Science Are human beings diverging in size? - Page 3

**Rain Man** · 05-05-2014, 09:48 PM

I was thinking about this the other day. I think I've mentioned it before, but I'm alone and bored.

We have a social construct where women don't typically date guys who are shorter than them, and men don't typically date women who are taller than them. While a tall man may date women of any size, he's more likely to end up with taller women because there's less competition. A short man is typically going to be fishing almost exclusively off the petite end of the spectrum.

I'm not saying that it'll happen overnight, and there are a lot of confounding factors, but in the ultra-long term, you have a disproportionate number of pairings of tall genes and a disproportionate number of pairings of short genes. So that would logically mean that we're going to flatten the bell curve of heights over time with more tall people and more short people than we would get with random pairings. Right?

Then I wonder about maximum and minimum heights. Do humans have natural limits? With this socially selective breeding, can we keep hitting new maximum and minimum heights? In the dog world, mastiffs and Newfoundlands are probably six times bigger than generic domesticated dogs, and chihuahuas are 20 percent of the size of generic domesticated dogs. Can humans push the same limits and hit mature weights of 40 to 900 pounds? Can we go further? In a thousand millennia, if you're 14 inches tall, you're probably still looking for that 12 or 13 inch wife. And the process would accelerate because she's unlikely to date and marry the 9-foot, 900 pound subspecies of human. What's the upper and lower limit over the course of 100,000 years?

And did cro-magnons and ancient Egyptians have the same social preference? How much of a head start do we have? I'm thinking it's a new phenomenon because a lot of marriages in past times were arranged.

frankotank · 05-07-2014, 06:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Strongside

My dad's parents were both under 5'7. My dad is 6'4. I am 5'9. My brother is 6'1.

I think it's all about genetics...basically a crapshoot. Every tall family has a short relative, every short family has a tall relative.

this is interesting. there are no "bigguns" in either of my parents families. my dad is 5'9 my mom a little shorter. I am 6' and was the athlete, my brother is 6'2 and could give a crap about sports. pissed me off man! two more inches and I coulda been a contender!

our height is.....weird.

my kids.......my wife has freaks of nature in her family. she is 6', her dad was 6'4, her two brothers are 6'2. she has uncles and cousins even taller. so I had some "high hopes" (pun intended) for my kids. worked out OK for my daughter. she is 6' and HATES it, yet she was quite the volleyball player. my son is pushing 6'2, not the 6'5 monster I'd hoped for....but he'll do! so my kids are the offspring of two 6 footers and on my wifes side there was hope of super tallness....didn't really happen.

in the end....looking at family history....not a lot of it makes sense in my group.

Chief Roundup · 05-07-2014, 07:47 AM

There is something that I haven't seen mentioned. The amount of hormones we ingest and the affects that has had on our bodies. Not to mention all of the steroid based medicines that are handed out like candy to children.
To me those two things play a pretty large role in the changes we see as well.
You all remember what girls looked like when you were in school. I guarantee you it is not how they look today.

frankotank · 05-07-2014, 09:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chief Roundup

There is something that I haven't seen mentioned. The amount of hormones we ingest and the affects that has had on our bodies. Not to mention all of the steroid based medicines that are handed out like candy to children.
To me those two things play a pretty large role in the changes we see as well.
You all remember what girls looked like when you were in school. I guarantee you it is not how they look today.

amen to that brutha!
I'd go to my daughters high school volleyball games and you just cannot tell what it is you are looking at.
is that a woman or a student?
is that a coach or a player?

View Poll Results: What is the evolution of human size?
I think social bias influences pairings, and people will eventually diverge wildly in size.	5	13.89%
I think social bias influences pairings, and there will be a minor divergence in size.	4	11.11%
I think social bias influences pairings, but there are too many confounding factors to make a difference in the long term.	11	30.56%
I don't think social bias influences pairings, so it doesn't matter.	5	13.89%
I'm thinking about how this would influence porn.	2	5.56%
Thinking like this is what got Hitler and Jimmy the Greek in trouble.	9	25.00%
Voters: 36. You may not vote on this poll

05-05-2014, 09:48 PM
Rain Man Seize life. Be an ermine. Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: My house Casino cash: $-472449 VARSITY	Are human beings diverging in size? I was thinking about this the other day. I think I've mentioned it before, but I'm alone and bored. We have a social construct where women don't typically date guys who are shorter than them, and men don't typically date women who are taller than them. While a tall man may date women of any size, he's more likely to end up with taller women because there's less competition. A short man is typically going to be fishing almost exclusively off the petite end of the spectrum. I'm not saying that it'll happen overnight, and there are a lot of confounding factors, but in the ultra-long term, you have a disproportionate number of pairings of tall genes and a disproportionate number of pairings of short genes. So that would logically mean that we're going to flatten the bell curve of heights over time with more tall people and more short people than we would get with random pairings. Right? Then I wonder about maximum and minimum heights. Do humans have natural limits? With this socially selective breeding, can we keep hitting new maximum and minimum heights? In the dog world, mastiffs and Newfoundlands are probably six times bigger than generic domesticated dogs, and chihuahuas are 20 percent of the size of generic domesticated dogs. Can humans push the same limits and hit mature weights of 40 to 900 pounds? Can we go further? In a thousand millennia, if you're 14 inches tall, you're probably still looking for that 12 or 13 inch wife. And the process would accelerate because she's unlikely to date and marry the 9-foot, 900 pound subspecies of human. What's the upper and lower limit over the course of 100,000 years? And did cro-magnons and ancient Egyptians have the same social preference? How much of a head start do we have? I'm thinking it's a new phenomenon because a lot of marriages in past times were arranged.
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05-07-2014, 07:47 AM	#32
Chief Roundup Admitted Planet Junky Join Date: Oct 2000 Casino cash: $-1378373	There is something that I haven't seen mentioned. The amount of hormones we ingest and the affects that has had on our bodies. Not to mention all of the steroid based medicines that are handed out like candy to children. To me those two things play a pretty large role in the changes we see as well. You all remember what girls looked like when you were in school. I guarantee you it is not how they look today. __________________ Fanaticism is nowhere. There is no tenderness or humanity in fanaticism.
Posts: 19,545