Lesson plan

1. What human races do you know?
2. What factors cause the evolutionary process?
3. What influences the formation of the gene pool of a population?

What are human races?

Human predecessors are Australopithecus;
- the most ancient people - progressive australopithecines, archanthropes (pithecanthropes, synanthropes, Heidelberg man, etc.);
- ancient people - paleoanthropes (Neanderthals);
- fossil people of the modern anatomical type - neoanthropes (Cro-Magnons).

The historical development of man was carried out under the influence of the same factors of biological evolution as the formation of other types of living organisms. However, a person is characterized by such a unique phenomenon for living nature as an increasing influence on the anthropogenesis of social factors (labor activity, social lifestyle, speech and thinking).

For a modern person, social and labor relations have become leading and determining.

As a result of social development Homo sapiens has acquired unconditional advantages among all living beings. But this does not mean that the emergence of the social sphere canceled the action of biological factors. The social sphere only changed their manifestation. Homo sapiens as a species is an integral part of the biosphere and a product of its evolution.

These are historically formed groupings (groups of populations) of people, characterized by the similarity of morphological and physiological features. Racial differences are the result of people's adaptation to certain conditions of existence, as well as the historical and socio-economic development of human society.

There are three large races: Caucasoid (Eurasian), Mongoloid (Asian-American) and Australo-Negroid (Equatorial).

Chapter 8

Fundamentals of ecology

After reading this chapter, you will learn:

What does ecology study and why does every person need to know its basics;
- what is the significance of environmental factors: abiatic, biotic and anthropogenic;
- what role do the environmental conditions and internal properties of the population group play in the processes of change in its size over time;
- about different types of interactions of organisms;
- about the features of competitive relations and factors that determine the outcome of competition;
- on the composition and basic properties of the ecosystem;
- about energy flows and the circulation of substances that ensure the functioning of systems, and about the role in these processes

Even in the middle of the XX century. the word ecology was known only to specialists, but now it has become very popular; most often it is used, speaking about the unfavorable state of the nature around us.

Sometimes this term is used in combination with words such as society, family, culture, health. Is ecology really such a vast science that it can cover most of the problems facing humanity?

Kamensky A. A., Kriksunov E. V., Pasechnik V. V. Biology Grade 10
Submitted by readers from the website

Race- this is a group of people united on the basis of their mutual relationship, common origin and some external hereditary physical characteristics (skin and hair color, head shape, structure of the face as a whole and its parts - nose, lips, etc.). There are three main races of people: Caucasoid (white), Mongoloid (yellow), Negroid (black).

The ancestors of all races lived 90-92 thousand years ago. Starting from that time, people began to settle in territories that differ sharply from each other in terms of natural conditions.

According to scientists, in the process of the formation of modern man in Southeast Asia and neighboring North Africa, which are considered the ancestral home of man, two races arose - southwestern and northeastern. Subsequently, Caucasoids and Negroids descended from the first, and Mongoloids from the second.

The separation of the Caucasoid and Negroid races began about 40 thousand years ago.

Displacement of recessive genes to the outskirts of the population range

The outstanding geneticist N. I. Vavilov in 1927 discovered the law of the exit of individuals with recessive traits beyond the center of origin of new forms of organisms. According to this law, forms with dominant traits dominate in the center of the species distribution area, they are surrounded by heterozygous forms with recessive traits. The marginal part of the range is occupied by homozygous forms with recessive traits.

This law is closely connected with the anthropological observations of N. I. Vavilov. In 1924, the expedition members led by him witnessed an amazing phenomenon in Kafiristan (Nuristan), located in Afghanistan at an altitude of 3500-4000 m. They found that most of the inhabitants of the northern highlands had blue eyes. According to the hypothesis prevailing at that time, northern races were widespread here from ancient times and these places were considered a center of culture. N. I. Vavilov noted the impossibility of confirming this hypothesis with the help of historical, ethnographic and linguistic evidence. In his opinion, the blue eyes of the Nuristanis are a clear manifestation of the law of the exit of the owners of recessive genes to the outskirts of the range. Later this law was convincingly confirmed. N. Cheboksarov on the example of the population of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The origin of the signs of the Caucasian race is explained by migration and isolation.

All mankind can be divided into three large groups, or races: white (Caucasian), yellow (Mongoloid), black (Negroid). Representatives of each race have their own distinctive, inherited features of the body structure, hair shape, skin color, eye shape, skull shape, etc.

