Neanderthals had outsize effect on human biology

[Potoooooooo]

http://www.nature.com/news/neanderthals-had-outsize-effect-on-human-biology-1.18086

Our ancestors were not a picky bunch. Overwhelming genetic evidence shows that Homo sapiens had sex with Neander*thals, Denisovans and other archaic relatives. Now researchers are using large genomics studies to unravel the decidedly mixed contributions that these ancient romps made to human biology — from the ability of H. sapiens to cope with environments outside Africa, to the tendency of modern humans to get asthma, skin diseases and maybe even depression.

 

[fromderinside]

I guess asthma could be seen as a depalitating condition that would be useful to those living in severe cold.

 

[Bronzeage]

Neanderthal have been given a bad rap for the past century or so, but Neanderthal girls were hot. What's more, they really went for homo sapiens men. There was something about a large cranium that drove them crazy.

 

[fromderinside]

Neanderthal have been given a bad rap for the past century or so, but Neanderthal girls were hot. What's more, they really went for homo sapiens men. There was something about a large cranium that drove them crazy.

Too bad they turned out to be like the female black widow and praying Mantis.

 

[ApostateAbe]

Variations in depression are about 33% genetically heritable. If neanderthal genes are responsible for the genetics depression, that would be interesting. I have speculated that depression is a gene selected to motivate suicide among unproductive or counterproductive members of the tribe, and such a genotype may make more sense in colder climates where resources are scarce and productivity per capita is essential. However, suicide and depression rates among races have only a minor correspondence (at most) to the share of Neanderthal DNA among the races. East Asians have high Neanderthal DNA but low rates of depression or suicide. So the hypothesis seems unlikely. The Nature article reports only a "tiny effect" of each gene identified.

 

[Bronzeage]

Oh for fuck's sake.

 

[Underseer]

Variations in depression are about 33% genetically heritable. If neanderthal genes are responsible for the genetics depression, that would be interesting. I have speculated that depression is a gene selected to motivate suicide among unproductive or counterproductive members of the tribe, and such a genotype may make more sense in colder climates where resources are scarce and productivity per capita is essential. However, suicide and depression rates among races have only a minor correspondence (at most) to the share of Neanderthal DNA among the races. East Asians have high Neanderthal DNA but low rates of depression or suicide. So the hypothesis seems unlikely. The Nature article reports only a "tiny effect" of each gene identified.

Yeah, but chimps get depressed. Doesn't that throw a monkey wrench (pun intended) into this idea of Neanderthal DNA contributing to depression?

 

[Achwienichtig]

The only reason I'm depressed is because there ain't any more of those hot Neanderthal babes to romp around with anymore. Bronzeage knows what I'm talking about.

 

[Bronzeage]

The only reason I'm depressed is because there ain't any more of those hot Neanderthal babes to romp around with anymore. Bronzeage knows what I'm talking about.

I don't know about any depressing suicidal gene, but a Neanderthal babe could give a man something to live for.

 

[braces_for_impact]

Plus she can whoop ass on any other Sapiens that are giving you problems.

 

[Achwienichtig]

HA. I once went to a Flamenco concerto in NYC, and the Flamenco dancers there were totally not my body type. They were too tall, too broad chested, too big boned for my tastes. But . . . boy they were powerful! And Flamenco dance has a way of turning that power into seductiveness. I mean, these were real Amazonian women who could literally rock a man's world. It made me suspect that they left their men bruised, sore, and unable to move after sex, but very happy to be bruised, sore, and unable to move.

I suspect that's what it would have been like for a Homo Sapiens man to copulate with a Neanderthal. I'm probably wrong, but that's the image I have.

 

[fromderinside]

HA. I once went to a Flamenco concerto in NYC, and the Flamenco dancers there were totally not my body type. They were too tall, too broad chested, too big boned for my tastes. But . . . boy they were powerful! And Flamenco dance has a way of turning that power into seductiveness. I mean, these were real Amazonian women who could literally rock a man's world. It made me suspect that they left their men bruised, sore, and unable to move after sex, but very happy to be bruised, sore, and unable to move.

I suspect that's what it would have been like for a Homo Sapiens man to copulate with a Neanderthal. I'm probably wrong, but that's the image I have.

You guys miss the point. Neanderthal women caused the demise of the Neanderthal with that killing their viscera driven mates while he pumped away. Cro-magnon (early modern human) men knew how to duck her lethal bites so neanderthal genes are over represented in homo sapien sapien.

 

[Bronzeage]

HA. I once went to a Flamenco concerto in NYC, and the Flamenco dancers there were totally not my body type. They were too tall, too broad chested, too big boned for my tastes. But . . . boy they were powerful! And Flamenco dance has a way of turning that power into seductiveness. I mean, these were real Amazonian women who could literally rock a man's world. It made me suspect that they left their men bruised, sore, and unable to move after sex, but very happy to be bruised, sore, and unable to move.

I suspect that's what it would have been like for a Homo Sapiens man to copulate with a Neanderthal. I'm probably wrong, but that's the image I have.

You guys miss the point. Neanderthal women caused the demise of the Neanderthal with that killing their viscera driven mates while he pumped away. Cro-magnon (early modern human) men knew how to duck her lethal bites so neanderthal genes are over represented in homo sapien sapien.

It's not our fault that once the Sapiens came to town, the Neanderthal guys couldn't get a date.

 

[fromderinside]

You guys miss the point. Neanderthal women caused the demise of the Neanderthal with that killing their viscera driven mates while he pumped away. Cro-magnon (early modern human) men knew how to duck her lethal bites so neanderthal genes are over represented in homo sapien sapien.

It's not our fault that once the Sapiens came to town, the Neanderthal guys couldn't get a date.

Not true. Neanderthal ladies would date anybody. They were hungry lasses. It turned on our lads being faster than their bites on dark nights in the odd cave. Rumor has it that's where Bitch'n became popular.

 

[Bronzeage]

It's not our fault that once the Sapiens came to town, the Neanderthal guys couldn't get a date.

Not true. Neanderthal ladies would date anybody. They were hungry lasses. It turned on our lads being faster than their bites on dark nights in the odd cave. Rumor has it that's where Bitch'n became popular.

Once the Sapiens appeared on the scene, the Thalboys were just stuck out. Like the Nandies(that's what we called them), used to say, "It takes a Sappy to make a girl happy."

 

[rjh01]

You all got it the wrong way round. It was not the Neanderthal ladies that were hot, it was the Neanderthal MEN that were hot. The Neanderthal tribes were wiped out and so would any cross breeds raised by them. So the only survivors would be raised by human parents, which would be the females.

Unless of course they swapped who was in a tribe. Then anything goes and you are still wrong.

 

[Bronzeage]

It's the red hair.

 

[Potoooooooo]

Some of the men weren't bad looking either

 

[cornbread_r2]

It's the red hair.
View attachment 3615

The 3% of me that's Neanderthal just got a chub!

 

[KeepTalking]

Variations in depression are about 33% genetically heritable. If neanderthal genes are responsible for the genetics depression, that would be interesting. I have speculated that depression is a gene selected to motivate suicide among unproductive or counterproductive members of the tribe, and such a genotype may make more sense in colder climates where resources are scarce and productivity per capita is essential. However, suicide and depression rates among races have only a minor correspondence (at most) to the share of Neanderthal DNA among the races. East Asians have high Neanderthal DNA but low rates of depression or suicide. So the hypothesis seems unlikely. The Nature article reports only a "tiny effect" of each gene identified.

Do you think that the prevalence of ritual suicide in feudal Japan might factor into this? I am not aware of any other culture that embraced such a practice, but I could be wrong.