Hairless skin first evolved in humans as a way to keep cool -- and then
turned into a canvas to help them look cool, according to a Penn State
anthropologist.
About 1.5 to 2 million years ago, early humans, who were regularly on
the move as hunters and scavengers, evolved into nearly hairless
creatures to more efficiently sweat away excess body heat, said Nina
Jablonski, Distinguished Professor of Anthropology. Later, humans began
to decorate skin to increase attractiveness to the opposite sex and to
express, among other things, group identity.
"We can make a visual impact and present a completely different
impression than we can with regular, undecorated skin," said Jablonski,
who reports on her research on Feb. 16 at the annual meeting of the
American Association for the Advancement of Science in Boston.
Over the millennia, people turned their skin into canvases of
self-expression in different ways, including permanent methods, such as
tattooing and branding, as well as temporary ones, including cosmetics
and body painting, according to the researcher.
Jablonski said both males and females use forms of skin decoration to
become more attractive to the opposite sex. Women, for example, may use
makeup to increase the size of their eyes, a cue that is considered
attractive in most cultures. Males in some cultures also use skin
decoration as a way to bring out facial features to appeal to women, or
to look more menacing and warrior-like.
"We can paint a great design on our bodies and use those designs to
send all sorts of messages or express group memberships," said
Jablonski.
While parents may still fret that their children are choosing tattoo
designs frivolously, Jablonski said people have traditionally put
considerable time and thought into the tattoos.
"Usually it is something with deep meaning," Jablonski said. "When I
talk to people about their tattoos they, tell me they've spent months or
years choosing a design that is incredibly meaningful and salient to
them."
Prior to the evolution of mostly naked skin, humans were furry
creatures, not unlike chimpanzees are now, Jablonski said. Skin
decoration would not be possible if humans were still covered with fur.
Studying skin is difficult because it can be preserved only for a few
thousand years, unlike bones and fossils, which last millions of years.
Jablonski said that she and other researchers based their estimate on
when humans evolved hairless skin on the study of the fossil record and
an examination of the molecular history of genes that code proteins
that help produce skin pigmentation.
"We find a lot of evidence of when humans began to lose hair based on molecular genetics," said Jablonski.
Humans are the only primates that are essentially hairless, although
aquatic mammals, like whales and dolphins, have no hair. Prior to the
idea that humans evolved hairlessness as a mechanism to cope with body
heat, some researchers believed that hairlessness resulted from
evolution from a common aquatic ancestor, Jablonski said. However, the
theory, often referred to as the aquatic ape theory, does not match the
genetic, fossil and environmental evidence, she said.
While it is difficult to exactly say when humans began to decorate
their skin, Jablonski said that some of the earliest preserved skin
shows signs of tattooing.
Source: Sciencedaily
No hay comentarios:
Publicar un comentario