Theory on how humans became dark skinned.

reply to post by jiggerj


When I was a kid our family visited the Grand Canyon. As we were driving we could see the Colorado River. It was red with the red mud from the land. My mother noted the red water and had an epiphany! "So that's why the Indians' skin is red! They drank that water!"

My sister wisely deduced that in Africa, the water must be black! My mother's reply, "I don't know, I haven't been to Africa, maybe they have black dirt there!"

True story!

Originally posted by windword
reply to post by jiggerj

 

When I was a kid our family visited the Grand Canyon. As we were driving we could see the Colorado River. It was red with the red mud from the land. My mother noted the red water and had an epiphany! "So that's why the Indians' skin is red! They drank that water!"

My sister wisely deduced that in Africa, the water must be black! My mother's reply, "I don't know, I haven't been to Africa, maybe they have black dirt there!"

True story!

That is hilarious!

However, it does remind me never to drink the water where the yellow people reside.

reply to post by gort51


Nice plea to authority.

The reason why blacks within the US have not turned white is because skin color is related to genetics. Now while you can say that one can study the human genome for 50 years, they have studied the human genome for the genetics of skin and eye color for a very long time. Fair skin in each geographical area has been linked to a genetic mutation to a specific gene. There are 5 genes in European populations that have been positively associated with fair skin and OCA2 has been associated with fair skin populations in Asia. Part of how this occurs would be due to the gene pool for an area, relative light exposure allowing for the natural selection of a beneficial mutation and geographical isolation. The reason why a African-American doesn't turn white after living in the US? Because his/her genes are for increased melanin production and exposure or reduced exposure to UV does not radically change one's genetics. You're either born with the genetic mutation or you're not. While you're right in the fact that to have such a line be changed is through breeding, you still say this, "Only goes to show once again, you can study the Human genome for 50 years, and still not know the correct answer." Why not leave that for the actual experts? While skin color is a complex phenomena, they do know a good deal about it: mbe.oxfordjournals.org...

Homo Erectus, last I checked, emerged from Africa and migrated outward. Early humans would've most likely been migratory as they would've been hunter/gatherers. As far as skin color goes, those changes, however, didn't start occurring until the last 100k years, which coincides very closely to the beginning of the last Ice Age. This period would've created those pockets of closed gene pools and increased geographical isolation along with lesser melanin production becoming more beneficial to a group as it would've improved Vit D production.

Not a whole lot of mystery there.

reply to post by jiggerj


Wow...my daughter is half Nat Am. Her father isn't red. His skin is a medium brown. My daughter's skin is a beautiful lightly tanned color since mine, as a Norwegian, is extremely light toned. My best friend, who is Asian-American, is not yellow. Her skin tone is a lovely lightly tanned color that is slightly darker than my daughters.

Living with a Native American population for almost a decade, I have never once seen a "red" Nat Am. Even when they got sunburned, their skin just grew darker and knowing a lot of Koreans, Japanese, and Chinese, I have still yet to meet a single yellow Asian. The closest I have seen is a friend's father but he's a little jaundiced from liver trouble. Even whiteys like us get a little yellow from that, too.

Interesting thread. From what I've read regarding genes, most Eurasian people with brown to white skin have some admixture of Neanderthal and/or Denisovan DNA. Recent information shows that Sub-Saharan Africans have almost zero % Neanderthal admixture, whereas everyone else has 1.5% to 6% Neanderthal Admixture. There is a lot of evidence to suggest that light skin, eyes, and hair, were inherited from Neanderthal as Neanderthal had evolved this way over half a million years in the northern and colder latitudes.

What's really interesting is if you look at the most recent scatter plots showing where different people from around the world land on a graph. Quite surprisingly, it looks as though that people from Eurasia are more or less closer to Neanderthal/Denisova humans, genetically, than they are to modern Sub-Saharan African humans. This is tremendously revealing, while at the same time demanding more questions as to whether our theories of migration are correct.

