If you have a natural history museum anywhere near you, make sure to pay it a visit! It’s a great place for learning more about your origins and seeing the remains of species that portray various evolutionary advances.
If that’s out of your options, however, you might be thrilled to know that one of the most intriguing specimens pointing toward their revolutionary past is YOU. Your own body is, in fact, all you need to better understand the evolution!
Take body hair, for example. Our ancestors needed hair for protection against the cold and skin irritation. Now that clothes have replaced this role, hair isn’t really needed anymore and has been slowly but surely reducing its presence on human bodies for thousands of years.
Another excellent example are the ‘useless’ wisdom teeth that most of us still have. These were developed to help our ancestors survive back when the foods on the menu were highly limited and meat required a lot of chewing.
Recently, we have discovered another interesting feature that our ancestors, those jumping from tree to tree, needed – a particular tendon that we no longer require which is why 10 – 15% of people don’t even have it anymore.
That’s right; we’re not done evolving yet! In fact, as long as there are living things the evolution will never end. It may take thousands or millions of years, but eventually, all species evolve to a certain degree.
Scientists are often trying to predict what people will look like after 10,000 years, for example. Most of them suggest that heads and brains will get bigger while some believe that we will be taller and completely hairless.
Back to the tendon in question, this part of the body is called palmaris longus. It is situated in forearms, and if you have it, you should be able to easily see it expose itself when you place your palm upside down, bend your wrist, and try to touch your pinky finger with your thumb.
Give it a try and see whether you have this tendon or not!
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