Biological factors of human evolution briefly. Driving Forces of Human Evolution

Factors of human evolution

In the early stages of human evolution dominated biological factors evolution - variability, struggle for existence, natural selection, etc.

In the later stages of human evolution, the main social factors evolution - a social way of life, the use of tools, the use of fire, the development of speech.

Stages of human evolution

Races

These are divisions within a species adapted to specific conditions. Races are found in all widespread species. In humans, 3 large races are distinguished (Negroids, Caucasians, Mongoloids).

Racist theory (racism) rejects the unity of the human races, i.e. claims that different races of man are descended from different ancestors. This is not true, all human races easily interbreed and give fertile offspring, i.e. belong to the same species.

Differences between humans and apes

Speech, chin protrusion.

Second signal system, large brain, the brain part of the skull is larger than the front.

Labor activity(creation and use of tools), the thumb is opposed to the rest and well developed.

bipedalism: arched foot, extended pelvis, curves in the spine (S-shaped spine), chest expanded to the sides.

Answer

Choose one, the most correct option. The racial theory is based on the denial
1) similarities between humans and anthropoids
2) the unity of the origin of human races
3) human belonging to primates
4) morphological unity of races

Answer

Choose three options. Man is different from animals
1) has a cerebral cortex
2) forms various natural populations
3) has a second signal system
4) can create an artificial habitat
5) has the first signal system
6) can create and use tools

Answer

Choose three options. What characteristics of mammals are NOT characteristic of humans?
1) the presence of a diaphragm
2) the presence of undercoat
3) the presence of seven cervical vertebrae
4) tail section of the body
5) movable auricle
6) alveolar lung

Answer

Choose three options. Man, unlike animals
1) affects the environment in the process of life
2) has an S-shaped spine
3) forms various populations
4) has the first signal system
5) has a second signal system
6) creates and uses tools

Answer

Choose three options. In humans, unlike mammals
1) the body is vertical
2) the spine does not have bends
3) the spine forms four smooth bends
4) the chest is expanded to the sides
5) the chest is compressed from the sides
6) the facial part of the skull prevails over the brain

Answer

Choose one, the most correct option. The second human signaling system is
1) conditioned reflexes
2) unconditioned reflexes
3) speech
4) instincts

Answer

1. Establish a correspondence between the example and the anthropogenesis factor that illustrates it: 1) biological, 2) social
A) spatial isolation
B) genetic drift
B) speech
D) abstract thinking
D) social labor activity
E) population waves

Answer

2. Establish a correspondence between the example and the factor of anthropogenesis for which it is characteristic: 1) biological, 2) social
A) work activity
B) abstract thinking
B) isolation
D) mutational variability
D) population waves
E) second signaling system

Answer

Choose three options. Which of the following features characterize the social factors of human evolution?
1) public lifestyle
2) the ability to transmit acquired traits by inheritance
3) abstract thinking and speech
4) joint labor activity
5) modification variability
6) natural selection and care for offspring

Answer

Indicate the historical sequence of the main stages of anthropogenesis
1) Modern man
2) Australopithecus
3) Cro-Magnon
4) Pithecanthropus
5) Neanderthal

Answer

Set the chronological sequence of anthropogenesis
1) skillful person
2) Homo erectus
3) driopithecus
4) a reasonable person

Answer

Choose three features of the skeleton that are unique to humans
1) the presence of clavicles
2) the presence of a chin protrusion
3) lightening the bone mass of the upper limbs
4) the presence of five-fingered limbs
5) S-shape of the spinal column
6) arched foot

Answer

1. Choose three options. In connection with upright posture in humans
1) upper limbs are released
2) the foot becomes arched
3) the thumb is opposed to the rest
4) the pelvis expands, its bones grow together
5) the brain region of the skull is smaller than the facial
6) hairline decreases

Answer

2. Choose three correct answers from six and write down the numbers under which they are indicated. The adaptations of a person to walking upright are the following signs:
1) the human spinal column has acquired distinct bow-shaped bends, two of which are directed forward, the other two are backward
2) the thumb is opposed to all the rest
3) development of the cerebral cortex
4) the formation of the arched structure of the foot
5) rotation of the pelvis and its sharp expansion
6) the presence of a diaphragm