I also think this helps explain the huge variation of skin color among humans. Most animals skin color, if not fur color, is dictated by climate, I wouldn't be surprised if it were the same with humans.

Originally posted by WhiteAlice
reply to post by jiggerj

 

Wow...my daughter is half Nat Am. Her father isn't red. His skin is a medium brown. My daughter's skin is a beautiful lightly tanned color since mine, as a Norwegian, is extremely light toned. My best friend, who is Asian-American, is not yellow. Her skin tone is a lovely lightly tanned color that is slightly darker than my daughters.

Living with a Native American population for almost a decade, I have never once seen a "red" Nat Am. Even when they got sunburned, their skin just grew darker and knowing a lot of Koreans, Japanese, and Chinese, I have still yet to meet a single yellow Asian. The closest I have seen is a friend's father but he's a little jaundiced from liver trouble. Even whiteys like us get a little yellow from that, too.

Good lord, you know I was kidding about yellow water, right?

OK, I guess I'll have to drop the bombshell.

Ready? Blacks ARE native to earth. All other races came from elsewhere and were genetically modified to acclimate to earth. That's why blacks have no neanderthal genes. Now you know.

Originally posted by jiggerjGood lord, you know I was kidding about yellow water, right?

My cat has fleas and needed a bath. Everyone knows that that is a recipe for sense of humor dropping to zero and horrible disfigurement. Hope that explains the irritability.

Originally posted by jiggerj
I'm no expert, so if anyone has a better theory please post.

We know that chimps have white skin under their fur. This makes me think that the hairy pre-humans living in Africa also had white skin under their fur. If this species had stayed in Africa I'm guessing they would never have lost the fur as a protection from the sun.

What I propose is that this hairy species migrated out of Africa and into the colder climates. They needed to wear the skins of the animals they killed, and they probably learned how to make fire and keep warm. Over many generations they lost the fur.

Then something happened to send them migrating again. With no knowledge of where their ancestors came from they wound up back in Africa, hairless and in dire need of protection from the sun. Their skinned darkened to provide that protection.

Does this have any merit, do you think?

jiggerj: hello. I have seen your on the boards, but this .....well, I don't know quite where to start..

Are you sure you arent' trying to pin down
"Muzzy", paid for by the French speaking/learning videos ?

No, I don't think you have a handle on a unique contribution tom an anthropological, previously overlooked estuary which would somehow affirm what you may or may not be entertaining in terms of thought, now.

Having read your previous intellectual posts,, I have to consider this one as outright baiting for racism...just my take.
Otherwise, Tower of Babel, anyone???
Tetra

reply to post by jiggerj


No offense, this seems like a last ditch attempt to try and grasp for any thing that may allow you to think black people didnt exist first, and you and your white self isnt directly related to all black people.

Originally posted by ATS4dummies
OK, I guess I'll have to drop the bombshell.

Ready? Blacks ARE native to earth. All other races came from elsewhere and were genetically modified to acclimate to earth. That's why blacks have no neanderthal genes. Now you know.

Though I sense sarcasm here, it reminded me of the scientific finding that the Black Africans that never migrated are pure humans while everyone else is 4% less than human. I've fantasized about going back to the slave days, when whites considered black people as animals no smarter than monkeys. I imagine the shocked look on their faces when I point to the blacks and say, "They are 100% human. YOU are not."

Originally posted by ImaFungi
reply to post by jiggerj

 

No offense, this seems like a last ditch attempt to try and grasp for any thing that may allow you to think black people didnt exist first, and you and your white self isnt directly related to all black people.

I wondered how long it would take for the racist card to be used. Can't have a scientific discussion on when the human form lost its fur and used melanin as protection against the sun.

I don't look at race or gender separately. I see all people as human.

Originally posted by jiggerj

Originally posted by ATS4dummies
OK, I guess I'll have to drop the bombshell.

Ready? Blacks ARE native to earth. All other races came from elsewhere and were genetically modified to acclimate to earth. That's why blacks have no neanderthal genes. Now you know.

