You’d think that the ease of world travel would have an homogenizing effect on the human species, but new research suggests that the residents of various continents are becoming increasingly different from each other.<\/p>\n
If evolution had been proceeding steadily at the current rate since humans and chimps separated 6 million years ago there should be 160 times more differences than the researchers found.<\/p>\n
That indicates that human evolution had been slower in the distant past, Harpending explained.<\/p>\n
“Rapid population growth has been coupled with vast changes in cultures and ecology, creating new opportunities for adaptation,” the study says. “The past 10,000 years have seen rapid skeletal and dental evolution in human populations, as well as the appearance of many new genetic responses to diet and disease.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Obviously, even fairly rapid change won’t result in species differentiation for thousands of years, but we might wind up with Eloi and Morlocks yet.<\/p>\n