The uvula, again.

Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports
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The response to the question in the archive about the uvula got me wondering. OK so we don’t know what its for (makes me wonder what we pay people to do), but you (they) hypothosize that its a useless vestigial appendage comparable to the appendix. Now this would be acceptable, but you went on to say that other animals have them. This begs the question, do alot of animals have them? Are they in only primates? If lesser life forms like dogs and squirrels (don’t ask why i picked those two) have them doesn’t that argue against the concept of it being some evolutionary dead end, or appendage made obsolete? I could maybe accept that if us and primates have them, we all could have evolved to not need them, but if other far less related and completely different species have them it seems kinda unlikely. The point being, can you scare up a little more info on this puppy. What happened to those clowns who had them chopped out? Could they speak arabic? Did they complain about any side effects? Trouble swallowing, or other nose related issues that may pertain to the opposing theory offered?

The facts expressed here belong to everybody, the opinions to me. The distinction is
yours to draw…

Omniscient; BAG

Link to Mailbag Article: What’s the uvula for? – CKDext

[Note: This message has been edited by CKDextHavn]

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Omniscient, I can’t speak for uvulectomized persons who don’t perform as clowns, as I do, but I can assure you that our work is not compromised by the little wire surgical snare. Gutteral noises are just not our bread ‘n’ butter… although actually I probably got a lotta hootzpah to be speaking for my Semitic colleagues. Off the job, I find that my French r’s (such as they were) & juicy Spanish j’s are history. Also, I often find myself coughing while eating, as small food particles impinge upon the back wall of my pharynx. I’d guess that our epiglottis is what protects our airways during food-gulps, and the uvula does that between swallows. But why are men (versus women) the great snorers? If our post-arboreal ancestors slept among prowling predators, it might have been adaptive to let your fellows know whether you were alert or out of it. It’s probably safe to assume that hyena-whacking was a guy thing, anyway. Or maybe snoring is in the same catagory as nose-picking and farting, which women just don’t do.