‘Global warming’ Could Cause Humans To Develop Webbed Feet

Okay, now this is scary. According to a scientist involved with 'Global Warming' research, global warming is going to start mutating humans into looking like 'Aquaman'...and give rise to Mermaids and Mermen.

Humans may evolve bizarre features such as webbed feet and eyes like cats in response to changing environments, a scientist claims today.
Experts calculated how our physical appearance could change under a number of scenarios, including a 'water world' if melting ice caps cause rising sea levels.

Dr Matthew Skinner, a paleoanthropologist at the University of Kent, examined the three scenarios and worked with artist Quentin Devine to help visualise how humans could look in the future.

Dr Skinner said some changes – such as webbed feet and hands becoming widespread – could take place very quickly as some humans already have a genetic mutation that produces webbing.

To adapt to a 'water world', Dr Skinner expects humans would develop webbed hands and eyes like those of cats to help us see in the poor lighting conditions underwater.

We would also retain a layer of baby fat into adulthood as an insulator for spending long periods submerged.

Regular foraging in shallow waters could lead us to develop artificial 'gills' to help us breathe, extracting oxygen from the water and delivering it to the bloodstream.

We might also evolve an extra translucent eyelid to protect the eyes from water.

In the scenario of an ice age, Dr Skinner predicts that our skin would become very pale to help us produce more vitamin D from less sunlight, we would have more body hair, and we would develop more muscular physiques.

Our noses and face size would increase to help warm inhaled cold air in the nasopharynx, the area behind the nose.

We would become stronger, as reduced resources and technologies would mean physical power becomes more important.

www.dailymail.co.uk... e.html

We should be skeptical of any "news" published from Dailymail, or any news websites. While I accept that humans have had negative impacts on the environment, we shouldn't promote nonsense like this. We don't know what would happen in the future, let alone how our descendants will look and act like. I think it's premature thinking.

a reply to: IAMTAT

"COULD".

It is not something I will add to my worry list.

This of course, will thrill all the "Man from Atlantis "fans...assuming we last that long.

originally posted by: NewzNose
a reply to: IAMTAT

"COULD".

It is not something I will add to my worry list.

B...But this guy is a scientist involved with global warming research. You have to take him seriously. Don't think; PANIC...and act now to stop this horrible future. You don't want webbed feet, do you?

I'm pretty sure this happens a lot already.

This is not how Evolution functions.

A Species does not change at a species-wide level. Populations within a species change at a population based level. The idea that all of us are going to develop these features due to environmental changes makes absolutely no sense, because the globe doesn't have one universal environment.

Not only that, but Humans have managed to go outside the realm of natural environments.

It's -20c outside right now, dry as hell, and most of the vegitation is dead. Yet here I am in +22c in my nice warm house, with a humidifier on the counter, foods grown across the country, and some even from other countries.

We are not dependent on the individual environments we live in anymore.

Sorry, but your article is simply wrong, a hoax, or someone is about to lose their credibility in the scientific community.

a reply to: IAMTAT

But we have technology to cover most, if not all, the problems that this article implies we'll evolve to face, so why would we evolve like that? Without the need there is no drive.

a reply to: IAMTAT



Not one single scientist claims AGW will lead to water world, because scientists know there isn't enough water on earth in any form where all the land could be covered up.

So no scientist has made any claim about AGW causing webbed feet. Dailyfail did.

I think I'm a doctor or something because I wear a white coat sometimes. So I think humans will get bigger ears in the future because elephants have big ears to disipate their body heat, so therefore, because of global warming for humans to survive they have to develope bigger ears.

As noted, the daily mail is not a highly reputable news outlet. We are talking about the newspaper with a topless girls section on page 2.

The discussion is in no real way addressing the concept of global warming, but rather what humans would look like if they had evolved on a mostly water planet. And this is still bogus. Just because the planet may get a greater surface area percentage of water vs land does not indicate that humans will develop features like seals and frogs have. There are plenty of cultures that rely on the sea for their existence.

The Greeks and the Norse were world-renowned sailers. The Japanese have relied on fishing as a primary food source for their entire country. None of these peoples have webbed feet... for obvious reasons- sea-rise is not going to make humans start swimming in the ocean foraging for fish with their hands like animals. We would be in boats all the same as before in that scenario.

Have we not 'mutated' or evolved into varying sizes shapes and colors over the last 100,000 years already? The continued changes suggested here are speculative concepts based on "HOW" we "COULD" evolve over a period of time. These changes are not all that far fetched.
However, with our quickly advancing bio-sciences, by the time nature could make these changes, we will most likely have already done it to oursevles. Tweeking the genome to make smaller people, people who can swim underwater without devices, work in space with four hands, and on and on. All of it is mere speculation.

Though this topic might easily be taken up by deniers as one more far flung craziness of global warming advocates, I find it just one more not so remote possibility of human development.

Meh. I'm ready. My feet are so big already, I can wet them and walk up glass walls.

Hmm, Im afraid we as a species will self destruct long before we evolve physically like that.

originally posted by: crayzeed
I think I'm a doctor or something because I wear a white coat sometimes. So I think humans will get bigger ears in the future because elephants have big ears to disipate their body heat, so therefore, because of global warming for humans to survive they have to develope bigger ears.

I like sweat shirts in the winter, so I'm more of an athlete. But I did stay at a Holiday Inn a few months back and I agree with you.

originally posted by: IAMTAT
Okay, now this is scary. According to a scientist involved with 'Global Warming' research, global warming is going to start mutating humans into looking like 'Aquaman'...and give rise to Mermaids and Mermen.

Maybe we'll mutate into Sub-Mariners and grow tiny functional wings on our ankles.

Go Global Warming!

a reply to: IAMTAT

Ridiculous nonsense. The Daily Mail is a horrible outlet. No scientist or any sane, rational person would ever make a statement like that.

a reply to: IAMTAT

Better yet with the warming, we could all run around naked because the oceans will be so high that they would only be a block away or so. Plus, with the idiotic concept of web feet floating around, we wouldn't need to buy flippers. And, and, and if we developed fish eyes for our heads instead of just for cameras, we would not even need goggles. But why stop there with the crazy concepts, how about a set of gills for everybody?

I know a guy with one webbed foot. It wasn't caused by WiFi either.

Ironically he is french and they used to call the french frogs. Nice guy. He said when he was in highschool they wanted him on the swim team because they figured he had an advantage and could swim better. I think he thought his fellow students were crazy.

originally posted by: cavtrooper7
This of course, will thrill all the "Man from Atlantis "fans...assuming we last that long.

Where DID that show wind up...time for a remake ?