THEN CAME HUMANS The evolution of speech Humans

• THEN CAME HUMANS

The evolution of speech • Humans uniquely have a complex oral communication capability based on speech and speech recognition. • This trait has allowed our species to rapidly communicate information without resorting to genetic selection • Has speech allowed humans to escape the Red Queen contraint? • The biology of speech

The Foxp 2 gene – A gene for the evolution of language? • MMQESATETISNSSMNQNGMSTLSSQLDAGSRDGRSSGDTSSEVSTVELL HLQQQQALQAARQLLLQQQTSGLKSPKSSDKQRPLQVPVSVAMMTPQVIT PQQMQQILQQQVLSPQQLQALLQQQQAVMLQQQQLQEFYKKQQEQLHLQL LQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQHPGKQ AKE QQQQQLAAQQLVFQQQLLQMQQLQQQQHLLSLQRQGLISIPPG QAALPVQSLPQAGLSPAEIQQLWKEVTGV HSMEDNGIKHGGLDLTTNNSSSTTSS {N}TSKASPPITHHSIVNGQSSVL{S} ARRDSSSHEETGASHTLYGH <GVCKWPGCESICEDFGQFLKHLNNEH> ALDDRSTAQCRVQMQVVQQLEIQLSKERERLQAMMTHLHMRPSEPKPSPK PLNLVSSVTMSKNMLETSPQSLPQTPTTPTAPVTPITQGPSVITPASVPN VGAIRRRHSDKYNIPMSSEIAPNYEFYKNADV [RPPFTYATLIRQAIMESSDRQLTLNEIYSWFTRTFAYFRRNAATWK NAVRHNLSLHKCFVRVENVKGAVWTVDEVEYQKRRSQKITGSPTL] VKNIPTSLGYGAALNASLQAALAESSLPLLSNPGLINNASSGLLQAVHED LNGSLDHIDSNGNSSPGCSPQPHIHSIHVKEEPVIAEDEDCPMSLVTTAN HSPELEDDREIEEEPLSEDLE

• FOXP 2 (forkhead box P 2) is located on human chromosome 7 q 31, and its major splice form encodes a protein of 715 amino acids belonging to the forkhead class of transcription factors 2. • It contains a glutamine-rich region consisting of two adjacent polyglutamine tracts, encoded by mixtures of CAG and CAA repeats. • Such repeats are known to have elevated mutation rates.

• When compared with a collection of 1, 880 human–rodent gene pairs 5, FOXP 2 is among the 5% most-conserved proteins.

• The evolutionary lineages leading to humans and mice diverged about 70 million years (Myr) ago. • Thus, during the roughly 130 Myr of evolution that separate the common ancestor of humans and chimpanzees from the mouse, a single amino-acid change occurred in the FOXP 2 protein.

• The fixation of the Fox 2 P genes in humans occurred during the last 200, 000 years of human history, that is, concomitant with or subsequent to the emergence of anatomically modern humans. • This is compatible with a model in which the expansion of modern humans was driven by the appearance of a moreproficient spoken language.

The evolution of KNOWLEDGE Lateral knowledge transfer 1. Individual knowledge 2. Collective knowledge 3. Moral or altruistic knowledge

Humans have massively altered Earth’s biological and biogeochemical processes • The evolution of “economies”, “wealth” and religion • Fear of death and derivations of new fitness models based on acquisition of resources rather than acquisition of survival skills. Wealth provides a mechanism of ensuring progeny without skills.

The Antropocene Source: Falkowski 2002 Scientific American

Who Is Using What ? Size of the Country Shows Relative Proportion of Indicated Parameter Population Fuel Use Fuel Imports Fuel Use Increase http: //www. sasi. group. shef. ac. uk/worldmapper/index. html

Renewables Share of U. S. Energy Supply (2004 data) Solar <1% Geothermal 5% Nuclear 8% Natural Gas 23% Biomass 47% Renewable 6% Petroleum 40% Coal 23% Source: Renewable Energy Trends 2004; Energy Information Administration, August 2005. Note: Total U. S. Energy Supply is 100. 278 QBtu; Energy Information Administration, August 2005. Wind 2% Hydroelectric 45%

Renewable Energy Sources SOLAR: 126, 000 TW FUEL (H 2)? GEOTHERMAL: 92, 000 TW-YR GEOTHERMAL: 92, 000 TW Renewable, CO 2 -free energy sources … TIDAL POWER: 0. 1 TW TW-YR WAVE: 2 TW TW-YR WIND: 5 TW-YR TW OCEAN THERMAL: 10 TW TWYR BIOMASS: 172 TW TW-YR WORLD ENERGY DEMAND: 13. 5 TW Thanks to Ben Hankamer

Areas of Corn, Switchgrass, and Algal Photobioreactors Required in the US to Displace All Gasoline or Diesel Consumed Third Generation Algal H 2 at 10% Solar Efficiency to Displace all US Gasoline Algal Bio. Diesel at 2% Solar Efficiency to Displace all US Diesel Corn Grain Ethanol to Displace all US Gasoline— 0. 05% solar efficiency First Generation 2006 Corn Crop Second Generation Cellulosic Ethanol to Displace all US Gasoline— 0. 5% solar efficiency Copyright 2009, Midwest Research Institute. Created with U. S. Government funding.

Trajectory of Global Fossil Fuel Emissions 50 -year constant growth rates 2006 2005 to 2050 B 1 1. 1%, A 1 B 1. 7%, A 2 1. 8% A 1 FI 2. 4% Observed 2000 -2006 3. 3% Raupach et al. 2007, PNAS

Changes in Glacier Mass

Oculina kept in p. H 7. 2 …after 2 months …after 4 months

Phytoplankton & Climate Stratified Oceans

Earth is “hard wired” by mircobial metabolism Effectively, the metabolism of Earth was created over 2 billion years ago - and hasn’t changed very much. Humans are effectively, fragile, inefficient E. coli that have learned how to plunder the planet

CONCLUSIONS • THE EARTH IS FUNDAMENTALLY A “BOTTOM UP” SYSTEM IN WHICH MICROBES HAVE ADAPTED OVER (LITERALLY) BILLIONS OF YEARS TO MAINTIAN A QUASI-STEADY STATE • HUMANS, THROUGH EFFICIENT RESOURCE PLUNDER, WILL MODIFY EARTH’S ATMOSPHERE AND CLIMATE - BUT MICROBES WILL EASILY SURVIVE. • ANIMALS (INCLUDING HUMANS) AND SOME PLANTS ARE EXTREMELY VULNERABLE TO HUMAN ACTIVITIES - AND MANY SPECIES PROBABLYWILL GO EXTINCT IN THIS CENTURY.