Answer

3. Choose three correct answers from six and write down the numbers under which they are indicated. In humans, due to upright posture
1) the spine forms four bends
2) the bones in the joints are connected movably
3) the fingers of the hand are connected to the metacarpus
4) the belt of the lower extremities is wide, has the form of a bowl
5) arch is well expressed in the foot
6) the thumb is opposed to all the rest

Answer

4. Choose three correct answers from six and write down the numbers under which they are indicated. In humans, due to upright posture
1) the spine is S-shaped
2) the chest is flattened from the sides
3) the belt of the lower extremities is bowl-shaped
4) the mass of the vertebral bodies decreases from the cervical to the lumbar
5) the arch of the foot has formed
6) the bones of the upper limbs are more massive

Answer

Choose three options. The human skeleton, unlike the skeleton of mammals, has
1) straight spine without bends
2) chest, compressed in the dorsal-abdominal direction
3) chest, compressed from the sides
4) S-shaped spine
5) arched foot
6) massive facial part of the skull

Answer

Choose three options. What are the similarities between the human skeleton and the skeletons of mammals?
1) the spine has five sections
2) the foot has an arch
3) the cerebral part of the skull is larger than the facial
4) there are paired articular limbs
5) there are seven vertebrae in the cervical region
6) the shape of the spine is S-shaped

Answer

Establish the sequence of evolution of the fossil ancestors of modern man in chronological order. Write down the corresponding sequence of numbers.
1) African Australopithecus
2) reasonable Neanderthal man
3) Pithecanthropus
4) driopithecus (xeniapithecus)
5) skillful person

Answer

1. Choose three correct answers out of six and write down in the answer the numbers under which they are indicated. In a person, in connection with labor activity, the following specific features have been formed:
1) fine motor skills of hands
2) abstract thinking and speech
3) bowl-shaped pelvis
4) S-shaped spine
5) arched foot
6) a significant increase in the size of the brain

Answer

2. Choose three options. What features have been formed in a person in connection with labor activity?
1) arched foot
2) development of the clavicles in the shoulder girdle
3) bowl-shaped pelvis
4) complication of the cerebral cortex
5) opposing the thumb to everyone else
6) speech and thinking

Answer

Choose one, the most correct option. The adaptability of a person to work activity is manifested in
1) movable connection of bones
2) the presence of different parts of the brain
3) the presence of five fingers
4) Diversity of hand functions

Answer

Analyze the table "Differences in the structure of man and great apes." For each cell marked with a letter, select the appropriate term from the list provided. Write down the chosen numbers, in the order corresponding to the letters.
1) the facial part of the skull predominates, there are solid superciliary ridges, there is no chin protrusion, the brain volume is about 700 cm3
2) the arms are longer than the legs, the big toe is opposed to the rest, there is an arch of the foot
3) chest
4) cervical and lumbar spine
5) the facial part of the skull predominates, there are superciliary arches, the chin protrusion is poorly developed, the brain volume is about 1100 cm3
6) thoracic and sacral spine
7) the legs are longer than the arms, the thumb is opposed to the rest, the foot is arched
8) spine

Answer

Set the chronological sequence of the stages of anthropogenesis. Write down the corresponding sequence of numbers.
1) Australopithecus
2) skillful person
3) Homo erectus
4) Neanderthal
5) Cro-Magnon

Answer

Choose one, the most correct option. What feature of a person was formed under the influence of biological factors of anthropogenesis?
1) making tools
2) joint work
3) the appearance of the diaphragm
4) arched foot

Answer

Establish a correspondence between the signs and representatives of the class Mammals, for which these signs are characteristic: 1) an ordinary chimpanzee, 2) a reasonable person. Write down the numbers 1 and 2 in the order corresponding to the letters.
A) the predominance of the facial part of the skull over the brain
B) the belt of the lower extremities in the form of a bowl
B) arched foot
D) the presence of a chin protrusion
D) developed superciliary arches
E) laterally compressed chest

Answer

Evolutionary doctrine is the theoretical basis of biology. It studies the causes and mechanisms of the historical development of all living organisms. Human evolution has its own characteristics and factors.

What is anthropology

According to evolutionary doctrine, man has been formed over a long period of time. The processes of its historical development are studied by the science of anthropology.

