Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Adam Y.
Ummmm.... is it person or person's?? Also it would probably be pretty hard to figure out when the first humans started popping up just by using a mathematical model of growth.
|
if you atribute the existance of the human race to mutation from another species, then there would only be one orginal human at the head of our species tree.
Mutations are a singular extreemly rare event. The odds would be astromical against one species producing two mutations in the same lifespan, both of which were the same new species.
Which is a bit of a problem with evolution. If one 'copy' of a new species is produced by genetic mutation, then that creature (person) has no one of its own species to mate with.
The other part, calculating how long it would take to get from 1 person to our present (how many of us are there now?) 8 billion, we have a general idea what our population growth rate has been for the last 2 or 3 thousand years, and it is interesting to project it backwards. Even if you make assumptions (no near extinction events) it still puts a timeframe on our population growth. All Im saying is its an interesting mathematical and genetic question to explore.