Tag: evolution
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Human Evolution – a Psychedelic Trip
When did humans branch off from our humanoid common ancestors and evolve into the distinct species we are today? Why and how did humans develop differently from our ape and chimpanzee relatives (Choi and LiveScience, 2023)? The Stoned Ape hypothesis believes that humans developed our complex cognitive abilities from a diet consisting of psychedelic mushrooms…
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From Viral Invaders to Evolutionary Enablers: Viruses and the Mammalian Placenta
The placenta is a fascinating organ: not only is it temporary, but it has also enabled animals to give birth to live offspring. In fact, it is the first organ to form in mammalian development, and its ancestral form developed approximately 130 million years ago (Chuong, 2018). The evolution of the placenta brought about the…
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How One Fossil Changed Who We Think We Are
In 1844, Charles Darwin wrote a letter to his close friend Joseph Hooker in which he confessed that he was becoming more and more doubtful of the predominating immutability of species idea (Burkhardt, 1996). He was not alone. Since the start of the 19th century, intellectuals had been questioning the idea that species were fixed…