The emergence of man has its own characteristics. They lie in the fact that the process of formation is influenced by both social and biological. The first group includes the ability to work, speech. The biological factor in human evolution is, in particular, the struggle for existence. As well as natural selection and hereditary variability.

The main provisions of evolutionary theory

According to Charles Darwin's theory, environmental conditions can cause changes in the structure of living organisms. If they are not inherited, then their role in the process of evolution is insignificant. In some individuals, changes occur in the germ cells. In this case, the trait is inherited. If it turns out to be useful in certain conditions, then organisms have a better chance of surviving. They successfully adapt and produce fertile offspring.

Struggle for existence

The main biological factor in human evolution is its essence lies in the emergence of competition between organisms. The reason for its appearance is the discrepancy between the ability of different species to feed and reproduce. As a result, the species that can best adapt to specific conditions survives.

Despite the fact that the process of the emergence of modern man was subject to general laws, there are a number of differences. Natural selection occurred not only in strength, agility and endurance. In addition to these physical signs, the level of mental development also played a special role. Individuals who learned to make the most primitive tools and use them, communicate with fellow tribesmen, and act together had a greater chance of surviving.

Natural selection

In the course of the struggle for existence, natural selection occurs - a biological process during which adapted individuals survive and actively reproduce. Those who can't adapt die.

Thus, natural selection is also a biological factor in human evolution. Its peculiarity was that individuals with pronounced social traits survived. The most viable were the people who invented new tools, acquired new skills and socialized. Over time, the importance of natural selection in the process of anthropogenesis decreased. This is due to the fact that ancient people gradually learned to build, ennoble and heat dwellings, make clothes, grow plants, and tame animals. As a result, the importance of natural selection gradually decreased.

hereditary variability

The biological factor of human evolution is also hereditary variability. This property of living organisms lies in the ability to acquire new features in the process of their development and pass them on to offspring. Naturally, only useful signs had evolutionary significance in the process of anthropogenesis.

Humans are related to mammals by a number of similar biological traits. This is the presence of mammary and sweat glands, hairline, live birth. The body cavity is divided by a muscular septum into the thoracic and abdominal parts. Similar features are the absence of nuclei in red blood cells, erythrocytes, the presence of alveoli in the lungs, the general plan of the structure of the skeleton, differentiated teeth. Both humans and animals have rudimentary (underdeveloped) organs. These include the appendix, the third eyelid, the rudiments of the second row of teeth, and others. Scientists are aware of cases of the birth of people with the characteristic features of animals - a developed tail, a continuous hairline, an additional number of nipples. This is additional evidence from animals. But in the process of anthropogenesis, only the most useful features have been preserved.

The following biological traits are specific only to humans:

bipedalism;

Enlargement of the brain and reduction of the facial part of the skull;

Arched foot with strongly developed big toe;

Movable hand, opposition of the thumb to the rest;

An increase in the volume of the brain, the development of its cortex.

The biological evolution of man is closely connected with the social one. For example, the ability to make a fire and cook food led to a decrease in the size of the teeth and the length of the intestines.

The biological factors of human evolution are a necessary condition for the formation of social factors, which together led to the appearance of Homo sapiens on Earth.

Tasks.

"2. Card at the blackboard"

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“3. Cards»

The time of existence on Earth, the volume of the brain, the use of tools and fire: Australopithecus, a skilled man, archanthropist, paleoanthropist.

Write down the last name, first name, class, question. You have 10 minutes for a short but as complete answer as possible.

Characteristics of the structure and lifestyle of people of the modern type.

Write down the last name, first name, class, question. You have 10 minutes for a short but as complete answer as possible.

Characteristics of the structure and lifestyle of ancient people.

Write down the last name, first name, class, question. You have 10 minutes for a short but as complete answer as possible.

The origin of people and the resettlement of the modern type.

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"four. Codegram. Human Races"

Topic: Factors of human evolution. Races

1. Factors of evolution

Biological factors: hereditary variability, natural selection, isolation, genetic drift, population waves - have shaped the modern type of man.

For 40,000 years, the physical appearance of a person has not changed, but the factors continue to operate, although the role of selection has decreased.

