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Lions, the Inglorious Bastards of the African Savanna

A boy stares at the rippling grass of the savanna and sees nothing but grass. Then the hunter shows him what the lion moving through the grass looks like. It adds context of what to look for. From then on the boy can see the pattern of danger that was previously invisible.

Then repeat in evolution for a few hundred thousand years.

^arsenault

(2)I had never heard of the up-right stance exposing people to less UV-radiation (as Buzdos mentioned), but I do know UV-radiation plays a big role in one common difference between people, melanin aka skin color. The closer you get to the equator (or areas where the ozone layer is naturally weaker) the darker the native inhabitant's skin becomes. UV-radiation has always been around, a thicker atmosphere will block more of it, but not all of it.

(3)Usually changes evolve out of the existing form. Though different ape and human morphology are very similar. Slight changes in the structure of the pelvis, legs, feet and arms are more likely to happen over time than say sprouting two more pair of arms. Between people there are very slight differences in the morphology of these structures. Not enough to make any readily noticeable difference, but they're there. The only instances I'm aware of where people have had extra limbs involves unborn children failing to separate during fetal development.

(4)It was the lack of trees that made being upright and advantageous trait (as far as seeing is concerned). During the earliest stages of human evolution the jungles and forests started receding and gave rise to open grasslands/savanna. Some apes continued to live in what was left of the forests and jungles, being upright wasn't adaptive there so uprightness never evolved in them. For those in the savanna environment where trees were few and far between being able to constantly be upright did prove beneficial.

On the issue of hunting:
Gorillas can move quickly and they are powerful, but this form of behavior is for defensive purposes and not adaptive to hunting. Most prey animals are also very quick, and have the stamina to maintain that quickness longer than a gorrila.

Humans are not exceptionally quick, but they do have the stamina. In modern hunter gatherer societies a common strategy for hunting is to cash an animal into exhaustion. Wolves actually often use a similar strategy. In open grassland the animal can use a quick burst of speed to get away, but the people can still see it and chase after it. Now with most of us our hearts will blow out like the sides of old tires if we run more than 2 miles distance, but we live an extremely sedentary life compared to hunter gather groups. So its easy to look at yourself and say 'there's no way I could run a gazelle into exhaustion', and you'd be right, but if your way of life required you run for long distances, instead of sitting behind a computer, for your survival I can guarantee your body would be in much better shape.

I believe the current theory of why we initially evolved uprightness doesn't include hunting. The ability to see better in a grassland environment and the ability to carry things and move reasonably well at the same were the early motivators. The possibility to hunt, successfully, became more important later on. I'd liken it to ape hands, great for swinging about in the trees but also pretty good for picking up and manipulating things.

On another note I'd like to say I hope nobody takes the things I've said as ridicule, I've been trying to respond to points of contention/criticism by explaining things as I understand them. And if I seem long winded its not because I'm trying to prove how superior/right I am, it is simply because I enjoy talking about the subject.

If this is the case, why are there monkeys?

The same reason there is still both trees and grass. Plant genes making a living in 2 different ways...

Same reason there are still McDonalds' and gourmet restaurants, 2 different markets..

That something proved beneficial for the apes that took to the savanna, doesnt mean the thing proved beneficial for the ones who stayed up in the trees.. you get "islands" of life, or as Dawkins calls them "Workshops of evolution"

LadyBug: Funny story to share from work. I was talking to this female coworker and noticed she had a tiny ladybug bean bag or something (heavy). I told her that ants hate ladybugs. She asked why.

I told her about aphids being food to ladybugs and provide nectar juice to ants. Ants love aphids and keep them like humans with cows. I showed her a photograph of ladybugs eating aphids: http://savanna.lternet.edu/gallery/kbs/KBS_Ha_eating_SBA ... She said "Yuck!" [sighs]