3 ms·

I think it's unlikely too - however I think the point being made is that maybe it's not completely optimized away yet. We are not at the pinnacle of evolution s

• Tichy 15y ago
  Maybe a better argument would be the other way round: if that positive effect could be had by shining light on the brain, the skull would be more transparent. Anyway, yes, everything is possible. But I am not betting my money on this...
• sambeau 15y ago
  Evolution does not optimise away. If a mutation serves no purpose it remains unless it is replaced for a reason (or a gene has more than one function—God reuses constants ;-)). What does 'pinnacle of evolution' mean? Sharks and spiders have been around since before dinosaurs so they must be there, surely? Do we reach it if we hit a suitably low level of child mortality? There is an argument that we are already at the pinnacle of evolution for our environment and we will remain there until something changes and we are tested and our children start dying. That mostly happens in chunks… everything is fine, everything is fine, everything is fine, bang meteor! although it can happen in smaller steps. Whether we are still evolving in the rich, medicalised west is a matter of debate. The third world certainly has many children dying but the cause is often not something that natural selection can fix: politics & war.