Little People: Will Climate Change Shrink the Species?

TIME ^ | February 24, 2012 | By JEFFREY KLUGER

[Oldeconomybuyer]

If you think there are no new reasons to get freaked out by climate change, try this: There’s at least a theoretical possibility that a warmer and warmer world could lead to tinier and tinier humans. That’s the inevitable conclusion of a just-published study of Siferhippus sandae, the littlest horse that ever lived.

The Siferhippus sandae first appeared about 56 million years ago, and it was never a terribly prepossessing creature, weighing no more than 12 lbs. (5.5 kg). While it was not exactly built for steeplechase running, its skeletal architecture — not to mention its unmistakably equine face — mark it as a great-great-granddaddy of the modern horse.

But while the little critter had a grand evolutionary future in front of it, it came into the world at an unfortunate time — an era known as the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM), when a sharp spike in atmospheric CO2 led to a 10º F (5.5º C) rise in global temperature. In geological terms, the PETM didn’t last long — just 175,000 years — but biology moves faster than geology, and plenty of species felt the effects, with some existing ones dying out and other, new ones emerging. The Siferhippus sandae, it turns out, did something else, shrinking by about 30%, to 8.5 lbs (3.9 kg) — or about the size of a house cat — during the first 130,000 years of the PETM.

[Oldeconomybuyer]

[NoGrayZone]

Well, there goes moooo-cheles “get moving” movement!

[RetSignman]

Yeah, if the opposite applied, Eskimos would be GIANTS wouldn’t they?

[VRW Conspirator]

Junk Science Alert!

[mountainlion]

It seems to me that global warming has shrunk the brain size and capacity of all of the believers in the cult.

[Brad from Tennessee]

[. . .it came into the world at an unfortunate time — an era known as the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM), when a sharp spike in atmospheric CO2 led to a 10º F (5.5º C) rise in global temperature. . .]

The cave dwellers of that era ignored warnings that their over-sized vehicles, urban sprawl, heavy industry and smoke spewing metropolises would raise the average temperature.

[al baby]

[Yankee]

I just love little people. In fact, I’m nuts over them.

[pabianice]

http://www.amazon.com/Hothouse-Afternoon-Earth-Classics-Fantastic/dp/160010360X

[Ditter]

Stop bragging!

[YankeeReb]

Didn’t Dinosaurs evolve when most of the planet was in a warming phase? Wasn’t the woolly mammoth around during the ice age? Sounds like Time magazine is desperate to be seen as relevant once again.

[freedumb2003]

So it will be just “person tossing?”

[libertarian27]

I’m a 5’10” woman - I’m only this tall because I grew up in the 70’s during the Ice Age (Makes sense...don’t it)

Darn Ice Age - so hard to find tall pants......

[bgill]

Maybe then humans will be able to fit into airplane seats.

[Kickass Conservative]

Until I hear what Matt Roloff has to say about this, I will reserve judgment.

[Hayride]

I don’t know about it shrinking the size of the people but the puppet masters behind the carbon tax scheme want to shrink the size of the population.

[donmeaker]

Israel, in a warm climate, has the shortest average height.

Evolution is hard to predict. It has, on islands, selected both for small elephants, and large rats. First, the variation has to appear, and then the selection has to perfer a given variation. We don’t know if cold weather would select larger mass/surface area or smaller area so that warm winter coats (or burrows) can be provided.

[AnotherUnixGeek]

There’s at least a theoretical possibility that a warmer and warmer world could lead to tinier and tinier humans.

No, there isn't. Even if a warmer global temperature was proven to result in smaller-sized fauna (and that hasn't happened yet), technology already makes natural selection largely irrelevant to humans. And our control over our bodies is only going to become more refined and more powerful - 100 years from now, whether a person is 5 feet tall or 7 feet tall will be decided by that person, not by the temperature.

[Mike Darancette]

Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM), when a sharp spike in atmospheric CO2 led to a 10º F (5.5º C) rise in global temperature. In geological terms, the PETM didn’t last long — just 175,000 years..

Did the CO2 spike lead to heating or did heating cause the spike?

[a fool in paradise]

Signs say YES.

[brent13a]

If I'm not mistaken, in biblical times and even in our revolutionary times, everyone was significantly shorter......to the point where my average 6ft 230lbs body would have been considered a freak-of-nature or 'giant'.
This tells me that climate had/has almost nothing to do with our "size" over time. Instead a better diet & better medicine has/had everything to do with our 'size'.
I concur that these failing leftist rags are grasping at shorter and shorter straws to try and keep their noses above water.

[Lazamataz]

If you think there are no new reasons to get freaked out by climate change, try this:

If you think there are no new reasons lie about climate change, try Time.

[steelyourfaith]

 

Beam me to Planet Gore !

[FrankR]

So, that's what happened to the pres-ent...

[Pox]

The original story was published simply to push the theory, once again, that additional CO2 in the atmosphere causes a major increase of global temperatures. Previous research has shown that increase in atmospheric CO2 follows temperature increase, so, once again, this garbage has but one purpose, to promote the man made global warming hoax.

[AnTiw1]

these gm ‘fairy stories’ are starting to remind me of the ‘reefer madness’ studies of the 80s...every month there was a different one saying weed would make you psychotic, make you gay, make you grow breasts etc etc etc

waiting to see when these gm ‘scientists’ start aiming ‘between the legs’ so to speak...then youll know theyre desperate

[Sacajaweau]

Where do these idiots come up with this. It was a damn little horse. It didn’t turn into trigger.

[Iron Munro]

Smaller Carbon footprints from smaller people?

The Greenies should be 100% for it.

Maybe even 110% - No! Wait! - make it 117%.

[blueunicorn6]

Dear Jeff (CO TIME Magazine) - if you’re going to steal my Kentucky Derby joke, at least credit me. I guess integrity is shrinking at TIME.

[Dr. Bogus Pachysandra]

I like little women! They make some things look,,,errrr,,,,,larger!

[al baby]

Gives new meaning to pole dancing

[Dr. Bogus Pachysandra]

“Gives new meaning to pole dancing”

Ummmm,,,,errrr, Uh, Polish folk dancing, right?

[count-your-change]

What he lacked in size he made up in evilness.

[mrsmel]

Oh, so they believe that environment can affect genetics?

[Jack Hammer]

More egregious silliness from the folks over at Time magazine.

[lonevoice]

Um...ping?