The human body has at least a dozen of parts that are no longer needed. Why do we still have them? We have them because the process of evolution is very slow and very long. It doesn’t matter which theory we actually believe in, the fact is that there were some major archeological findings of ancient human fossils. That gave the scientists an opportunity to actually compare the early human with a modern human.
These are only a few examples of what may or may not change on human bodies in some near or distant future.
Wisdom Teeth
This tooth was used by the early humans to chew plants. That was a much easier way to get calories and proteins than chasing huge and dangerous animals. However, finding meat became a much easier task, and we don’t have a need for that tooth. Only 5% of the population actually has a set of healthy wisdom teeth.
Paranasal Sinuses
There isn’t any valid explanation of why we retained these troublesome mucus-lined cavities. However, there are some good hypotheses. They act as air conditioners, humidifying and warming the air you breathe through your nose. They may also have evolved as a lightweight way to increase the strength of our skull. And finally, they may evolve to help us improve our vocal capabilities. No two people have sinuses exactly the same in shape and size. That is why we all have different voices.
Body Hair
We all have hair. Some have a purpose, while the most hair left on the human body serves no function. Our eyebrows prevent sweat from getting to our eyes, facial hair is like a magnet for the opposite sex and the rest… Nobody knows why we still have it. The years when we needed it to keep us warm have long past, so it will disappear.
Extrinsic Ear Muscles
Almost all animals can move their ears thanks to this muscle. However, even humans had that muscle and that is why some people can still move their ears. There is no point in that but, they can. It’s sometimes cool to see that.
Neck Rib
A set of cervical ribs is something only a 0.5% of the entire population have. Some have it on the left, some on the right and some on both sides of their body. It is located just above the first normal rib. The interesting thing is that reptiles and birds have this rib. The presence of this rib is mostly connected with leukemia in human children and it can also cause nerve and artery problems.
Male Nipples
Both men and women have nipples. That’s because, in first stages of the development, the fetus doesn’t have a gender. Thus nipples are present in both, male and females.
Palmaris Muscle
This muscle is already missing in 11% of humans today. It is there to help us climbing and hanging. That’s how physically active we really are.
Thirteenth Rib
Our evolutionary closest cousins, chimpanzees and gorillas, have an extra set of ribs. The most of humans have 12, but there is an approximately 8% of adults that have an extra set.
Arrector Pili Muscles
Animals use this muscles to puff up their fur to warm themselves and to intimidate. We still have this muscle and when we activate it, we call it “goose bumps”.
Toes
Evolution could remove the toes from our bodies. That can’t happen in some near future but it is a possibility. We used our toes as an extra tool to catch things, climb, adjust our center of balance, etc. However, the center of our balance has shifted from front to the side of our toe. Also, we don’t use our toes for catching, grabbing or climbing anymore. Even if we wanted to do that, we can’t because we constantly wear some footwear.
The Third Eyelid
We have a tiny fold in the inner corner of our eye. That is used to keep out debris out of our eye, and the chances are that our early ancestors had a bigger membrane, just like that.
Coccyx
That is called a tail-bone. We don’t have it anymore, but other mammals still use it.
Darwin Point
If you look at your ear you will find a small folded part of skin at the top of your ear. Actually, you may find it cause it is not that common anymore. That part of our ear might be a remnant of a larger shape that helped us hear some distant sounds.
Subclavius Muscle
This is a small triangular muscle located between the clavicle and the first rib. It helped our ancestors walk on all four but right now it is there to protect us. It actually depresses the shoulder pulling it downward and forward. It draws the clavicle inferiorly as well as anteriorly. And as the most important role, it protects the underlying brachial plexus and subclavian vessels from a broken clavicle. That is the most frequently broken long bone.
Source: 24hviralphotos