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| While the causes for bipedalism remain a mystery, the consequences are astounding. Bipedalism may not be the only defining characteristic of �being human� but it does allow for the development of the other two: the use of tools and increased brain size. R.A. Foley and P.C. Lee in the May 1991 Philosophical Transactions: Biological Sciences, noted the increased brain size of hominid species and the necessity of maintaining specific levels of nutrition by hominids to allow for such a large brain capacity. Foley and Lee extrapolated the requirements and hypothesized that only a substantial change in standard foraging strategies and return would have allowed for enough energy for the encephalization or increase in brain size of hominids. They theorize that only with the increased mobility and access to hard to reach fruits ands pods were hominids able to maintain a diet with enough energy for the relatively large brain capacity. With a larger brain, the cognitive abilities that allow for the use of stone tools can be developed. In short, bipedalism became a prerequisite for a large brain and stone tools. |
Homer Stupidus - Bipedal abnormality
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