Next Evolutionary step for Humans?

[NaptownKnight]

Accepting evolution has been a long process for me, but I think I am starting to come around. What I am wondering; what will be the next evolutionary step for human beings?

My theory is that as our technology advances we will be become more and more reliant on it, and we will become less physically capable but more mentally able. Is this a fair assumption? The time frame for this to happen doesn't need to be taken into consideration, I was just wondering what will be our next notable "step", as in to the point where we are very noticeably different than current humans.

Appearance wise I don't know what to think. Human beings have changed little appearance wise since the Cro-Magnon, maybe we will become even more hairless (as we will live in increasingly ideal, warm conditions because of our technology), our teeth will continue to shrink in size, or stay around the same size they are at now. Maybe we will become shorter, an adaptation to living in cramped environments that the sure to be over populated future would bring about.

[Erwin Rommel]

this?

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

[Chaigidel]

I agree completely--- technology and our technology in particular due to computers has set down an alternate course of evolution, evolution in the inorganic, we are setting down the key stones for a new kind of life, which will spread across the universe and give birth to the one holy god.

our evolution is being taken up by our devotion to the birth of a new species,
I firmly believe in the life of machines, I think we only existed to create them. humanity will become extinct and our children will make of all worlds gardens.

maybe

[LSJ]

Our next step is to lose our small toes and appendix, which do nothing for us. I hope.

[Simetrical]

Given the rise of genetic engineering, natural selection may be nearing an end for the human race, to be replaced wholly by artificial selection. Give it a couple of centuries. I don't think humans necessarily have a long-term evolutionary future (maybe a few die-hards).

[Problem Sleuth]

Given the rise of genetic engineering, natural selection may be nearing an end for the human race, to be replaced wholly by artificial selection. Give it a couple of centuries. I don't think humans necessarily have a long-term evolutionary future (maybe a few die-hards).

I was thinking that myself. It would take tens of thousands of generations to double our brain capacity. To double the processessing power of a computer? Just under two years. We can invent new technologies, and therefore improve our ability to survive, at a rate far faster than natural selection. Think how much progress we've made in the last hundred years. The rate is only quickening. Now, think about how much we'll make in another century, another thousand years, another million. Think about how much progress our bodies would have made to helping us survive in that period of time. Nature simply can't compete in terms of the speed of adaptation.

[NaptownKnight]

Well my knowledge is basic. So brain capacity can not be easily increased by natural selection over a long period of time? Maybe one million years or longer?

I didn't take genetic engineering into account, that could have drastic impacts on our evolution.

[Sator Mortis]

Well my knowledge is basic. So brain capacity can not be easily increased by natural selection over a long period of time? Maybe one million years or longer?

For that to be true there needs to be natural or sexual selection for increasing brain capacity, which isn't really there at the moment. For people to become more intelligent through evolution, the people who posses or have developed 'intelligence genes' have to pass them on to the next generation. But, especially in the western world, the smartest and most succesful people generally have far less children than idiots and unsuccesful people, which makes it unlikely that traits such as increased brain capacity will spread through the population. So if you want to increase brain capacity for the human race, you're better off looking at genetic engeneering rather than natural selection.

[MrMofo]

singularity upload ftw

[Aetius]

This disgusting thing....

[Da Skinna]

Warhammer 40K's bleak vision of the future for humans is actually quite creepily real looking.


Oh and woh, that thing is ugly.

[Chaigidel]

well if they figure out quantum computation--- well the limits get broken again.

[Old_Scratch]

Have you seen the movie "Idiocracy"? This just about sums it up.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upyewL0oaWA

[Banned]

I don't think there's going to be any further evolution in the course of development of human beings. But as some of you have already pointed out, I feel that the human race might get replaced by artificial lifeforms. But as of now, nobody knows for sure what we're going to see next.

[Simetrical]

well if they figure out quantum computation--- well the limits get broken again.

Quantum computing is not directly relevant to the evolution of the human race.

I don't think there's going to be any further evolution in the course of development of human beings.

Of course you will. It's just possibly not going to be a lot. There are still some selection pressures. Anything that increases the chance of an early death (like, say, the gene for Tay-Sachs) will be selected against. More controversially, genes characteristic of groups that are less prone to reproduce, such as more educated and less religious groups, will probably be selected against.

This latter will happen, of course, regardless of whether the genes actually cause the trait. For instance, any genes that occur more commonly among Arabs may be favored in the near future because Arabs have a higher reproductive rate than, say, Europeans. This is irrespective of whether those genes actually influence the rate of reproduction, which in general they almost certainly don't (different reproductive rates are presumably due almost entirely to cultural/economic/etc. factors).

[Chaigidel]

but it will break our bounds of current science just like original computation did, when it was fully applied to science.

[Simetrical]

It seems doubtful that quantum computers will be qualitatively superior to conventional ones for typical scientific applications, to the best of my knowledge.

[removeduser_426582376423734]

Humans have the mental capacity to stay on top of the tree and with no natural predators or hard-to-catch prey it seems that humans will have no need for evolution.

[Simetrical]

Evolution will occur as long as there are selection pressures. The question is only to what extent and in what direction. I think that over the past century or two selection pressures have become much weaker overall in the developed world, and I think this trend will continue. In a few centuries there may be essentially no death except by choice, and for that matter possibly no substantial amount of reproduction by meiosis (maybe only "designer babies", for instance). It's hard to say. But certainly evolution of humans has not stopped yet.

[Ludicus]

Evolution will occur as long as there are selection pressures. .... In a few centuries there may be essentially no death except by choice, and for that matter possibly no substantial amount of reproduction. It's hard to say. But certainly evolution of humans has not stopped yet.

I fully agree. Yes, there may be essentialy no death except by choice (or accident)
As you wrote and well,the higher reproductive rate of some social groups is not connected with the race, but entirely due to socio/cultural/economic factors.
For example,there is a study ("Relative income, race and fertility") suggesting that the effect of relative income on fertility for a racial group will be positive only where there are few racial barriers to to their attainment ogf high incomes.
Another study, analysing the fertility differences among rural whites and blacks in US during 1910-1940,though fertility declined for all social classes for both races (possible effects of the Great Depression), the most dramatic declines were among farm laborers,with vulnerable economic position-greater responsiveness to antinatalist information.
Edit: The fertiliy rate by race, according to statistics,is almost the same among different races:
http://www.economics.ucr.edu/papers/...1%20graphs.pdf