favorite is the plantaris muscle: The plantaris muscle is a long thin muscle in your calf that serves no useful purpose in humans. It is so useless that surgeons commonly harvest it for use in reconstructive surgery (such as heart surgery). In fact, it is so useless that 9% of people have no plantaris muscle at all. So why is it there? Because it serves a very important purpose in other primates ... specifically, grasping with the feet.

7. Homology - These are structures and proteins that have commonalities between species, but have a different function. The simplest examples are the fact that all terrestrial vertebrates have four limbs, and most have five fingers (e.g. bats, dolphins, whales, birds, reptiles, etc.). There are also homologous proteins. But my favorite are the five bones in the inner ear of humans and other mammals, which correspond in structure to the five bones of the hinged jaw of reptiles. These are evidences that evolution will often take structures left over from a now useless function, and repurpose them for a new useful function.

8. Embryology - This includes things like tails and gill folds in human embryos and those of all other mammals. But this also includes things that are evidence of other creatures are related to our branch ... such as legs and five webbed fingers, and distinct leg-buds in the embryos of dolphins.

Now all of these just concern human evolution. The lines of evidence for evolution in general are much bigger (e.g. I didn't include things like virology, or bacteriology, or evidences from medicine).

However, a bigger point is this: while all of these independently are evidence of the model of human evolution, when considered *together*, and with the fossil evidence, they get even stronger. For example, the molecular clock places the split from other apes at about 6 million years ago, and with monkeys at about 25 million years ago, both of which are consistent with when the different forms appear in the fossil record. And the split between New World and Old World primates suggested by the structure and genetic locations of photopigment proteins, is further confirmed by the molecular and fossil evidence. It is the independent evidence, when considered *together* that really nails the picture down.

Answer 2

Questions like this have been asked a billion times. You can easily look this up anywhere online. But first, we didn't evolve from monkeys. That is a misunderstanding of evolutionary theory. Second, science doesn't prove anything. Instead, it offers the best explanation based on evidence. And the evidence (fossils, genetics, etc) suggests that we had a common ancestor with other primates.

Answer 3

None - there isn't even an recognized theory that humans evolved from monkeys. Anthropologists believe that humans and apes evolved from a common ancestor, based on fossils. No evolutionary lineage can be proved - it can only be inferred. What a scientist would ask is there any evidence that can disprove that humans and apes did not have a common ancestor.

Answer 4

I don't believe in Charles Darwin actually but, I think the proof that we evolved from monkeys is the "end of the spine" thingy that we can find just above our butt. They say that was a tail long ago. Another is the genetic resemblance of apes to humans.

Answer 5

first that spine thingy, called a tail bone, which is present in humans, but it has been reduced through evolution as humans became more upright. as well, the eyes are also both in front of the face. and a similar dental formula.