Representatives of the white race have light skin, protruding noses, people of the yellow race have a cheeky face, a special shape of the eyelid, and yellow skin. Blacks, who belong to the Negroid race, have dark skin, wide noses, and curly hair.

Why are there such differences in the appearance of representatives of different races, and why do each race have certain characteristics? Scientists answer this as follows: the human races were formed as a result of adaptation to different conditions of the geographical environment, and these conditions left their imprints on representatives of various races.

Negroid race (black)

Representatives of the Negroid race are distinguished by black or dark brown skin, black curly hair, a flattened wide nose and thick lips (Fig. 82).

Where blacks live, there is an abundance of sun, it's hot - people's skin is more than adequately exposed to sunlight. And overexposure is harmful. And so the body of people in hot countries for thousands of years has adapted to an excess of sun: a pigment has been developed in the skin that retains part of the sun's rays and, therefore, saves the skin from burns. Dark skin coloration is inherited. Hard curly hair, which forms an air cushion on the head, reliably protects a person from overheating.

Caucasian race (white)

Caucasians are characterized by fair skin, soft straight hair, a thick mustache and beard, a narrow nose and thin lips.

Representatives of the white race live in the northern regions, where the sun is a rare visitor, and they really need the sun's rays. In their skin, pigment is also produced, but at the height of summer, when the body, thanks to the sun's rays, is replenished with the right amount of vitamin D. At this time, representatives of the white race become swarthy.

Mongoloid race (yellow)

People belonging to the Mongoloid race have dark or lighter skin, straight coarse hair, sparse or undeveloped mustaches and beards, prominent cheekbones, lips and nose of medium thickness, almond-shaped eyes.

Where the representatives of the yellow race live, winds are frequent, even storms with dust and sand. And the locals endure such windy weather quite easily. Over the centuries, they have adapted to strong winds. Mongoloids have narrow eyes, as if on purpose, so that sand and dust get into them less, so that the wind does not irritate them, and they do not water. This sign is also inherited and is found in people of the Mongoloid race and in other geographical conditions. material from the site

Among people there are those who believe that people with white skin belong to the higher races, and those with yellow and black skin belong to the lower races. In their opinion, people with yellow and black skin are incapable of mental work and should only do physical work. These harmful ideas are still guided by racists in a number of third world countries. There, the work of blacks is paid lower than whites, blacks are subjected to humiliation and insults. In civilized countries, all peoples have the same rights.

Studies by N. N. Miklukho-Maclay on the equality of races

The Russian scientist Nikolai Nikolaevich Miklukho-Maclay, in order to prove the complete inconsistency of the theory of the existence of "lower" races incapable of mental development, settled in 1871 on the island of New Guinea, where representatives of the black race lived - the Papuans. For fifteen months he lived among the island-chans, became close to them, studied them

Instruction

Take a good look at yourself in the mirror. You are a representative of the Negroid (Australian-Negroid) race if you have the following features: dark (dark brown, black, yellow or chocolate brown) skin with poorly developed hair on the body and face; full fleshy lips, as if slightly turned inside out; wavy or curly often hard dark hair; dark (brown, black) eyes; rather narrow face with slightly pronounced cheekbones; high (often) growth; wide large nose, rather flat.

You are Caucasian (a representative of the Caucasian, Euro-Asian race), if you have: fair or swarthy skin; soft straight or wavy hair of light brown shades; pronounced hairline on the body (in men); light eyes (gray, gray-blue, greenish, blue, and so on); narrow nose; often thin lips; pronounced chin; medium or tall.

If you are a Mongoloid (representative of the Asian-American, Mongoloid race), then your appearance probably has a number of characteristic features. Such as: dark or light skin with a yellowish, yellowish-brown tint; coarse black straight hair; narrow; flat broad face with strongly pronounced cheekbones; flat wide nose; medium sized lips; weakly expressed hairline; medium or small height.

Useful advice

Sometimes it is difficult to determine what race a person belongs to. The fact is that each "pure" race has several intermediate ones. The Ural and Lapanoid groups are intermediate between the Mongoloid and Caucasoid. And the Ethiopian race combines the features of Negroids and Caucasians.

In addition, within each race, several small groups-races are distinguished. The Caucasoid group unites the White Sea-Baltic, Central European, Atlanto-Baltic, Indo-Mediterranean, Balkan-Caucasian groups.

