What Happens if We Go Back Through the 7 Stages of Human Evolution? – A Mind-Blowing Journey
Have you ever wondered what would happen if we humans pressed the rewind button on evolution and started to de-evolve? No? Well, let’s make-believe. Get ready for a wild ride through the 7 stages of human evolution—in reverse!
Stage 1: Homo Sapiens to Homo Erectus
So you wake up one morning taller than usual, stronger jawlines and your brain expanding. You have just regressed into Homo Erectus, our long lost cousin that walked this earth approximately two million years ago. Forget about smartphones and Netflix; instead, you are more interested in hunting and gathering. Also who needs clothes when you can just walk around like a natural?
Homo Erectus had been the pioneer of them all. They were the ones who invented or rather discovered fire which was equivalent to inventing the internet in prehistoric times. Close your eyes and visualize a place where all you worry about is how to find food, where to escape from predators and how not to let your campfire go off. Your social network is face-to-face sitting around a bonfire telling tales or maybe grunting at each other like chimps would do. It may not be as comfy as modern life but at least there no junk email here either.
Stage 2: Homo Erectus to Homo Habilis
Fast forward—wait, I mean rewind—another few hundred thousand years, and boom, you’re now Homo Habilis. Your brain just took a nosedive in capacity, and your diet is limited to whatever you can scrounge up. Forget about cooking your food; you’re back to munching on plants that are still raw along with the rare bit of small animal flesh. Fancy, right?
Homo habilis or “handy man” was quite skillful with stone tools. You would be chipping rocks into simple cutting and scraping implements. Your social life? Still very much centered around survival. You will talk more about where the best foraging grounds are than what is the latest Netflix series? Also remember that Body language plays a greater role in communication than eloquent speeches.
Stage 3: Homo Habilis to Australopithecus
As the days roll back, you find yourself living in the wild – like our ancestor Australopithecus did. These guys were really tough, weren’t they? With even tinier brains than homo habilis’s, today we’d be looking for berries as well as insects Oh how delightful!
Australopithecus was a master at bipedalism, which means that you are walking on two legs but with a body still largely suited to tree climbing. Your diet consists mostly of vegetables and there is always the threat of being eaten by something. Social groups are less focused on community gatherings and more family oriented. There’s no way you can consider group activities; it’s all about your kinship for survival.
Stage 4: Australopithecus to Ardipithecus
Next stop on our backward journey: Ardipithecus. These early hominins were more ape-like than human. Your body is getting somewhat better adapted to climbing trees rather than walking upright. Fruits and leaves will be your preferred nibbles while talking to one another through grunts or gestures may sound simple enough to comprehend.
Ardipithecus felt at home in the trees rather than on the ground. A good example would be a foot whose flexibility has been improved for climbing and a thumb that helps grasp things, like hanging onto branches as you move across the forest canopy. Social interactions range from simple bonds among immediate families only. As far as feeding goes, it means eating fruits, nuts and whatever lies atop the trees.
Stage 5: Ardipithecus to Sahelanthropus
Now let us go back about a couple of million years and reach the time of Sahelanthropus. You stoop forward and have a smaller brain. But guess what, you can enjoy a great view from up in the trees! You mainly eat fruits and all you worry about is avoiding being eaten by predators. Modern problems are not for you!
Sahelanthropus tchadensis had some human-like features mixed with those of apes. You would be spending much time on trees, with a face that is both our ancestors’ and that of today’s apes. Communication here is simple involving visual cues, basic sounds are also used as language. Foraging forms most part of your life as you avoid numerous hazards which existed in prehistoric times.
Stage 6: Sahelanthropus to Common Ancestor with Chimps
As we continue rewinding, we come to the stage where humans had a common ancestor with chimpanzees. At this point, your lifestyle would resemble our cousins the chimps; swinging on trees, eating nuts and living in groups. There is no place for writing or art; only the basics get communicated while survival remains paramount.
This common ancestor existed in a world where complex thoughts and culture were not present. Tools would have been primitive, such as sticks for digging…. The social structure is basic but it does show the beginning of more complex societies that we see in later species. In summary, your diet consists of fruits, seeds and small animals.
Stage 7: Common Ancestor to Single-Celled Organisms
Lastly, we go back to the very start—single-celled organisms. You are now a small particle floating around in primordial soup. Don’t think about anything, no concerns; just simple existence. Oh! That life was so easy!
Single celled organisms were the ultimate survivors when it came to tolerating harsh conditions on primitive Earth. As a single-celled organism you depend entirely on absorbing nutrients from your environment and dividing for reproduction. This is nothing like the complex societies that humans live in these days, but hey, no pressure!
Why 7 stages of human evolution doesn’t work in Backward
It is not possible to simply reverse evolution because it isn’t linear as most people tend to believe it is. And also it’s impossible to speculate about what might have been had things turned out differently? However much fun can be derived from this day dream reversing evolution like this remains absolute fantasy at best.
Evolution is a process of changes over long periods marked by natural selection, genetic drift and other causes but we cannot simply change them backwards. Each species has adapted to its environment and these adaptations are specific responses to the challenges that each bloomed. While it is an enjoyable mental exercise, the concept of human devolution such as this does not hold water scientifically.
The next time you start feeling overwhelmed by modern life, just think how much simpler everything would be if we could all just simplify ourselves through retrogression. Or maybe not so much. Then again, modern conveniences and technology do have their advantages, and medicine.
The Joy in Guessing
Scientifically speaking, it may be incorrect to assume that we can really decline but discussing such idea leads to more meaningful chats about our evolutionary history and how far we have gone. Within these 7 stages of human evolution within a span of several million years reflecting incredible adaptability as well as significant anatomical alterations at each level along the journey leading up to the complex beings we are today.
This imaginary act places each one of us in perspective with regard to our ancestors’ lives and the dynamics which shaped them progressively during evolution. Moreover, it also underlines how much of our behavior, dieting patterns or social structures are based on those ancient adjustments.
You may also like to read: 15 Fascinating Megalithic Structures From Around the World You Need to Know
Final Reflections
What do you make of this rollercoaster ride experience touching on the 7 stages of human evolution? Can you imagine yourself coping with an existence where you are a fruit eating, tree climbing, and grunting early hominin?
We want to hear from you. Let us know.
Stay curious, stay awesome, and don’t forget to evolve—forward, not backward!
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