Why did humans rely on clothing rather than re-evolving a thick coat?
Show answer & explanation
Answer: Clothing was more flexible
Fur blocked language — Wrong. Thick fur might be inconvenient in some ways, but speech is not the main reason humans turned to clothing.
Clothing was more flexible ✓ — Correct! Fur is built into the body, but clothing can be added, removed, layered, repaired, and changed across seasons and places. It is a faster, more flexible solution.
Fur could not return — Wrong. Hair traits can evolve. The point is that tools and culture could solve the problem faster and more adaptively.
More Evolution & Genetics questions
- Which of the following best describes a common change in RNA transcript length with age?
- Why do different organs in mammals show different gene activity patterns related to longevity?
- What can researchers learn about people of the same age from separate RNA-based aging clocks that estimate age from inflammation-related and metabolism-related gene activity?
- If you sort the many gene-activity changes that come with age into groups that rise and fall together, what does that grouping reveal?
- Why might aging mouse, monkey, and human cells show similar changes in the RNA they produce across different tissues?
- Why does a platypus still count as a mammal when it lays eggs and has no nipples?