Within the Mongoloid race, the Far East (Koreans, Chinese, Japanese), North Asian, South Asian (Javanese, Malays), Arctic (Chukchi, Koryaks, Eskimos), American groups are distinguished. Negroids are subdivided into Australoids, Veddoids and Melanesians.

Sources:

• Races of man, their origin and unity. Features of human evolution at the present stage

Properly selected clothes can completely change the appearance of a person, emphasize dignity, hide flaws. To find out your size, you need to make some simple calculations that will help you always buy the right clothes.

You will need

• Tape measure.

Instruction

The main Russian size table is half girth, this rule works for both. To get the desired figure, you need to measure the circumference of the chest in a centimeter at the most protruding points and divide the resulting number in half. A chest circumference of 96 centimeters corresponds to a size 48, a chest circumference of 100 centimeters corresponds to a size 50. If the number you received during the measurement does not match the size ruler, select the closest option. If the chest circumference is 95 centimeters, you can try on size 48.

Secondary measurements for a woman are hips and waist, for - waist and neck. Since it often happens that the top and bottom of the figure do not correspond to the same size. Men need these measurements to buy shirts and trousers, women - to buy skirts and trousers.

As a rule, height is indicated on clothing labels. And in the case of clothing, the type of physique is often indicated. When choosing clothes by height, make sure that your height differs by no more than 3 centimeters from that indicated on the label.

Often there is a need to correlate domestic sizes with foreign ones. For men, to find out the American clothing size, you need to subtract 10 from the Russian one. Thus, 50 domestic size corresponds to 40. For women, to find out the American clothing size, you need to subtract 34 from the domestic one. This corresponds to 12. European and Russian sizes

Anthropologist Stanislav Drobyshevsky about the common features of the Caucasoid race, the main groups and ways of settling its representatives. What are the characteristics of the Caucasian race in general? What groups can be distinguished among Caucasians? What is the reason for the variability within one race? Candidate of Biological Sciences Stanislav Drobyshevsky talks about this.

- The Caucasoid race is most often called that, although the term "Eurasian race" is accepted in Russian anthropology. One could call it a "Eurasian-African race", but there is no such term. The Caucasoid race is far from being settled only in Europe, its range is much wider, not even counting the fact that Caucasoids have now settled anywhere: in Australia, in America, in Africa.

Even the original area of ​​​​the formation of the Caucasoid race included, in addition to Europe itself, also the north of Africa, to the Sahara, and at some time the Sahara was a rather important region, and probably the same people lived there, and the entire Middle East, which is geographically Asia, and further, up to Northern India. Currently, approximately half of the population of India is, strictly speaking, Caucasoids. In total, the Caucasoid race is one of the most widespread from the Atlantic Ocean to the Indian Ocean, around the entire Mediterranean Sea. And it is natural that in such a vast territory it is very heterogeneous, but there are common features that allow it to be distinguished.

Caucasian race characterized by the lightest color of skin, eyes and hair, but all northern Caucasians and those living outside the equatorial belt have much lighter skin, while the southernmost Caucasians are still darker. The center of lightness of the skin of Caucasians is located in the Baltic Sea, in the Baltic States, Finland, Karelia, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and the farther south, the darker the skin becomes.

The eyes and hair of some Caucasians can be of different shades, some generally have the lightest hair and eyes on the planet, while other Caucasians have very dark eyes and hair. The hair and eyes of Caucasians in the Mediterranean countries are almost all only dark, but there are also lighter shades.

In North Africa, light eyes and hair are extremely rare. Approximately 2% of light eyes are found in Caucasians of Northern Egypt. Blond hair and eyes are found among Kabyles, for example, in the Atlas Mountains, in Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, but this is rare. Sometimes it slips, say, in the Hindu Kush and Pakistan. And these individual light-colored people in the southern populations gave reason to talk about the soldiers of Alexander the Great, who, of course, were blond and reached India, about the vandals who passed through Africa to Tunisia and settled there, and now their blood is in the kabilas. It is unlikely that the soldiers of Alexander the Great, and the vandals, could have so strongly influenced the locals. Moreover, fair-haired, light-eyed people in the south are individuals, and their fractions of a percent, as a rule, or 2% maximum for eyes in Egypt. There is variation from north to south. This variability is quite cunning, it is not consistent everywhere, because the territory of both Europe and the entire western part of Asia is not blocked by some transcendent geographical barriers. There are, of course, the Alps in the middle of Europe, there is the Caucasus, there is the same Hindu Kush, but they are quite bypassed on the sides. And Europe has always been a place of rapid population movements, people did not sit still. I'm not talking about the 20th century, but about earlier times: both in the Bronze Age and in the Neolithic, people wandered back and forth, and from north to south, and from south to north, from west to east, from east to west. Therefore, at present, it is extremely problematic to single out any strict variants of Caucasians.

