Re:Facebook is wrong, text is deathless
by sandworm101 on Saturday June 18, 2016 @12:51PM
(#11929369)
>> There was no point at which brains stopped evolving.
Evolution operates on a different timescale. For all intents and purposes, our physical structure hasn't evolved since reading became widespread in the population perhaps a couple hundred years ago.
More like five thousand years ago: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linear_A#Chronology and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumerian_script#History
Re:Facebook is wrong, text is deathless
by thaumasiotes on Saturday June 18, 2016 @03:50PM
(#11930309)
Charitably, reading was not "widespread in the population" at that time. sandworm101's comment shows a pretty appalling understanding of evolution -- the selective pressure for reading ability exists as soon as anyone can benefit from learning to read, not when everyone is required to try -- but a somewhat better understanding of history.
Very high literacy rates within endogamous subpopulations go back much farther than a couple hundred years, though.
You could be on a poster for "evolution stops at the neck".
Obviously, our brains did not evolve to what they are today long before reading was a thing, because that happened before today. There was no point at which brains stopped evolving.