Foz
03-09-2006, 12:23 AM
http://www.nbc10.com/irresistible/7815702/detail.html
http://images.ibsys.com/2006/0308/7814951_240X180.jpg
Scientists Study Turkish Family
POSTED: 1:28 pm EST March 8, 2006
UPDATED: 1:40 pm EST March 8, 2006
LONDON -- Scientists are studying a family in a remote corner of rural Turkey because some of them walk on all fours.
The Ulas family has 16 children, and five of them walk using their hands and their feet.
Discovered last year, they've triggered a fierce debate. Are they evidence of backward evolution?
It's been 3 million years since our ape-like ancestors developed the ability to walk upright. Some scientists believe the Ulas children have reverted to an instinctive behavior deeply encoded in the brain, but abandoned in the course of evolution.
"We hope it will shed light on the genetic story of what helped humans to move from crawling to walking," said Osman Demirhan, a professor at Cukurova University in Turkey, who is doing genetic tests on the siblings.
Unlike gorillas and chimpanzees, which walk on their knuckles, the Turkish siblings use their heavily callused palms as heels, keeping their fingers angled up from the ground.
Although they seem to be unique, some experts doubt it's anything revolutionary.
"It would certainly be wrong and simplistic to look at these people and say, 'Wow, we have discovered something that is going to tell us a lot about where we came from,'" said Craig Stanford, a professor at the University of Southern California.
More likely, some scientists believe, the children have a unique genetic mutation, like the so-called "Wolf Boys" in Mexico, who are covered head to toe with thick hair.
The children are mentally handicapped and have limited language skills.
Their mother said they started walking at 10 months, but began using their hands and never walked normally after that.
http://images.ibsys.com/2006/0308/7814951_240X180.jpg
Scientists Study Turkish Family
POSTED: 1:28 pm EST March 8, 2006
UPDATED: 1:40 pm EST March 8, 2006
LONDON -- Scientists are studying a family in a remote corner of rural Turkey because some of them walk on all fours.
The Ulas family has 16 children, and five of them walk using their hands and their feet.
Discovered last year, they've triggered a fierce debate. Are they evidence of backward evolution?
It's been 3 million years since our ape-like ancestors developed the ability to walk upright. Some scientists believe the Ulas children have reverted to an instinctive behavior deeply encoded in the brain, but abandoned in the course of evolution.
"We hope it will shed light on the genetic story of what helped humans to move from crawling to walking," said Osman Demirhan, a professor at Cukurova University in Turkey, who is doing genetic tests on the siblings.
Unlike gorillas and chimpanzees, which walk on their knuckles, the Turkish siblings use their heavily callused palms as heels, keeping their fingers angled up from the ground.
Although they seem to be unique, some experts doubt it's anything revolutionary.
"It would certainly be wrong and simplistic to look at these people and say, 'Wow, we have discovered something that is going to tell us a lot about where we came from,'" said Craig Stanford, a professor at the University of Southern California.
More likely, some scientists believe, the children have a unique genetic mutation, like the so-called "Wolf Boys" in Mexico, who are covered head to toe with thick hair.
The children are mentally handicapped and have limited language skills.
Their mother said they started walking at 10 months, but began using their hands and never walked normally after that.