Social factors: social lifestyle, tool activity, speech and thinking come out on top.

2. Human races

uropeoid - light skin, a sufficient amount of anti-rachitic vitamin is producedD that stores calcium in the bones. The narrow large nose contributes to the warming of the air.

quatorial (Australian-Negroid) - dark skin prevents excess formation of the vitaminD in skin, curly hair, wide and flat nose?

Asian American (Mongoloid) - hard straight hair, flattened face, strongly protruding cheekbones, epicanthus (?)

Three large races, at least 25 small races, many racial groups - the result of hereditary variability, natural selection, isolation, genetic drift. Lead to morphological adaptations!

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"Factors of Human Evolution"

Lesson. Factors of human evolution

Tasks. To form knowledge about the biological and social factors of human evolution. To characterize human races, the formation of morphological features of human races as a result of adaptation to various living conditions.

Check students' knowledge and repeat the material on the topic "First people", report on the test at the next lesson.

1. Factors of evolution

Biological factors of evolution - hereditary variability, natural selection, population waves, isolation and genetic drift - led, as a result of life on trees, to the appearance of primates with their binocular color vision and long fingers. The adaptation of some primates to life in open spaces led to movement on two legs, natural selection fixed mutations useful for new conditions. Those who were most adapted to walking upright survived, the freed hands were used to collect and carry food and objects. Larger ones survived - it is easier for them to defend themselves from predators and they dominate the group. Among the Australopithecus, those who learned how to make tools began to survive, selection fixed the increase in the brain, changed the hand.

With the advent of the modern type of man, the biological factors of evolution lose their leading significance. The leading role of natural selection is decreasing, life in society ensures the upbringing and transfer of accumulated experience, protection from animals and bad weather, food security. Over the past 40,000 years, the physical appearance of man has not changed much. But Biological factors continue to operate in the modern world. The mutation process continues to operate, and most mutations are harmful and accumulate in a recessive state, combinative variability spreads them and creates a variety of combinations of gene alleles that are unique in each organism. The role of isolation is decreasing, but it is precisely this that preserves the human races.

Social factors come first. social way of life, tool activity, speech. As a result of social life, a complex abstract thinking. If earlier the strongest survived predominantly, then in neoanthropes an important factor in evolution becomes altruism, caring for your neighbor. Benefits were received by those tribes in which people of the older generation are preserved, keeping the experience of making tools, hunting and education.

Only social factors, life in society, lead to the development of speech, labor skills and consciousness. The first years of a child's life are especially important for the development of speech centers and mental abilities. Cases of raising children by animals are known, but such children differed sharply in their mental abilities and behavior from ordinary children (Kamala and Amala in India).

2. Human races. Failure of racism

The settlement of neoanthrope populations to Europe, Asia and Australia, along the Bering Bridge to the American continent, their further isolation, led to morphological adaptations, adaptations to various climatic conditions. Large and small human races have formed - systematic divisions within the species Homo sapiens, which includes the entire population of the Earth.

There are three major races: Eurasian - caucasoid, equatorial - Australo-Negroid, and Asian American - Mongoloid. Within each race, small races and racial groups are distinguished. All races belong to the same species, as evidenced by the fecundity of interracial marriages. In addition, all races are equal biologically and psychologically.

For a Negroid character race, dark skin, curly hair, a wide and flat nose. Dark skin of the negroid race due to melanin pigment protects the body from excess ultraviolet rays and overproduction of the vitaminD. Anti-rachitis vitamin D is formed in the skin under the influence of ultraviolet rays and is necessary to maintain calcium balance in the body. If there is too much vitamin D, calcium in the bones is more than normal, they become brittle. Europeans living in latitudes with less solar radiation have lighter skin, less melanin, and therefore a sufficient amount of vitamin D is formed.

The Mongoloid race is characterized by skin with a yellowish tinge, a flat face with wide cheekbones, straight black hair, a slit of the eyes and a developed epicanthus - a swollen upper eyelid. These features are adaptations to life in certain light conditions in open spaces.

In every race there are people who consider their race special, superior. Racists stick hypotheses of polycentrism, believe that races have various origins that there are "higher" and "lower" races. Some races allegedly descended from Cro-Magnons, some from Neanderthals, some in general from Pithecanthropes. They explain the economic and cultural backwardness of some peoples by racial inequality, and not by socio-economic factors. But there is no scientific evidence in favor of racial disparity. Morphological features of races are the result of adaptations to specific living conditions.

