I believe there is a reason for everything genetic.
Now, just because I would rather not go bald, doesn’t mean nature doesn’t think it’s a good idea.
Or maybe nature is trying to tell us something else? (Dark, scary music :eek: .)
There doesn’t have to be a reason for anything genetic; it merely has to not cause you to be less likely to survive long enough to reproduce or to hinder your chances at reproduction.
Nature might be trying to tell you that in a State of Her, you’re due to get sat on by a mammoth or eaten by some strep by age 30, so she doesn’t care if you go bald at 40.
You may believe there is a reason for everything genetic, but the theory of evolution disagrees. The causes of hairloss in men don’t seem to affect fitness in humans today one way or the other and it is difficult to imagine under what circumstances they might have a great impact on fitness.
My speculation is much what has already been mentioned. Head hair is, I believe, like a peacocks tail, not of any use other than sexual attraction. Since men go bald after they had reproduced, not just now but especially in past times, the genes were passed along long before they displayed themselves.
Nature is telling you … to wear a hat.
One could argue that male baldness is a side effect of other more desirable male traits. Male pattern baldness is more common in men with high levels of testosterone. Cite. Even if male baldness was considered somewhat undesirable in sexual selection, if the effects of higher testosterone were more beneficial, it would spread within the population.
As my high school biology teacher quipped–there was a simple solution for men worried about going bald: castration.
Based on my own observations, I’ve noticed that there seems to be a correlation between men with a lot of body hair (which I’ve also heard is due to high testosterone levels) and the tendency to go bald.
Depends on how you define “fitness”. Evolutionarily speaking the only fitness that matters is how many offspring you have. Currently, baldness is a negative sexual signifier. I.e…less likely to get you laid. So it has everything to do with “fitness”.
Revtim makes the comparision to peacock’s tails which may be pretty apt. But given that men can reproduce their whole life…well, a peacock who has his tail fall off after one mating season will ultimately be out-reproduced by a peacock who keeps his for several.
Of corse having said all that, if it has alway be a negative sexual signifier it should have be bred out. Well, I don’t have an answer to that but I don’t think you can say it’s not related.
Are all these blokes who shave their head attempting to steal a march on evolution? When a kid of 16 shaves his head is his subconscious telling him that it increases his reproductive fitness? Do females select for baldies?
Because we’re so aggressive, and hard and studly (and shiny too!) we monopolize all the women. It’s nature’s way of slowing us down and giving the full haired girly men a chance to exercise their man glands and participate in the genome.
You’re reading WAY too much into it. The look is popular. Guys thinks it looks cool (and perhaps tough) and hope girls like it. That’s pretty much the end of the story. Evolution doesn’t program our style of dress and haircuts.
I think **astro ** and I are just feeling a little frisky today. Best taken with a pinch of salt.
I think that it’s just a variation of going grey.
Going grey is common among our closest primate cousins. A partially silvered male gorilla signals “I’m at the peak of life, I can whip any non-grey gorilla’s butt.” A heavily silvered male signals “I’m past my prime, but I have some experience that makes up for it somewhat.” Etc.
The great apes also have thinner hair on their heads as they get older. I suspect its part of the same signalling mechanism:
Among humans:
Full or non-grey head of hair: Young, strong, but not savvy.
Some thinning/greying: Still strong, smarter, a candidate for leader.
Lots of grey/getting cueball: Someone who hangs around the cave and bosses the women and kids a lot. Useful source of knowledge about rare events.
I’ll echo easy e, more testosterone might lead to more aggressive and/or assertive behavior on the whole, which in days gone by, might have led to a higher likelihood of having more kids.
A scenario: that hyper bald guy has his farm in good shape and when the wife dies in childbirth can afford a younger, more fertile wife number 2. While the full hair headed guy takes life a bit more as it comes, and so, cannot swing wife number 2.
Also, as a rule “looks” are an aesthetic that, for the vast majority of the population were far less important in days past in the selection of a mate than they are today.