Assumptions about how humanity will evolve

Human evolution didn’t end when we learned to walk on two legs or built the first cities. It’s still going on—it’s just that other factors are acting on us now. Technology, climate change, medicine, and globalization are changing how we live and reproduce. Scientists are wondering: What will happen next? Here are some suggestions on how humanity will change in the future.

5 assumptions about how humanity will evolve

1. The brain will become smaller, but it will not lose its effectiveness

It sounds like a grim dystopian scenario, but scientists are seriously considering the possibility of shrinking the human brain in the future. And there is evidence of this: over the past twenty thousand years, our brain has already shrunk in volume by about one hundred and fifty cubic centimeters — it’s like a tennis ball. Why is this happening?

Anthropologists draw a parallel with domesticated animals: their brains also decrease when aggression decreases, and dependence on the group increases. People went through a process of “self-domestication.” Instead of relying solely on ourselves, we began to live in complex societies with a division of labor, where we do not have to be on our guard and solve all problems alone constantly.

Today, technology is accelerating this process. We trust memory to smartphones, navigation to GPS, complex calculations to algorithms, and communication to social networks. Evolutionary biologist David Geary notes that if artificial intelligence and digital systems take on more and more mental tasks, natural selection may begin to give preference to people with a more compact but energy-efficient brain.

This does not mean that we will become more stupid; it’s just that our intelligence adapts to a world where machines take over most of our thinking. The brain of the future may be smaller but optimized for life in symbiosis with technology.

2. The resistance to air pollution and industrial toxins will increase

Air pollution is already the fourth leading cause of death in the world, claiming millions of lives every year. Fine dust, exhaust fumes, and industrial emissions destroy our lungs, hit our hearts, and even reduce our cognitive abilities. But not all people suffer equally. Some have genetic features, such as variations in the GSTM1 or CYP1A1 genes, that help the body more effectively neutralize toxins.

Studies in the dirtiest cities on the planet, like Delhi or Beijing, show that locals already have different reactions to smog — some have weaker inflammatory processes, which means that the health consequences are less severe. Since most of humanity will likely live in megacities in the future, these genetic differences may play a key role in evolution. Those whose bodies are more resistant to toxic air will have a better chance of a healthy life and procreation.

And suppose the purity of the atmosphere remains a luxury after a few generations. In that case, natural selection can imperceptibly “filter out” those who cannot adapt to life in eternal smog. We can slowly but inevitably transform into a species that survives in dirty air and genetically adapts to it.

3. The number of wisdom teeth and other “useless” organs will decrease

Wisdom teeth are a classic example of how evolution gradually removes unnecessary body parts. Our distant ancestors needed them: large jaws and coarse food like raw meat and roots required additional “millstones” for grinding. But with the advent of heat treatment for food and the development of agriculture, our jaws began to shrink, and wisdom teeth had no place left.

Today, they are more likely to cause problems than benefits: they become inflamed, grow crookedly, and force people to go to the surgeon. Interestingly, about 35-40 percent of people are already born without one or more wisdom teeth, and there are more such cases with each generation. The same fate befell other rudiments. For example, fifteen percent of people lack the palmaris longus palm muscle, which once helped our ancient ancestors deftly climb trees.

Nine percent of the world’s population lacks the plantar muscle, which is useful for grasping with their feet. Even the coccyx, inherited from our tailed ancestors, no longer performs any functions but is not ready to disappear. These changes are not due to sudden mutations but because evolution slowly eliminates all unnecessary things.

And suppose humanity continues to follow the path of technological progress. Visit. A F R I N I K . C O M . For the fulI article. In that case, our descendants may be surprised that we once had wisdom teeth, just as we are surprised when we look at atavisms like the tail of an embryo.

4. Adaptation to heights will improve

Have you ever wondered how people adapted to life high in the mountains, where the air is thin and oxygen is catastrophically low? It turns out that three different ethnic groups — the Tibetans, the Indians, and the Ethiopian Highlanders — have independently developed unique survival mechanisms in such extreme conditions. Tibetans, for example, inherited a special version of the EPAS1 gene from their ancestors.

Thanks to this, their bodies have learned to effectively use scarce oxygen without increasing the viscosity of the blood. The Andean highlanders went the other way: their bodies produced more red blood cells and increased the volume of their lungs. Ethiopians also show amazing resistance to hypoxia without any changes in hemoglobin levels.

The incredible thing is that all these adaptations appeared in just a few thousand years — an instant by the evolution standards. Now that climate change is forcing people to migrate and cities are expanding into previously uninhabitable high-altitude areas, these valuable genetic features may spread among the world’s population.

Scientists are already studying these mechanisms to develop new treatments for heart and lung diseases. And in the future, when humanity begins to explore space or build underground shelters, the genes of mountaineers can be a real salvation for all of us. After all, efficiently using oxygen is the key to survival in confined spaces with limited resources.

5. Skin pigmentation will change in the northern climate

The color of our skin is the result of thousands of years of adaptation to sunlight. At the equator, dark pigmentation protects from ultraviolet radiation; in northern latitudes, light skin helps produce vitamin D in poor sunlight. But today, these evolutionary rules are no longer working. We spend most of our time indoors, wearing clothes and sunscreen. Vitamin D is now obtained from supplements, not from sunlight.

Global migration mixes genes, so the former advantages of fair skin in the north lose their meaning. At the same time, dark skin still provides significant bonuses – it protects against cancer, burns, and the destruction of folic acid. These factors remain relevant even in temperate climates. Scientists suggest that humanity may come to an average, darker skin tone over time. Evolution doesn’t look at traditions — it chooses what works best in the here and now. And in artificial lighting and sunscreens, the old rules no longer apply.