Naked Science Forum

Life Sciences => Plant Sciences, Zoology & Evolution => Topic started by: therodgers21 on 18/09/2008 10:30:57

Title: Why do humans still have hair?
Post by: therodgers21 on 18/09/2008 10:30:57

therodgers21  asked the Naked Scientists:

Where (on a human body) do we still need hair? Why?

What do you think?

Title: Why do humans still have hair?
Post by: Don_1 on 18/09/2008 11:57:15

Hair on the head helps protect the scalp from burning in strong sunlight and helps to prevent heat loss in cold conditions. We can loose a great deal of body heat through our head.

It also avoids having unruly yobos from calling us 'slaphead'.

Title: Why do humans still have hair?
Post by: blakestyger on 18/09/2008 17:23:53

I heard that the odd patches of hair we retain - armpit and 'down there' - are to  hold the pheromones we secrete.

However, since the advent of almost universal showers in homes together with the array of chemicals that we are encouraged to use to cover up our natural odours, not to mention the current obsession with shaving everything, everybody's forgotten what pheromones smell like so it no longer has a purpose and might as well fall out and have done with it.