Humans are much more similar to one another, genetically, than various
breeds of cattle or sheep or goats or dogs, because although humans live in
a much wider variety of environments than any other species on the planet,
human have been using culture as their major adaptive response to
environmental stress beginning 2.5 million years ago with the first stone
tools, progressing rapidly to control of fire by 1 million years ago (and
perhaps earlier).  All modern humans belong to the genus Homo, the species
sapiens, and the subspecies sapiens.

Humans in cold climates are a bit bigger (more volume) and more compactly
built (shorter arms and legs) than their fellow Homo sapiens sapiens in
warmer climates.  Those in the hottest and driest climates (East Africa)
tend to be linearly built, with less volume and relatively longer arms and
legs.  There a few other small-scale genetic adaptations to the local
temperature, but nothing as distinctive as you find in other kinds of animals.




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Katherine A. Dettwyler, Ph.D.                         email:
[log in to unmask]
Anthropology Department                               phone: (409) 845-5256
Texas A&M University                                    fax: (409) 845-4070
College Station, TX  77843-4352
http://www.prairienet.org/laleche/dettwyler.html

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