6533b86efe1ef96bd12cb282

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Selektionstheorie und Rassenbildung beim Menschen

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So far, the applications of the theory of selection to human race formation have primarily considered the selective quality of individual race characters which are preferred by classification. However only few physiologically important race characters have been found to have an evident selective advantage. It is the climate laws, however, that prompt the assumption that selection will take place according to differences of vitality and fertility under certain climatic conditions and that the visible race characters are but incidental effects of pleiotropic gene. It also appears that, in contrast to selection, mutability must be given more consideration to-day than before. For instance the examination of the time factor showed that in human race formation probably not only spontaneous mutations are to be taken into account, but also higher rates of perhaps environment-induced mutations. But even with human beings the theory should not, without careful qualification, be applied to the higher systematic levels. For as soon as race formation is followed down into deeper phylogenetic strata, i.e. in the distinction between primitive and progressive races, a fundamental difficulty arises: i.e. that the rejuvenated form, which is considered in the evolution of the species homo sapiens to be preferred by selection, is exterminated in recent race history in the shape of the infnatile-primitive races.