Questions for the test on the chapter "The Origin of Man"

Which metaphysician placed man, along with prosimians and apes, in the group of primates? Who suggested, who proved that man descended from hominids?

List five characteristics of mammals that are characteristic of humans.

How are humans classified as primates?

Give three examples of embryological evidence of human animal origin.

Definition of atavisms and three examples of atavisms in humans.

Definition of rudiments and three examples of rudiments in humans.

When and from whom did primates originate?

Which apes are pongids (great apes)?

Which monkey has 97.5% similar DNA to human DNA and the same amino acid sequence in hemoglobin?

What is the brain size of a pongid? How many chromosomes do pongids have?

List the anthropomorphoses that appeared in anthropogenesis as a result of upright walking.

What are the consequences of the herd way of life of human predecessors?

What biological factors of evolution led to the emergence of man from apes?

What social factors led to the emergence of man?

What monkeys did dryopithecus originate from?

Who is the closest ancestor of pongids and hominids?

Who is the closest ancestor of Australopithecus?

Who is the closest ancestor of archanthropes?

What is the historical age, V brain of Australopithecus?

What is the historical age, V of the brain of a skilled man?

What is the historical age, V of the brain of Homo erectus?

What is the historical age, V brain of paleoanthropes?

What is the historical age, V of the brain of neoanthropes?

Who are the archanthropes?

Who are the paleoanthropes?

Who are neoanthropes?

Who are the hominids?

What morphological features does the Caucasian race have?

What morphological features does the Negroid-Australoid race have?

What morphological features does the Mongoloid race have?

Homework assignment. Prepare for the test. Topics for abstracts, presentations: "Bigfoot, hypotheses and facts", "Fight for fire", "Human races", "Man of the future", "Bones tell", "Homeland of mankind" and others.

Biological factors of anthropogenesis in human evolution. Man is the latest biological species that appeared in the evolution of the organic world. Such factors of the evolution of the organic world as hereditary variability, the struggle for existence and natural selection occupy a significant place in human evolution. Ch. Darwin proved these natural patterns in human evolution with concrete examples. Due to the influence of natural factors, important anatomical and physiological changes occurred in the body of ancient apes. As a result, the great apes gradually developed upright posture, the functions of the arms and legs were divided, and the hands adapted to the manufacture of tools. Natural selection created favorable conditions for certain groups of people to improve tools, collective hunting and care for the elderly. As a result of such activities, group selection took place simultaneously with individual selection. However, biological laws alone are not enough to explain anthropogenesis. In his writings, F. Engels (1820-1895) proved the great importance here of social factors. He especially noted work, the social way of life, consciousness and speech.

Labor is the most important factor in human evolution. Any work begins with the manufacture of tools, carried out with the help of hands. F. Engels highly appreciated the role of labor in the development of man. He wrote that "labor is the first basic condition of all human life, and, moreover, to such an extent that in a certain sense we must say: labor created man himself." If so, then the main social driving force of anthropogenesis is labor. Some great apes can use simple tools but are unable to create them. Animals influence nature through their vital activity, while man changes it in the process of conscious labor.

Human influence on nature is significant and diverse. As a result of labor, our ape-like ancestors developed morphological and physiological changes called anthropomorphosis. Labor is the main factor in human evolution. Monkeys lived in the forests, climbing trees, then gradually descended to the ground. This change in their lifestyle created the conditions for walking on two legs. The transition to upright posture "became a decisive step on the path from ape to man" (F. Engels). As a result of upright walking, an S-shaped bend of the human spine appeared, which gave elasticity to the body. The foot (metatarsal bones) became more curved, springy, the pelvic bones expanded, the sacrum strengthened, the jaws became lighter. Such hereditary changes continued for millions of years. The transition to upright posture led to certain difficulties: the speed of movement was limited, the fusion of the sacrum with the thigh made childbirth difficult, the heavy weight of a person led to flat feet. But thanks to upright walking, a person's hands were freed for the manufacture of tools.

