Re: Bipedialism and other factors and AAT
HARRY R. ERWIN (herwin@osf1.gmu.edu)
2 Jun 1995 23:36:06 GMT
Sir CPU (sircpu@aol.com) wrote:
: -The point is, man evolved to walk, not
: -run,... (trimmed)
: The point I was trying to make though is that man's inefficiency of
: running is not helpful when being pursued by a predator. And it seems to
: me that this would happen often if man evolved for any lenght of time on
: the open savannas. It wouldn't matter how efficient walking was, running
: it what really counts when a lion is chasing you.
Actually it doesn't matter much by that point. Your likely to be better of
standing your ground (with a few others). What matters is spotting the
lion at a distance. There bipedalism is superior.
: The points you make about other species isn't a good comparison
: because all of them are fast at least SOMEWHERE and primarily where they
: are most likely to be prusued by predators. Penguins may not be able to
: walk efficiently, but the majority of their predators are in the water
: (Killer Whales and Leapord Seals). Consequently they manage to out race
: their attackers in the water. They are lucky they have no major predators
: on land. Perhaps this is why they choose to raise there young out in the
: open on land.
Based on the skeletal features, A. was one hell of a fast tree climber
(equal to Pongo in this regard).
: Squirrels might not be efficient on the ground, but they are never
: far from a tree, and at the first sign of trouble, they make a dash for a
: tree. They are obviously vulnerable on the land, and this is where a
: predator is most likely to catch a squirrel.
: Troy Kelley
--
Harry Erwin
Internet: herwin@gmu.edu
PhD student in comp neurosci: "Glitches happen" & "Meaning is emotional"
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