ABSTRACT
Early in his evolution, natural selection must have been the dominant force shaping the anatomy, morphology, and behavior of man. But at some point new selective forces began to take over – forces that are far less effective in other organisms. The point of departure was, probably, associated with intelligence, technical ability, learning ability, and particularly communication within the group – characters of which early traces are noticeable in some primates. Race is a common, innocent term for use with other animals, but heavily loaded with prejudice and social connotations in humans – in particular after the Holocaust. Any use of the word race in respect to humans immediately brings to mind racial discrimination. One of the oldest and most controversial issues in human evolution is the protection of heritable deleterious characters by medical care. Human populations must be changing genetically with time.
