Quote:
|
Human ancestors did not become fully aquatic like whales, nor semi-aquatic specialists like sea lions (with their large round bulging eyes), but they maintained a general association with shore resources (waterside ambush of large game, mangrove oyster prying, sand clam digging, sea turtle egg digging) and off-shore food foraging (reef diving for molluscs, fish, crustaceans, sea urchins, kelp, aquatic plants), as well as inland foraging (fruits, nuts, flint for cutting tools), as omnivores; able to jog along beaches, wade in shallows, swim to nearby islets, dive more than a meter deep, backfloat while resting and nibbling, climb coconut palms and figs, climb rocky shore cliffs (caves, sea bird eggs, berry bushes), etc.
|
I do not think this is being point of argument between scientists. It is certainly not inconsistent with fossil evidence. Many characteristics (thermoregulation, descended larynx, breath control, fat, tears, sebaceous glands, body proportions) can be decently exaplained by the hypothesis.
Quote:
|
...that childhood was once a period of visual plasticity.
|
Still is. This is when our neural nets form most of their connections for image processing. I think I could go with explanation like this. Humans do seem to have rather powerful processing aparatus, although image quality might not be the best, as our eye cannot focus underwater (problem at sensory end).
Thanks for the article - interesting stuff.
Gypsy Secret: Children of sea see clearly underwater: Science News Online, May 17, 2003