There are several main groups of Caucasians. In the Mediterranean zone and further up to India lives indo-mediterranean race, having the darkest pigmented skin. Facial features, like all Caucasians, regular, thin lips, narrow nose. To the south live equatorials with a wide nose, and the contrast in appearance is very sharp. In India, the Dravidian race is very different from the South Indian race, and in West Africa the facial features of the Ethiopian race are different from the Negroids. In history, there was no period of isolation of the Proto-Caucasians from the Proto-Equatorial peoples and races. On a Caucasoid scale, the Indo-Mediterraneans are relatively small in body size, they are quite graceful, but on a global scale they cannot be called particularly small. Although there are groups of almost pygmy growth. For example, in the Sahara, Biasutti described the so-called Paleo-Saharan type of people; they are also found in Egypt. These are Bedouins, their height is about a meter and fifty. Low population growth occurs in conditions of isolation from all neighboring tribes, living in oases are closed within their tribe and enter into closely related relationships, which leads to the degeneration of the people.

North of the Indo-Mediterraneans live groups of the Balkan-Caucasian race. The Balkan-Caucasian race is distributed mainly in the Balkans, including the Carpathians, nearby territories, and in the Caucasus. The question arises: to what extent are the Caucasian and Balkan populations related to each other? They could have acquired similar traits independently, but with a high probability they were related to some extent. Sometimes they are called dinar type . The Balkan-Caucasian race is different increased massiveness of the chest, and large sizes of the face and nose. The widest faces in the world are found in the North Caucasus. In Georgia, the population is distinguished by a very powerful growth of hair on the whole body, and on the face - especially thick beards and mustaches. Such powerful vegetation was still found only among the white people of the Ainu, the first inhabitants of the Japanese islands, who have now become mestizos, mixed with the Japanese Mongoloids who came to the islands.

In Europe, the Montenegrins and some peoples of the Caucasus, for example, Ossetians of very tall stature, have the largest body sizes. The Balkan-Caucasian race apparently arose in conditions of rather powerful isolation, in mountainous conditions, and there are clearly traces of adaptation to mountain conditions, including at the biochemical level. For example, the increased development of muscles, because the muscles store blood well and, accordingly, oxygen, the development of the respiratory tract, that is, large lungs and, accordingly, a large chest, a large nose with a hump.

Further north is the distribution zone of the Central European, or middle Caucasian race. This is probably the largest part in terms of numbers, if we take the population within the Eurasian race. Although, given that India has a population close to a billion, Pakistan also has a lot, then maybe the Indo-Mediterranean race roughly gives the same number.

The Central European race as part of the Caucasoid race is a little average: with a straight nose, with small face sizes, most often with blond, as a rule, wavy hair - light blond, dark blond. Men sometimes grow beards and mustaches. Basically, representatives of the Central European race settled in other parts of the world during the Age of Discovery, that is, they came to America, Australia, South Africa, India and Asia, there are not very many of them.

The facial features of people of the Central European race are very variable, there are many options. Many anthropologists have tried to find some logic in the distribution of these variants, but they are not very successful. The external signs of people of the Central European race change randomly when viewed from north to south, from west to east. The maximum approximation in the similarity of facial features of the Central European race was found by Vasily Evgenievich Deryabin, who discovered that in the central part of Russia, signs of similarity among Russians are distributed not from west to east or from north to south, but along river valleys.

Perhaps, in a similar way, it will be possible to determine in Western Europe the signs of the similarity of people of the Central European race. Since ancient times, the main roads in Russia have been rivers, tribes settled along the rivers in summer on boats, in winter on sledges. That's why the groups living along the river are similar to each other. All trade routes of Russia passed from hand to hand - the path "from the Varangians to the Greeks" connected the Baltic Sea with the Pont Aksinsky (Black Sea), the "Great Silk Road" was also laid along the rivers. And since the rivers flow in cunning zigzags, the distribution of anthropological features of people of the Central European race in Russia turns out to be cunning zigzags.

