Evolutionary advantage of X?

Dades

Hammertime!

Dave! wrote: »

You've never seen me dancing have you Dades?

... and by the sound of it I'd never want to!

anti-venom

What is the evolutionary advantage of nagging, henpecking, call it what you will? Any of you budding evolutionary psychologists care to hazard a guess?

Zillah

Men are lazy and irresponsible?

robindch

anti-venom wrote: »

What is the evolutionary advantage of nagging, henpecking, call it what you will?

There's a suspicion amongst certain sociobiologists that women control men most easily through guilt-management, while men control women most easily through being bigger. Mind vs. body, really.

robindch

Goduznt Xzst wrote: »

What is the evolutionary advantage to dancing and/or moving ones limbs and body parts in sync with a musical beat?

Susan Blackmore suggested that the ability to play music (and dance) indicates the presence of reliable meme-copying hardware, which she believes was something that was heavily selected for during our evolutionary past. There certainly is a selection advantage to being able to copy tools, the use of fire and cooking, hunting techniques and so on -- and the ability to play music could be a simple marker for this. Certainly, the fact that millions of teenage girls get the hots for boy bands, and that vast amounts of time and energy is spent in nightclubs, suggests that there's some direct selection advantage, quite apart from the rather obvious sexual come-ons evident in music's rythmic thumping and the undulating hips of dancers.

Alternatively, others have suggested that music and language were originally indistinguishable -- thumps, bangs, claps and shouts -- and the two eventually split apart, evolving culturally rather than genetically down their separate ways.

Or it could be a mixture of the two, or something else completely.

Zillah

I'd imagine one's ability to move in time to music is strongly related to other, older senses. Matching your throw of a spear to the sprint of a dear, timing a jump to a swaying branch, hitting and dodging in a scuffle.

Goduznt Xzst

Zillah wrote: »

I'd imagine one's ability to move in time to music is strongly related to other, older senses. Matching your throw of a spear to the sprint of a dear, timing a jump to a swaying branch, hitting and dodging in a scuffle.

but why? Is it a mixture of old traits such as attracting a mate, showing good memetic skills, timing needed when hunting?

I'm not questioning the origins of music, more how are bodies instinctively react to it. I've noticed myself tapping my foot to music without my knowledge of it, I don't consciously choose to start tapping my foot it will just start if I hear music that has an agreeable beat. I'm wondering where this reaction comes from and how it might of started?

AtomicHorror

Zillah wrote: »

I'd imagine one's ability to move in time to music is strongly related to other, older senses. Matching your throw of a spear to the sprint of a dear, timing a jump to a swaying branch, hitting and dodging in a scuffle.

What is the evolutionary advantage of doing "the robot"?

Dades

AtomicHorror wrote: »

What is the evolutionary advantage of doing "the robot"?

When the robots take over and start using us as power cells you can pass yourself off as one of them.

It's called prevolution!

AtomicHorror

Dades wrote: »

When the robots take over and start using us as power cells you can pass yourself off as one of them.

It's called prevolution!

I can't imagine a worse power source than me. Maybe a turnip or something.

The Mad Hatter

AtomicHorror wrote: »

What is the evolutionary advantage of doing "the robot"?

Higher chance of attracting a sex machine?

Galvasean

AtomicHorror wrote: »

What is the evolutionary advantage of doing "the robot"?

There is none. it's an evolutionary dead end. No one ever got laid doing the robot.
Remember, most mutations are not beneficial.

AtomicHorror

The Mad Hatter wrote: »

Higher chance of attracting a sex machine?

:pac:

Galvasean wrote: »

There is none. it's an evolutionary dead end. No one ever got laid doing the robot.
Remember, most mutations are not beneficial.

Zillah

Goduznt Xzst wrote: »

but why? Is it a mixture of old traits such as attracting a mate, showing good memetic skills, timing needed when hunting?

I'm not questioning the origins of music, more how are bodies instinctively react to it. I've noticed myself tapping my foot to music without my knowledge of it, I don't consciously choose to start tapping my foot it will just start if I hear music that has an agreeable beat. I'm wondering where this reaction comes from and how it might of started?

I think having an irresistable urge to dance is far more conducive to camp fire antics than not.