10 Characteristics That Make Us Humans Special Creatures

You may have heard a lot out there that what differentiates humans from other animals is that we are endowed with intelligence. Not that that's not true, but there are other important items that make us thinking humans even more special. Live Science has brought together some of these reasons - see below:

1 - The speech

Compared to chimpanzees, the human larynx is located in a lower region in the throat - this small anatomical difference is responsible for giving us the ability to speak. It was not always so, however - our ancestors, who lived at least 350, 000 years ago, did not have the larynx as well developed as ours - it is an evolutionary thing, therefore.

In addition, humans have a bone known as a horseshoe-shaped hyoid that is located below the tongue at the beginning of the neck. Because it is an independent bone and is not linked to any other bone, we can better articulate the words we speak as we talk to someone.

2 - Upright Posture

Among primates, humans are the only ones capable of being fully upright and moving smoothly. It may seem like a simple thing, but being bipedal and walking hands-free allows us to use them as tools, which throughout human evolution has been a great event.

On the other hand, this upright posture eventually made human birth the most dangerous of the animal kingdom. This is because the bones of the pelvic region have undergone changes to support the erect body, and considering the size of a baby's head, it is not difficult to understand why we are talking about danger.

About a century ago, the biggest cause of female mortality was labor. This also has to do with the lumbar region, which, to keep us standing, suffered changes during the evolutionary process and ended up making the pain at the place of delivery even greater.

3 - Lack of hair

It's fine that we have hair and hair, but compared to the other primates, visibly speaking, it seems to be different. Most bizarre of all is the fact that we have the same number of hair follicles as monkeys - sometimes even more. The difference is that our hair is much thinner and lighter.

4 - The hands

When it comes to evolution, we constantly hear that humans are the only ones "gifted" with opposing thumbs, which allow us to hold objects precisely. In fact, most primates have opposing thumbs - some have opposing toes even on their feet.

The difference with human opposing thumbs is that we can make our thumbs reach the whole area of ​​our hand and even reach the little finger. What's more, we can flex our smaller fingers toward the thumb, which gives us a unique manual dexterity.

5 - The brain

There is no doubt that the human brain is the best developed of the entire animal kingdom, even though it is not the largest brain in the world, neither in size nor in comparison with the rest of the body. The largest brain in the world is that of the sperm whale, and when it comes to proportion, be aware that some birds have brains that correspond to 8% of their body weight, whereas with us humans, this is usually 2.5. %.

The question of the human brain comes from its ability to function and its ability to make us think rationally and in some cases ingenious - or do you think Marie Curie, Einstein, Mozart, Simone de Beauvoir and so many others have not proved that Is the human brain really an amazing machine?

6 - Humans and this habit of wearing clothes

Because we are not as hairy as our primate relatives, we eventually developed into clothing to protect the body. We are the only animals in the world with this custom. The use of clothing has influenced the evolution of other species, including lice and moths that feed on that forgotten coat in the closet.

7 - The fire, of course

Another item that eventually became commonplace and therefore commonplace. It must be remembered, however, that fire was a great advantage for our ancestors, who knew, for example, that there were other people around when a fire was lit. It was a unique privilege: we were always the only animals able to see in the dark with the aid of devices such as fire.

In addition, fire was the most effective way to keep people warm during the winter, leaving us unable to survive long in cold regions.

The fire also allowed us to cook our food - this was such an important factor that many scientists believe that cooking food interfered with human evolution, since cooked food is more easily chewed and digested, which may have contributed to the reduction in the size of our teeth. and gums.

8 - We get red

No other animal turns red when it is embarrassed - this is unique to humans. Charles Darwin once spoke of it and defined the fact that we are blushing as "the most peculiar and most human of expressions."

It is not yet known why we turn red and involuntarily reveal some emotions in this way. This trait is believed to exist to keep people honest. It will be?

9 - Long childhood

Humans are the only ones who live under the care of their parents for so long compared to other primates. In terms of evolution, it would make much more sense for childhood to be smaller and smaller, so this question is still one that brings together several hypothetical answers.

The biggest suspicion, however, is that our slow development has to do with the complexity of the human brain, which requires more time to grow and learn. Makes sense, doesn't it?

10 - Adulthood

The life of many animals is basically to reproduce until they die, but we humans want more than that. Women survive and live much longer after they become mothers.

This may have to do with social relations, so common between humans. Grandparents, for example, play a key role in this, as they often help their children raise their grandchildren. That's a good excuse to hug your grandparents.

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And did you already know all these advantages of being a thinking creature? Can you remember any more? Tell us in the comments!