In a recent article from the Washington Post, we find that scientists have made some troubling discoveries regarding mating practices during the Stone Age. Roughly eight to twelve thousand years ago commercial farming began to take root in human culture. According to this article it was these large scale agricultural institutions that led to a bottleneck in the population.
It would seem that at this point in history only the wealthier members of society produced families on a large scale. In fact, the numbers touted here indicate that only one man would pas on his DNA for every 17 women. This points to the conclusion that very few men were having sex with the majority of women. While such figures don't bode well for your Average Joe, it appears that men with money and power were the first choice for eligible young women.
The study involved testing blood and saliva samples from 456 men who live in various parts of Africa, Asia, and Europe. Scientist centered their focus on the Y chromosome, which is the chromosome passed down via male members of the family. By using computers to generate statistical models, the scientist were able to determine there were two definite bottlenecks in human reproduction.
The time line of these bottlenecks definitely opens a lot of questions up for both supporters of Evolution and Creationists as well. Evolutionists would suggest that it is indicative of the "survival of the fittest," in that the more wealthy members of society had their pick of women to marry and reproduce with.
Creationists can also point out that these bottlenecks coincide with Biblical events, like the Great Flood mentioned in Genesis. ABC reported in 2012 that Robert Ballard, the scientist who located the Titanic, believes this flood took place about 7,000 years ago. This would have definitely limited the population, and the possibility that more males survived such an event is definitely real.
Either way, one important thing can definitely be learned from this data - what we do today could well affect generations to come for thousands of years.
What do you think? Let us know what your opinion is in the comments below!
