Researchers from Germany and the United Kingdom gathered body and brain size measurements for over 300 ancient human fossils from around the world and discovered that the average body size has fluctuated significantly over the last million years, with larger bodies evolving in colder regions. When a body’s mass is large relative to its surface area, less heat is lost from it, which is thought to act as a buffer against colder temperatures.
Our species, Homo sapiens, first appeared in Africa around 3,00,000 years ago. The Homo genus, which includes Neanderthals and Homo erectus, has been around for much longer. The trend of increasing body and brain size has been a defining feature of our genus’ evolution. We are 50 percent heavier and have three times the brain size of earlier species like Homo habilis. However, the causes of such shifts are hotly debated.
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For the past million years, climate — specifically temperature — has been the primary driver of changes in body size, according to a new study. The researchers also looked at the impact of environmental factors on brain size, and discovered that when people needed to perform more complex tasks (such as hunting) to survive, their brains grew larger.
According to the researchers, the human body and brain continue to grow in size. The human body is still adapting to various temperatures, with larger-bodied people living in colder climates on average today. Since around 11,650 years ago, our species’ brain size appears to have been shrinking.
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