Why different textures on the head?

[lapushka]

I came across this video, and thought it was interesting. It's on why one head of hair can have different textures.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Manpn-OuYc

[lablondinette]

That's neat, thank for sharing!! I'd never heard the idea that we're still losing hair through evolution.

[Ondine11]

Thanks for the video! It was very interesting, Knowing that we humans have the same amount of hair follicles as monkeys explains why, in some cases, people can be so shockingly hairy! As for humans continuing to lose hair through evolution, I wonder if, since abundant hair on the head sends signals of health & fertility, it will remain present as desirable, from a survival-of-species standpoint, much like a peacock's extravagant tail! From a physical avoid-the-predators standpoint, nature would never have evolved such a cumbersome & useless contraption. It is heavier & larger than the bird itself, & makes escaping from something hungry much more difficult! HOWEVER...the female peahen shows a strong preference for mates who have larger, brighter, symmetrical plumage, so, evolution has prioritized reproduction & perpetuation of the specie over practical, physical survival concerns.

Since we humans have socialized into an indoor 'controlled environment' species, I wonder if we will also evolve paler skin globally, since we are no longer constantly exposed to the sun's rays. Most of us (in the industrialized world) work indoors, & wear clothing covering most of our skin. Between international/interracial mixing & minimized exposure, I wonder if humans will mostly come in shades of beige & tan.

[enting]

Genetic play makes a lot of sense to me. It can also explain texture changes due to hormones or certain medications, as it is possible for those to sometimes affect cell expression. I've also wondered if patches of a different texture might also be due to an unequal cell division, kind of like how beauty marks can develop where there were none before, leaving two different gene expressions in different patches of skin.