I have seen the foolish taking root: Job 5:3
"One of the most bizarre notions is the aquatic ape theory, the idea that humans evolved from some semi-aquatic creature.
In 1960, eminent marine biologist Sir Alister Hardy suggested an aquatic phase in human evolution and, as evidence, noted Homo sapiens’ many major differences from the then-claimed human primate ancestors.
Zoologist Desmond John Morris used Hardy’s aquatic ape hypothesis to explain “why we are so nimble in the water today, and why our closest living relatives, the chimpanzees, are so helpless and quickly drown.”
Supporters of the aquatic ape theory postulate that imagining apes evolving in the water would help to resolve many other inconsistencies between man and the higher primates, such as the existence of paranasal sinuses in humans.
man’s emergence as the dominant extant species in the world today, and even why the ‘missing link is still missing (because, the aquatic ape supporters claim we are not looking in the right place: an aquatic environment).
The evidence noted above does less to prove the aquatic ape theory (AAT) than to illustrate the problems in the belief that humans and apes, orangutans and, the latest hypothesis, chimps, evolved from some common ape ancestor, ...The reason it effectively helps to illustrate the problems is that relying on this bizarre theory accentuates the differences between humans and their proposed ape-like primate ancestors.
The adaptations of mammalian hearing mechanisms differ in aquatic, terrestrial and semi-aquatic mammals, which their supporters believe is why the aquatic theory explains why humans bear similarities to semi-aquatic mammals like seals, all which have mechanisms to narrow the ear canal from long term exposure to water.
In a recent evaluation of close to two dozen Neanderthal skulls,
researchers have now found evidence of the features in human skulls. This finding actually better supports, not the aquatic ape origin, but the modern view that Neanderthals were just another human people group that were adapted to very cold weather.
The first problem with the semi-aquatic theory concerns the growth of the exostoses, which narrow the ear canal. Water alone does not form these; significant long-term exposure to wind and cold can also do it.
These structures better support an alternate view that early humans adapted not in some semi-aquatic period but in a mini-ice age. That matches proposals for the Neanderthal’s early life in Europe.
Another argument against the aquatic-human evolution theory concerns genetics. Genetic differences between those that have the narrowing mechanism likely play only a minor role in the development of this trait. Cold and water exposure are the main causative factors, not genetics. As such, they are not heritable traits caused by genetic mutations and natural selection.
Evolutionists feel obliged to explain this delicate eardrum protection mechanism by imagining an evolutionary story: namely, an aquatic phase in early hominin evolution during which a number of unique features developed that are not seen in any other primate, nor even in any other terrestrial mammal.
What has been found is actually yet another design feature that separates humans from putative ape-like ancestors. When a new structure is found, a better question would be, “What is this there for?” instead of “How did this evolve?”
CEH
"One of the most bizarre notions is the aquatic ape theory, the idea that humans evolved from some semi-aquatic creature.
In 1960, eminent marine biologist Sir Alister Hardy suggested an aquatic phase in human evolution and, as evidence, noted Homo sapiens’ many major differences from the then-claimed human primate ancestors.
Zoologist Desmond John Morris used Hardy’s aquatic ape hypothesis to explain “why we are so nimble in the water today, and why our closest living relatives, the chimpanzees, are so helpless and quickly drown.”
Supporters of the aquatic ape theory postulate that imagining apes evolving in the water would help to resolve many other inconsistencies between man and the higher primates, such as the existence of paranasal sinuses in humans.
Other Homo sapiens–specific features that may be tied to a semi-aquatic stage of human evolution include erect posture, loss of body hair, deposition of subcutaneous fat, a completely different heat-regulation system from other primates, and kidneys that function much like those of aquatic mammals. This combination of characteristics, which do not exist in any other terrestrial mammal, would have gradually arisen over several million years.They also surmise that the aquatic theory may even account for
The evidence noted above does less to prove the aquatic ape theory (AAT) than to illustrate the problems in the belief that humans and apes, orangutans and, the latest hypothesis, chimps, evolved from some common ape ancestor, ...The reason it effectively helps to illustrate the problems is that relying on this bizarre theory accentuates the differences between humans and their proposed ape-like primate ancestors.
The adaptations of mammalian hearing mechanisms differ in aquatic, terrestrial and semi-aquatic mammals, which their supporters believe is why the aquatic theory explains why humans bear similarities to semi-aquatic mammals like seals, all which have mechanisms to narrow the ear canal from long term exposure to water.
In a recent evaluation of close to two dozen Neanderthal skulls,
The first problem with the semi-aquatic theory concerns the growth of the exostoses, which narrow the ear canal. Water alone does not form these; significant long-term exposure to wind and cold can also do it.
These structures better support an alternate view that early humans adapted not in some semi-aquatic period but in a mini-ice age. That matches proposals for the Neanderthal’s early life in Europe.
Another argument against the aquatic-human evolution theory concerns genetics. Genetic differences between those that have the narrowing mechanism likely play only a minor role in the development of this trait. Cold and water exposure are the main causative factors, not genetics. As such, they are not heritable traits caused by genetic mutations and natural selection.
Evolutionists feel obliged to explain this delicate eardrum protection mechanism by imagining an evolutionary story: namely, an aquatic phase in early hominin evolution during which a number of unique features developed that are not seen in any other primate, nor even in any other terrestrial mammal.
What has been found is actually yet another design feature that separates humans from putative ape-like ancestors. When a new structure is found, a better question would be, “What is this there for?” instead of “How did this evolve?”
CEH