--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Why did humans lose their body hair? Why…" description: "\"Why did humans lose their body hair? Why did they start walking on their hind legs? Why did they develop big brains? I think that the answer to all thr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d11/richard-dawkins-115_answer_why-did-humans-lose-their-body-hair-why_598047.jpg" --- # Why did humans lose their body hair? Why did they start… ![“Why did humans lose their body hair? Why did they start walking on their hind legs? Why did they develop big brains? I think that the answer to all three questions is sexual selection.” quote by Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d11/richard-dawkins-115_answer_why-did-humans-lose-their-body-hair-why_598047.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d11/richard-dawkins-115_answer_why-did-humans-lose-their-body-hair-why_598047.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d11/richard-dawkins-115_answer_why-did-humans-lose-their-body-hair-why_598047.jpg) > “Why did humans lose their body hair? Why did they start walking on their hind legs? Why did they develop big brains? I think that the answer to all three questions is sexual selection.” [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Sexual selection explains human hair loss, bipedalism, and brain growth as evolutionary advantages for mate choice. **In simple terms:** Sexual selection drove key human traits. Key Takeaway Consider evolutionary reasons for traits. Themes evolution sexual selection human origins Mood analytical curious Type scientific explanatory When to use this quote - anthropology - education - public talks Key Concepts biology anthropology Questions to Reflect On - Why might sexual selection favor hair loss? - How does bipedalism benefit mating? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Body hair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body-hair/) [Brains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brains/) [Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) [Hair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hair/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Questions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/questions/) ## Related quotes > [A well-understood and testable hypothesis like sexual selection surely trumps an untestable appeal to the inscrutable caprices of a creator.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-a-coyne/a-well-understood-and-testable-hypothesis-like-sexual-selection/) [Jerry A. Coyne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-a-coyne/) > [“Life in a box was unbearable. How did humans stand it?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-jennings/life-in-a-box-was-unbearable-how-did-humans-stand-it/) [Patrick Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-jennings/) > [If the legs did provide such an advantage that some of the people are claiming they did, then there would be a lot more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-pistorius/if-the-legs-did-provide-such-an-advantage-that-some-of-the-people-are/) [Oscar Pistorius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-pistorius/) > [“Is it God? Did God set up the dominoes and wait for some human to flick the first one? Or is it the opposite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allan-wolf/is-it-god-did-god-set-up-the-dominoes-and-wait-for-some-human-to/) [Allan Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allan-wolf/) > [“The minute I told you to spread your legs and you did it, you were mine. When I told you to beg for it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-d-reiss/the-minute-i-told-you-to-spread-your-legs-and-you-did-it-you-were/) [C.D. Reiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-d-reiss/) > [Thus the genetic basis to the origin of bird species is to be sought in the inheritance of adult traits that are subject to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-r-grant/thus-the-genetic-basis-to-the-origin-of-bird-species-is-to-be-sought/) [Peter R. Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-r-grant/) > [“I will leave you to imagine a world without men, but there is one immediate benefit from their extinction. Adam's curse is permanently lifted.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-sykes/i-will-leave-you-to-imagine-a-world-without-men-but-there-is-one/) [Bryan Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-sykes/) > [Evolution has no long-term goal. There is no long-distance target, no final perfection to serve as a criterion for selection, although human vanity cherishes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/evolution-has-no-long-term-goal-there-is-no-long-distance-target-no/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [For me, the level at which natural selection causes the phenomenon of adaptation is the level of the replicator - the gene.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/for-me-the-level-at-which-natural-selection-causes-the-phenomenon-of/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Design can never be an ultimate explanation for anything. It can only be a proximate explanation. A plane or a car is explained by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/design-can-never-be-an-ultimate-explanation-for-anything-it-can-only/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Natural selection, the blind, unconscious, automatic process which Darwin discovered, and which we now know is the explanation forthe existence and apparently purposeful form…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/natural-selection-the-blind-unconscious-automatic-process-which/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Mutation is random; natural selection is the very opposite of random.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/mutation-is-random-natural-selection-is-the-very-opposite-of-random/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Natural selection is anything but random.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/natural-selection-is-anything-but-random/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The interesting question would be whether there's a Darwinian process, a kind of selection process whereby some memes are more likely to spread than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-interesting-question-would-be-whether-there-s-a-darwinian-process/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“The earliest form of natural selection was simply a selection of stable forms and a rejection of unstable ones. There is no mystery about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-earliest-form-of-natural-selection-was-simply-a-selection-of/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) ## More by Richard Dawkins > [At the deepest level, all living things that have ever been looked at have the same DNA code. And many of the same genes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/at-the-deepest-level-all-living-things-that-have-ever-been-looked-at/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The word 'mundane' has come to mean 'boring' and 'dull', and it really shouldn't - it should mean the opposite. Because it comes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-word-mundane-has-come-to-mean-boring-and-dull-and-it-really/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [We animals are the most complicated things in the known universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-animals-are-the-most-complicated-things-in-the-known-universe/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“The fundamentalist Kurt Wise proclaims that all the evidence in the universe would not change his mind. The true scientist, however passionately he may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-fundamentalist-kurt-wise-proclaims-that-all-the-evidence-in-the/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“I have found it an amusing strategy, when asked whether I am an atheist, to point out that the questioner is also an atheist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-have-found-it-an-amusing-strategy-when-asked-whether-i-am-an/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Religions do make claims about the universe--the same kinds of claims that scientists make, except they're usually false.