In the initial period of formation, his hand was underdeveloped and could only perform the most simple actions. Due to heredity, such traits were preserved and passed on to the next generation. F. Engels explained that the hand is not only an organ of labor, but also a product of labor. With the free hand, our ape-like ancestors could use simple tools made of stone and animal bones. All this influenced their level of thinking, behavior and contributed to the improvement of tools. The development of labor led to an increase in the role of social factors in anthropogenesis, but gradually weakened the action of biological laws (Fig. 58).

Rice. 58.

Public way of life as the driving force of human evolution. Any vital actions of animals are carried out reflexively and instinctively. The transition to the herd way of life of animals occurred due to natural selection. From the very beginning, labor was social, and the first ape-like ancestors of man lived in herds. Therefore, F. Engels emphasized that it would be wrong to look for the ancestors of man, the most social being in nature, among non-social animals. Group labor contributed to the development of social relationships, the rallying of members of society, they collectively hunted animals, defended themselves from predators, and raised children. Senior members of society passed on life experience to the younger ones. Man gradually learned how to make and keep fire.

Our distant ancestors gradually switched from plant foods to animal foods. Meat food provided the human body with the necessary useful amino acids, so he began to improve hunting and fishing tools. The transition to meat food led to changes in the human body, such as shortening of the intestines, the development of chewing muscles. The use of fire also made life easier for our ancestors.

With a social way of life, the ancestors of man had great opportunities for the knowledge of nature, the accumulation of life experience. The joint activity of members of the society necessitated communication with gestures and sounds. The first words were directly related to labor activity. Gradually, the larynx, the organs of the oral cavity, as a result of hereditary variability and natural selection, were transformed into organs of articulate speech.

Man, like animals, perceives signals from the outside world through irritation of the senses. This is the first signal system. The second signaling system is associated with the higher nervous activity of a person. The emergence of speech, the relationship of ancestors through the word contributed to the development of the brain, thinking - speech gradually turned into a means of education. Speech strengthened the communication of our ancestors, contributed to the development of social relations. The evolution of our ancestors took place under the combined action of biological and social factors. Natural selection gradually lost its significance as the leading factor in the evolution of human society. On the contrary, social factors (labor, speech) have become fundamental in human evolution. If the morphological and physiological characteristics of a person are inherited, then the abilities for collective labor activity, thinking and speech have never been inherited and are not transmitted now. These specific qualities of a person historically arose and improved under the influence of social factors and develop in each person in the process of his individual development only in society thanks to upbringing and education. Known cases of a sufficiently long isolation of a child from human society from an early age (upbringing by animals) have shown that when he returns to normal conditions, his ability to speak, think, he develops very poorly or does not develop at all. This confirms that these qualities are not inherited. Each older generation passes on life experience, knowledge, spiritual values to the next in the process of upbringing and education. With the development of society, the work of people became more diverse. Various branches of the economy appeared, industry developed, science, art, trade, and religion arose. Tribes formed nations, states.

Thus, the main driving forces of anthropogenesis were biological (hereditary variability, struggle for existence and natural selection) and social factors (labor activity, social lifestyle, speech and thinking) (Scheme 2).

There are three main stages in the social evolution of man.

The first is the knowledge of the environment through works of art. For example, rock paintings.

The second stage is directly related to the domestication of wild animals and the development of agriculture. Thus, man began to influence the natural environment.

The third stage is the development of scientific and technological progress, which began in the 15th century. during the Renaissance. At present, the human mind has become the main social factor. Mankind, having spread widely on the globe, is mastering the expanses of space. The biosphere inhabited by people passes into the noosphere controlled by the human mind.

Biological factors of anthropogenesis. Social factors of anthropogenesis. Anthropomorphosis. Cro-Magnon. Noosphere.

1. The biological factors of anthropogenesis include hereditary variability, the struggle for existence and natural selection.

2. Labor is the main step in human evolution.

3. Progressive changes in human evolution are the making of tools by hand and the transition to upright posture.

4. The social way of life, speech, thinking, mind have become the main social driving forces of evolution.

1. What are the biological driving forces of anthropogenesis?

2. Explain the importance of social factors in human evolution.

3. What signs have developed in the structure of the human body as a result of upright walking?

1. What is the role of labor in human evolution?

2. What is the place of speech in human evolution?

3. What is anthropomorphosis!

1. Describe social factors.

2. Name three stages of human social evolution.

3. What is the current influence of social factors on human evolution?

Explain with examples the driving forces of evolution using diagram 2, which shows the biological and social driving forces of human evolution.