The northernmost Caucasians are divided into two races. West - Atlanto-Baltic race , is a fairly tall, large people, with very white skin, blond hair and eyes, with a straight narrow nose and an elongated, not wide face.

And further east, in the area of ​​the White Sea - White Sea-Baltic race , its representatives are shorter, their faces are wider, a slightly snub-nosed nose, more often the back of the nose is concave, smaller eyes, beards and mustaches in men do not grow well. Of course, this description may give the impression that by looking at a person, you can determine what race he belongs to. This is not entirely true, because the described differences in the appearance of people are rather sketchy and average, and cannot be an accurate marker of the difference between races. In each particular settlement, you can find completely different types of people, so determining the type “by eye”, from a photograph or even from individual measurements, is impossible, that is, in general, a race can only be determined by studying the entire population of people.

Stanislav Drobyshevsky - Candidate of Biological Sciences, Associate Professor, Department of Anthropology, Faculty of Biology, Lomonosov Moscow State University. M.V. Lomonosov, scientific editor of the Anthropogenesis.ru portal
Based on video

The population of our planet is so diverse that one can only be surprised. What kind of nationalities, nationalities you will not meet! Everyone has their own faith, customs, traditions, orders. Its beautiful and unusual culture. However, all these differences are formed only by the people themselves in the process of social historical development. And what underlies the differences that appear externally? After all, we are all very different:

• blacks;
• yellow-skinned;
• white;
• with different eye colors
• various heights, etc.

It is obvious that the reasons are purely biological, not dependent on the people themselves and formed over thousands of years of evolution. This is how the modern races of man were formed, which theoretically explain the visual diversity of human morphology. Let us consider in more detail what this term is, what is its essence and meaning.

The concept of "race of people"

What is a race? It is not a nation, not a people, not a culture. These concepts should not be confused. After all, representatives of different nationalities and cultures can freely belong to the same race. Therefore, the definition can be given such as the science of biology gives.

Human races are a set of external morphological features, that is, those that are the phenotype of a representative. They were formed under the influence of external conditions, the impact of a complex of biotic and abiotic factors, and were fixed in the genotype during evolutionary processes. Thus, the signs that underlie the division of people into races should include:

• growth;
• skin and eye color;
• structure and shape of hair;
• hairiness of the skin;
• features of the structure of the face and its parts.

All those signs of Homo sapiens as a biological species that lead to the formation of the external appearance of a person, but do not affect his personal, spiritual and social qualities and manifestations, as well as the level of self-development and self-education.

People of different races have a completely identical biological springboard for the development of certain abilities. Their general karyotype is the same:

• women - 46 chromosomes, that is, 23 pairs of XX;
• men - 46 chromosomes, 22 pairs XX, 23 pairs - XY.

This means that all representatives of a reasonable person are one and the same, among them there are no more or less developed, superior to others, higher. From a scientific point of view, everyone is equal.

Types of human races, formed over about 80 thousand years, have an adaptive value. It is proved that each of them was formed in order to provide a person with the possibility of a normal existence in a given habitat, to facilitate adaptability to climatic, relief and other conditions. There is a classification showing which races of Homo sapiens existed before, and which are at the present time.

Race classification

She is not alone. The thing is that until the 20th century it was customary to distinguish 4 races of people. These were the following varieties:

• Caucasian;
• australoid;
• negroid;
• Mongoloid.

For each, detailed characteristic features were described by which any individual of the human species could be identified. However, later the classification became widespread, which includes only 3 human races. This became possible due to the unification of the Australoid and Negroid groups into one.

Therefore, the modern types of human races are as follows.

1. Large: Caucasoid (European), Mongoloid (Asian-American), Equatorial (Australian-Negroid).
2. Small: many different branches that were formed from one of the large races.

Each of them is characterized by its own characteristics, signs, external manifestations in the appearance of people. All of them are considered by anthropologists, and the science itself that studies this issue is biology. Human races have interested people since ancient times. Indeed, completely contrasting external features often became the cause of racial strife and conflict.

Genetic studies of recent years allow again to talk about the division of the equatorial group into two. Consider all 4 races of people who stood out earlier and have become relevant again recently. We note the signs and features.

australoid race

Typical representatives of this group include the indigenous people of Australia, Melanesia, Southeast Asia, and India. Also the name of this race is Australo-Veddoid or Australo-Melanesian. All synonyms make it clear which minor races are included in this group. They are the following:

• australoids;
• veddoids;
• Melanesians.

