If humans came from monkeys, why are there still monkeys?

Question

Are you kidding me? I don't even scratch my butt that frequently

Dumb question gets dumb answers

Boring! Read the additional details

Answer 1

if humans came from dirt, why is ther still dirt?

hmm, maybe you are on to something, except, i frequently scratch my butt. you think, maybe i got worms?

i love questions like yours, they are like a test to see how many times people will dogmatically answer the same question.
the pulse of thought around here seems to be non-existent sometimes.

Answer 2

No supporter of evolution claims that people come from monkeys; this is simply a strawman. Rather, modern humans and monkeys come from a common ancestor that belonged to neither group, as do all life forms, per the theory of common descent. Monkeys are far from being the closest relatives of humans, however: chimpanzees, orangutans, gorillas, and even gibbons are considered much more closely-related to humans than monkeys by (literally) 99.9% of the scientific community. The closest relatives of humans are the Hominoids, i.e., the apes; the Old World and New World monkeys are more distantly related.

But even if we had evolved from monkeys, that wouldn't in any way imply that no monkeys would be around anymore. A common ways evolution works is cladogenesis, the splitting of a species into separate populations which diverge in different "directions". Thus, a population of apes might be split in half (such as by geographic isolation), with one half changing dramatically while the other half changes very little, based on their different environments. If not for cladogenesis, then there would only be a single species in the entire world, because there would be no "branching off" in the tree of life. This argument thus has no factual or scientific basis; it's just a misunderstanding.

If you want specifics: the morphological, fossil, and genetic evidence indicates that humans diverged from the common ancestor of humans and chimpanzees (a species like Sahelanthropus tchadensis) around 6 million years ago. This corresponds, according to geologic evidence, to a period when Africa was undergoing dramatic changes: increasingly seasonal climates were causing a new biome, consisting of open grasses and plains, to develop. The ancestors of humans first began to dramatically diverge from chimpanzees when they moved into these open fields and were forced to adapt to their new environment. Our evolution is thus very similar to the evolution of modern antelopes, hyenas, dogs, pigs, elephants, and horses, which also diverged from their ancestors to adapt to the rise of grasslands. While chimpanzees remained in their rain forest environment, humans rapidly adapted new traits to suit a nomadic grasslands life in Africa. Australopithecus thrived from 2-4 million years ago, and the genus Homo (the human genus) first arose 2 million years ago, with modern humans (Homo sapiens) developing around 200,000 years ago.

(Also, yes, I'm aware that this was a joke post, but it's obvious that this is a genuinely very common misconception, so I took the time to clear it up for people.)

Answer 3

Evolution is not linear, as you think. We have a common ancestor, we did NOT evolve directly from them. Draw a branching tree with ancestor at the trunk and humans and apes being the leaves. Now, this shows we have a common ancestor. If you draw a straight line and link all three, ancestor, ape, human, then yes, apes would have evolved into humans, therefore wiping out the existence of apes.
You christians kill me. You have no idea how genetics works, since you think God will guide you in knowledge. I wonder why he did not give you the logic to work thru this one on your own.

Answer 4

Probably because only half of the monkeys got the memo that the conversion to humans day was coming up.

Answer 5

GET EDUCATED.

We did NOT come from monkeys. We evolved from a creature that was a common ancestor of both man and the modern day Chimpanzee.

DURRRRRRRR

Is this the only question that people can ask which they think "disproves" evolution?

Answer 6

.. and a better question is why arnt there any of the thousands of "in-between" species that supposedly were between monkeys and men ... it couldnt have been just one or two neanderthal type men ... evolution is gradual ... why no in between species for alot of animals ... there should literally be thousands more than there are .. not just a "missing link" here and there ...

Answer 7

Please take Biology or Anthropology 1 in college, you'll need it. It's the theory is standing, we did not come from monkeys. WE came from a species very similar to them, but WE I repeat WE did NOT come or spawn off of monkeys. Get it?!

Answer 8

I have often wondered the same thing. I would guess that it was a branch of the species that, uh, branched off, but I would like a good answer myself. You go!


But, it wasn't monkeys, but apes.

I do believe that we evolved from apes.

Answer 9

LOL. i personally do not believe in evolution... i don't know. i'm catholic. and yeeah. humans don't come from monkeys. there could be evidence. but there is also a lot of evidence that contradicts to that. once upon a time god made adam and eve. and they reproduced and everyone lived happily ever after.

Answer 10

Because they could still climb trees and throw their fecal matter to keep from being raped and beaten. You know what happened to the one they called Chatter don't you?