The main trends in human development were upright posture, an increase in the volume of the brain and the complication of its organization, the development of the hand, and the lengthening of the period of growth and development. A developed hand with a well-pronounced grasping function allowed a person to successfully use and then make tools. This gave him advantages in the struggle for existence, although in his purely physical qualities he was significantly inferior to animals. The most important milestone in human development was the acquisition of the ability to first use and maintain, and then make fire. The complex activity of making tools, obtaining and maintaining fire could not be provided by innate behavior, but required individual behavior. Therefore, a need arose for a significant expansion of the possibility of signal exchange and a speech factor appeared that fundamentally distinguishes humans from other animals. The emergence of new functions, in turn, contributes to accelerated development. Thus, the use of hands for hunting and protection and eating food softened on fire made it unnecessary to have powerful jaws, which made it possible to increase the volume of the cerebral part of the skull due to its facial part and ensure the further development of human mental abilities. The emergence of speech contributed to the development of a more perfect structure of society, the division of responsibilities between its members, which also gave advantages in the struggle for existence. Thus, the factors of anthropogenesis can be divided into biological and social.

Biological factors - hereditary variability, the struggle for existence, natural selection, as well as the mutation process, isolation - are applicable to human evolution. Under their influence, in the process of biological evolution, morphological changes occurred in the ape-like ancestor - anthropomorphosis. The decisive step on the way from ape to man was bipedalism. This led to the release of the hand from the functions of movement. The hand begins to be used to perform various functions - grabbing, holding, throwing.

No less important prerequisites for anthropogenesis were the features of the biology of human ancestors: a herd way of life, an increase in the volume of the brain in relation to the general proportions of the body, and binocular vision.

The social factors of anthropogenesis include labor activity, social lifestyle, development of speech and thinking. Social factors began to play a leading role in anthropogenesis. However, the life of each individual is subject to biological laws: mutations are preserved as a source of genotypic variability, stabilizing selection operates, eliminating sharp deviations from the norm.

Factors of anthropogenesis

1) Biological

natural selection against the backdrop of the struggle for existence
genetic drift
insulation
hereditary variability

2) Social

public life
consciousness
speech
labor activity

At the first stages of human evolution, biological factors played a dominant role, and at the last stages, social ones. Labor, speech, consciousness are most closely related to each other. In the process of labor, the members of society were united and the method of communication between them, which is speech, was rapidly developing.

The common ancestors of man and great apes - small woody insectivorous placental mammals lived in the Mesozoic. In the Paleogene of the Cenozoic era, a branch separated from them, which led to the ancestors of modern anthropoid apes - parapithecus.

Parapithecus -> Driopithecus -> Australopithecus -> Pithecanthropus -> Sinanthropus -> Neanderthal -> Cro-Magnon -> modern man.

The analysis of paleontological finds makes it possible to identify the main stages and directions of the historical development of man and great apes. Modern science gives the following answer: man and modern great apes had a common ancestor. Further, their evolutionary development followed the path of divergence (divergence of features, accumulation of differences) in connection with adaptation to specific and various conditions of existence.

human pedigree

Insectivorous mammals -> parapithecus:

Propliopithecines -> Gibbon, Orangutan
Dryopithecus -> Chimpanzee, Gorilla, Australopithecus -> Ancient people (Pithecanthropus, Sinanthropus, Heidelberg man) -> Ancient people (Neanderthals) -> New people (Cro-Magnon, modern man)

We emphasize that the human genealogy presented above is hypothetical. We also recall that if the name of the ancestral form ends in "pithek", then we are talking about a still monkey. If at the end of the name is "anthrope", then we have a person in front of us. True, this does not mean that signs of an ape are necessarily absent in its biological organization. It must be understood that the signs of a person in this case prevail. From the name "Pithecanthropus" it follows that this organism has a combination of signs of ape and man, and in approximately equal proportions. Let us give a brief description of some of the alleged ancestral forms of man.

DRIOPITEK