In general, the characteristics of each group represented do not vary too much among themselves. There are several main features that characterize all small races of people of the Australoid group.

1. Dolichocephaly - an elongated shape of the skull in relation to the proportions of the rest of the body.
2. Deep-set eyes, wide slit. The color of the iris is predominantly dark, sometimes almost black.
3. The nose is wide, the bridge of the nose is pronounced flat.
4. The body hair is very well developed.
5. The hair on the head is dark in color (sometimes there are natural blonds among Australians, which was the result of a once-fixed natural genetic mutation of the species). Their structure is rigid, they can be curly or slightly curly.
6. The growth of people is average, often above average.
7. The physique is thin, elongated.

Within the Australoid group, people of different races differ from each other sometimes quite strongly. So, a native of Australia can be a tall blonde with a dense build, with straight hair, with light brown eyes. At the same time, the native of Melanesia will be a thin, short dark-skinned representative who has curly black hair and almost black eyes.

Therefore, the general features described above for the entire race are only an average version of their cumulative analysis. Naturally, miscegenation also takes place - a mixture of different groups as a result of natural crossing of species. That is why it is sometimes very difficult to identify a specific representative and attribute him to one or another small and large race.

Negroid race

The people who make up this group are the settlers of the following territories:

• Eastern, Central and Southern Africa;
• part of Brazil;
• some peoples of the USA;
• representatives of the West Indies.

In general, such races of people as Australoids and Negroids used to unite in the equatorial group. However, research in the 21st century has proved the failure of this order. After all, the differences in the signs shown between the designated races are too great. And some similarities are explained very simply. After all, the habitats of these individuals are very similar in terms of the conditions of existence, therefore, the adaptations in appearance are also close.

So, the representatives of the Negroid race are characterized by the following signs.

1. Very dark, sometimes blue-black, skin color, as it is especially rich in melanin content.
2. Wide eye slit. They are large, dark brown, almost black.
3. The hair is dark, curly, coarse.
4. Growth varies, often low.
5. The limbs are very long, especially the arms.
6. The nose is wide and flat, the lips are very thick, fleshy.
7. The jaw is devoid of a chin protrusion and protrudes forward.
8. Ears are large.
9. Facial hair is poorly developed, beard and mustache are absent.

Negroids are easy to distinguish from others by external data. Below are the different races of people. The photo reflects how clearly Negroids differ from Europeans and Mongoloids.

Mongoloid race

Representatives of this group are characterized by special features that allow them to adapt to rather difficult external conditions: desert sands and winds, blinding snow drifts, and so on.

Mongoloids are the indigenous people of Asia and much of America. Their characteristic features are as follows.

1. Narrow or slanting eyes.
2. The presence of epicanthus - a specialized skin fold aimed at covering the inner corner of the eye.
3. The color of the iris is light to dark brown.
4. characterized by brachycephaly (short head).
5. Superciliary ridges thickened, strongly protruding.
6. Sharp high cheekbones are well defined.
7. The hairline on the face is poorly developed.
8. The hair on the head is coarse, dark in color, of a straight structure.
9. The nose is not wide, the bridge of the nose is low.
10. Lips of different thickness, usually narrow.
11. Skin color varies in different representatives from yellow to swarthy, there are also light-skinned people.

It should be noted that another characteristic feature is short stature, both in men and women. It is the Mongoloid group that prevails in numbers, if we compare the main races of people. They populated almost all climatographic zones of the Earth. Close to them in terms of quantitative characteristics are Caucasians, which we will consider below.

Caucasian race

First of all, we will designate the predominant habitats of people from this group. It:

• Europe.
• North Africa.
• Western Asia.

Thus, representatives unite the two main parts of the world - Europe and Asia. Since the living conditions were also very different, then the general signs are again an average option after analyzing all the indicators. Thus, the following features of appearance can be distinguished.

1. Mesocephaly - medium head in the structure of the skull.
2. Horizontal section of the eyes, absence of strongly pronounced superciliary ridges.
3. Narrow protruding nose.
4. Lips of different thickness, usually of medium size.
5. Soft curly or straight hair. There are blondes, brunettes, brown-haired.
6. Eye color from light blue to brown.
7. Skin color also varies from pale, white to swarthy.
8. The hairline is very well developed, especially on the chest and face of men.
9. The jaws are orthognathic, that is, slightly pushed forward.