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/religions-do-make-claims-about-the-universe-the-same-kinds-of-claims/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“much of the Bible is not systematically evil but just plain weird, as you would expect of a chaotically cobbled-together anthology of disjointed documents,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/much-of-the-bible-is-not-systematically-evil-but-just-plain-weird-as/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The recurrent laryngeal nerve - which runs from the head to the voice box - goes all the way down into the chest, loops…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-recurrent-laryngeal-nerve-which-runs-from-the-head-to-the-voice/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The Roman Catholic Church is an institution for whose gains the phrase "ill-gotten" might have been specially invented. And of all its money-making rip-offs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-roman-catholic-church-is-an-institution-for-whose-gains-the/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Let us understand what our own selfish genes are up to because we may then at least have the chance to upset their designs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/let-us-understand-what-our-own-selfish-genes-are-up-to-because-we-may/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [What's going to happen when I die? I may be buried, or I may be cremated, I may give my body to science. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/what-s-going-to-happen-when-i-die-i-may-be-buried-or-i-may-be/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Or why it is acceptable to train fast runners and high jumpers but not to breed them. I can think of some answers, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/or-why-it-is-acceptable-to-train-fast-runners-and-high-jumpers-but/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [We have seen that living things are too improbable and too beautifully 'designed' to have come into existence by chance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-have-seen-that-living-things-are-too-improbable-and-too/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“We will not go quietly away. If in the future that requires violence”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-will-not-go-quietly-away-if-in-the-future-that-requires-violence/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [It's a truly disgusting idea that the creator of the universe - capable of inventing the laws of physics and designing the evolutionary process…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/it-s-a-truly-disgusting-idea-that-the-creator-of-the-universe-capable/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Explore all 1,239 Richard Dawkins quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) ## More Answer quotes > [Sometimes a question can hurt more than an answer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/sometimes-a-question-can-hurt-more-than-an-answer/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [What you are is a question only you can answer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/what-you-are-is-a-question-only-you-can-answer/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [Enjoying life isn't about finding the answers, but living the questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-margolis/enjoying-life-isn-t-about-finding-the-answers-but-living-the-questions/) [Sue Margolis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-margolis/) > [The boldness of asking deep questions may require unforeseen flexibility if we are to accept the answers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-greene/the-boldness-of-asking-deep-questions-may-require-unforeseen/) [Brian Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-greene/) > [“And if you can’t say yes, answer anyway. Because I’d rather live with the answer than die with the question.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ellis/and-if-you-can-t-say-yes-answer-anyway-because-i-d-rather-live-with/) Jon Ellis > [“There is a cure and answer to everything, we just haven't found them yet.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-halimi/there-is-a-cure-and-answer-to-everything-we-just-haven-t-found-them/) [Eve Halimi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-halimi/) > [Whenever I'm asked about Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi, I always answer: 'Neymar is the best,' not just because of his goals but because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roberto-carlos/whenever-i-m-asked-about-cristiano-ronaldo-or-lionel-messi-i-always/) [Roberto Carlos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roberto-carlos/) > [A wiki works best where you're trying to answer a question that you can't easily pose, where there's not a natural structure that's known…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ward-cunningham/a-wiki-works-best-where-you-re-trying-to-answer-a-question-that-you/) [Ward Cunningham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ward-cunningham/) > [“Those are good questions. I recognize good questions, because I can come up with them myself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-brust/those-are-good-questions-i-recognize-good-questions-because-i-can/) [Steven Brust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-brust/) > [My answer is bring 'em on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/my-answer-is-bring-em-on/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [I'll answer anything... I'm brutally honest, actually, which gets me in trouble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-mclachlan/i-ll-answer-anything-i-m-brutally-honest-actually-which-gets-me-in/) [Sarah McLachlan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-mclachlan/) > [“...I guess I can put two and two together." "Sometimes the answer's four," I said, "and sometimes it's twenty-two...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dashiell-hammett/i-guess-i-can-put-two-and-two-together-sometimes-the-answer-s-four-i/) [Dashiell Hammett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dashiell-hammett/) > [Jumping someone is never the answer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/jumping-someone-is-never-the-answer/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I play along myself, even though I can't help the player. So I can't say what I think the answer might be. But I'll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paddy-mcguinness/i-play-along-myself-even-though-i-can-t-help-the-player-so-i-can-t/) [Paddy McGuinness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paddy-mcguinness/) > [Sometimes the question is complicated, but the answers are simple.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-suess/sometimes-the-question-is-complicated-but-the-answers-are-simple/) [Dr Suess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-suess/) Browse all 2,090 Answer quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Why did humans lose their body hair? Why did they start walking on their hind legs? Why did they develop big brains? I think that the answer to all three questions is sexual selection.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/why-did-humans-lose-their-body-hair-why-did-they-start-walking-on/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Answer" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/why-did-humans-lose-their-body-hair-why-did-they-start-walking-on/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d11/richard-dawkins-115_answer_why-did-humans-lose-their-body-hair-why_598047.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d11/richard-dawkins-115_answer_why-did-humans-lose-their-body-hair-why_598047.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d11/richard-dawkins-115_answer_why-did-humans-lose-their-body-hair-why_598047.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Why did humans lose their body hair? Why did they start walking on their hind legs? Why did they develop big…” — Richard Dawkins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Richard Dawkins", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Why did humans lose their body...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/why-did-humans-lose-their-body-hair-why-did-they-start-walking-on/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/why-did-humans-lose-their-body-hair-why-did-they-start-walking-on/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```