Though I sense sarcasm here, it reminded me of the scientific finding that the Black Africans that never migrated are pure humans while everyone else is 4% less than human. I've fantasized about going back to the slave days, when whites considered black people as animals no smarter than monkeys. I imagine the shocked look on their faces when I point to the blacks and say, "They are 100% human. YOU are not."

I love it !!! I know some people today that need to hear that... shame on them .

Having read your previous intellectual posts,, I have to consider this one as outright baiting for racism...just my take. Otherwise, Tower of Babel, anyone??? Tetra

reply to post by tetra50

Originally posted by ImaFungi
reply to post by jiggerj

 

No offense, this seems like a last ditch attempt to try and grasp for any thing that may allow you to think black people didnt exist first, and you and your white self isnt directly related to all black people.

Listen, you two. This has been a good thread on discussing one little idea on evolution. Up until your posts no one has used this thread to promote white supremacy or racism of any kind.

What YOU two have contributed here is a reflection on how YOUR minds think. If you can't see the word 'Black' without having racist thoughts, that's YOUR PROBLEM and no one else's. Now, stop it!

Originally posted by jiggerj

Having read your previous intellectual posts,, I have to consider this one as outright baiting for racism...just my take. Otherwise, Tower of Babel, anyone??? Tetra

reply to post by tetra50

 

Originally posted by ImaFungi
reply to post by jiggerj

 

No offense, this seems like a last ditch attempt to try and grasp for any thing that may allow you to think black people didnt exist first, and you and your white self isnt directly related to all black people.

Listen, you two. This has been a good thread on discussing one little idea on evolution. Up until your posts no one has used this thread to promote white supremacy or racism of any kind.

What YOU two have contributed here is a reflection on how YOUR minds think. If you can't see the word 'Black' without having racist thoughts, that's YOUR PROBLEM and no one else's. Now, stop it!

LOL I read the thread. Ok. It;s my fault, sure;........It's just me, sorry......

okay, I;'ll stop it, being my fault and all. Consider I;m trying to understand so it can STOP being my fault, please" and educate me from there, if you want to help humanity, and stop the scourge that is me......

OP sounds as if he assumes the original race(first people) were light skinned/white.. what makes you think that?

Originally posted by jiggerj
I'm no expert, so if anyone has a better theory please post.

We know that chimps have white skin under their fur. This makes me think that the hairy pre-humans living in Africa also had white skin under their fur. If this species had stayed in Africa I'm guessing they would never have lost the fur as a protection from the sun.

What I propose is that this hairy species migrated out of Africa and into the colder climates. They needed to wear the skins of the animals they killed, and they probably learned how to make fire and keep warm. Over many generations they lost the fur.

Then something happened to send them migrating again. With no knowledge of where their ancestors came from they wound up back in Africa, hairless and in dire need of protection from the sun. Their skinned darkened to provide that protection.

Does this have any merit, do you think?

Wow! End of story...hehe

How about there were two major migrations out of Africa, the most resent were black, the first were basically what we call the Chinese today...end of story...BTW white red headed humans are most likely the most resent addition to color for the human race...

Originally posted by KINGOFPAIN
OP sounds as if he assumes the original race(first people) were light skinned/white.. what makes you think that?

We know the first were basically Chinese type people...how do we know?

Tools my friend tools, the first actually had more advance tools than the second major migration....

Originally posted by ATS4dummies

Ready? Blacks ARE native to earth. All other races came from elsewhere and were genetically modified to acclimate to earth. That's why blacks have no neanderthal genes. Now you know.

All humans have about 3% Neanderthal genes... ALL, It is a constant for all humans and tells us that inbreeding went on but a long time ago.

Get over it....

BTW wouldn't the race with Neanderthal genes actually be the ones who evolved...and the race without be the ones made?

You know what I find stupid is a concept that humans could evolve on another planet with totally different EVERYTHING, there is only one human race, we are unique to earth just like any other life form would be unique to their planet.

Get real...