The ancient Greeks were passionate about the mathematically “perfect” body, but according to Richard Dawkins we were not designed by Phidias, arguably the greatest sculptor who ever lived, but by an “irresponsible” creator.
The argument based on poor design, also known as the “dysteleological argument,” is an argument against the existence of God as our creator. It is based on the theory that Creationism contains too many defects to suggest we are the creation of an intelligent and perfect God. Further, many scientists consider evolution an irrational process and believe the human body is proof of this notion.
Source: MaxPixel (CC0 Public Domain Free for commercial use. Link referral required)
Despite what your views on God and religion are, here follow some flaws in the human body stemming from how we were designed that science might be able to fix one day.
The Blind spot in our eyes
For the most part, the human eye gives the brain an accurate picture of what’s going on in the world. However, there are a few issues. Although many birds and insects can see ultraviolet light, humans are stuck looking at so-called visible light only.
Source: Commons Wikimedia
This cuts down on how we see the world, not letting us see the urine trails left behind by some mammals and not letting us fully appreciate the colors of certain flowers, which have evolved to put on quite a show in ultraviolet light while remaining plain in visible light. The human eye also can’t distinguish between polarized and non-polarized light, while many cephalopods and some birds can.
Our overloaded lower backs
According to paleoanthropologist Bruce Latimer of Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, this is a clear consequence of our transition from four-legged to two-legged creatures. When humans stood upright, their spine, which had evolved to be stiff for climbing and moving in trees, rotated ninety degrees and the head became balanced on top. All that curvature, with the weight of the head stacked on top, creates pressure that causes back problems.
Balding
It can happen anywhere between your teenage years or your older years and there is no EFFECTIVE way to prevent it really. ; What makes things even worse is that it really serves no evolutionary advantage that we know of. So what gives body?! According to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, more than 50 percent of men over 50 will experience some form of baldness. At least let's hope you look like him when that happens.
Source: Wikimedia Commons
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
Science defines attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) as a neurodevelopmental psychiatric disorder in which there are significant problems with executive functions such as attention control, for example, that cause attention deficits, hyperactivity, or impulsiveness that is not appropriate for people when they reach a certain age. The most interesting part is that of all living creatures only humans are capable of developing such a disorder. Not cool, huh?
The human appendix
Even if you never heard of any of the other flaws on this article, I am pretty confident that you’ve heard of our most useless organ. The appendix is a vestigial organ with no purpose that we know of as of yet. However, this useless organ can become inflamed, infected, and can even rupture. A hefty price to pay for something that does nothing.
Loads of unnecessary bones in our feet
It is scientifically accepted that our feet have so many bones because our apelike ancestors needed flexible feet to grasp branches. But as they moved out of the trees and began walking upright on the ground in the last five million years or so, the foot had to become more stable, and bit by bit, the big toe, which was no longer opposable, aligned itself with the others and our ancestors developed an arch to work as a shock absorber. As a result we now have lots of bones that we don’t need in our feet.
The extremely narrow birth canal
Females have an unreasonably narrow birth canal, resulting in much pain and significantly increased risk to both mother and child during birth. This is a consequence of our quick evolutionary leap from quadrupeds to bipeds, resulting in our narrow pelvis.
Men have nipples they don’t really need
Nipples remind us that gender is anything but clear cut, especially in utero. Whatever your sex, everyone starts off as a female in the womb. One way or another billions of men around the world have nipples they won’t ever need for their whole lives.
Our inability to biosynthesize Vitamin C
Humans and other primates as well as bats and guinea pigs don’t have the ability to produce vitamin C by biosynthesizing it from glucose (other animals can). The lack of vitamin C bionsynthesis is due to mutations in the L-gulono-γ-lactone oxidase (GLO) gene which is responsible for coding for the enzyme that catalyzes the last step of vitamin C biosynthesis.
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However, in 2008, scientists were able to successfully re-instate the ability to produce vitamin C in mice. It might not be long before humans are next.
Prostate is a real troublemaker for men
The prostate is a ridiculous organ in reality, with a minimally important function (secretion of prostatic fluid increases survival of sperm by a fraction) and a high propensity for developing cancer—most doctors will assure you they would get rid of it altogether at the first possible opportunity.
Source: Wikimedia Commons
The prostate really contributes nothing to our survival and reproductive efficacy, and most (if not all) men would be happy with one percent less sperm in exchange for not having to spend fifteen minutes in agony every time they have to pee during the last thirty or forty years of their lives.
Part of the article was first published in my personal blog theo-cracy.com and List25 Sources:
Why every human has a blind spot? (Gizmodo)
Why your back, feet hurt: blame evolution (CNN)
Why Do Men Go Bald? Male Pattern Baldness (Live Science)
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (National Institute of Mental Health)
What is the function of the human appendix? (Scientific American)
Why Do our Feet Have All Those Bones? (Running Guru)
Difficult Labor: Birth Canal Issues (Health Line)
Why do men have nipples? (Scientific American)