In general, a European is easy to distinguish from others. Appearance allows you to do this almost unmistakably, even without using additional genetic data.

If you look at all the races of people, the photo of whose representatives is located below, the difference becomes obvious. However, sometimes the signs are mixed so deeply that the identification of the individual becomes almost impossible. He is able to belong to two races at once. This is further aggravated by intraspecific mutation, which leads to the appearance of new traits.

For example, Negroid albinos are a special case of the appearance of blonds in the Negroid race. A genetic mutation that disrupts the integrity of racial traits in a given group.

Origin of human races

Where did such a variety of signs of the appearance of people come from? There are two main hypotheses that explain the origin of human races. It:

• monocentrism;
• polycentrism.

However, none of them has yet become an officially accepted theory. According to the monocentric point of view, initially, about 80 thousand years ago, all people lived in the same territory, and therefore their appearance was approximately the same. However, over time, growing numbers have led to a wider settlement of people. As a result, some groups found themselves in difficult climatic conditions.

This led to the development and fixation at the genetic level of some morphological adaptations that help in survival. For example, dark skin and curly hair provide thermoregulation and a cooling effect on the head and body in Negroids. And the narrow cut of the eyes protects them from sand and dust, as well as from blinding by white snow among the Mongoloids. The developed hairline of Europeans is a kind of thermal insulation in severe winters.

Another hypothesis is called polycentrism. She says that different types of human races descended from several ancestral groups that were unevenly settled around the globe. That is, there were initially several foci, from which the development and consolidation of racial characteristics began. Again, under the influence of climatic conditions.

That is, the process of evolution proceeded linearly, simultaneously affecting aspects of life on different continents. This is how the formation of modern types of people from several phylogenetic lines took place. However, it is not necessary to state for sure about the validity of this or that hypothesis, since there is no evidence of a biological and genetic nature, at the molecular level.

Modern classification

The races of people according to the estimates of current scientists have the following classification. Two trunks stand out, and each of them has three large races and many small ones. It looks like this.

1. Western trunk. Includes three races:

• Caucasians;
• capoids;
• negroids.

The main groups of Caucasians: Nordic, Alpine, Dinaric, Mediterranean, Falian, East Baltic and others.

Minor races of capoids: Bushmen and Khoisans. They inhabit South Africa. In the fold above the eyelids, they are similar to the Mongoloids, but in other ways they differ sharply from them. The skin is not elastic, which is why the appearance of early wrinkles is characteristic of all representatives.

Groups of Negroids: Pygmies, Nilots, Negroes. All of them are settlers of different parts of Africa, therefore they have similar signs of appearance. Very dark eyes, the same skin and hair. Thick lips and no chin protrusion.

2. Eastern trunk. Includes the following major races:

• australoids;
• americanoids;
• Mongoloids.

Mongoloids - are divided into two groups - northern and southern. These are the indigenous inhabitants of the Gobi Desert, which left its mark on the appearance of these people.

Americanoids are the population of North and South America. They have a very high growth, the epicanthus is often developed, especially in children. However, the eyes are not as narrow as those of the Mongoloids. Combine the characteristics of several races.

Australoids consist of several groups:

• Melanesians;
• veddoids;
• Ainu;
• Polynesians;
• Australians.

Their characteristic features have been discussed above.

Minor races

This concept is a rather highly specialized term that allows you to identify any person to any race. After all, each big one is subdivided into many small ones, and they are already compiled on the basis of not only small external distinguishing features, but also include data from genetic studies, clinical analyzes, and molecular biology facts.

Therefore, small races - this is what allows you to more accurately reflect the position of each individual in the system of the organic world, and specifically, in the composition of the species Homo sapiens sapiens. What specific groups exist was discussed above.

Racism

As we found out, there are different races of people. Their signs can be strongly polar. This is what led to the emergence of the theory of racism. She says that one race is superior to another, since it is made up of more highly organized and perfect beings. At one time, this led to the appearance of slaves and their white masters.

However, from the point of view of science, this theory is completely absurd and untenable. The genetic predisposition to the development of certain skills and abilities is the same for all peoples. The proof that all races are biologically equal is the possibility of free interbreeding between them with the preservation of the health and viability of the offspring.