L'economia del tallone (Oggi Scienza 15 febbraio 2010)

L'economia del tallone (Oggi Scienza 15 febbraio 2010) Camminare (ma non correre) sul tallone fa risparmiare un sacco di energia, e anche se questo non spiega l’origine evolutiva di questa postura, dimostra perché l’essere umano è un ottimo camminatore. [SEGUE SU OGGISCIENZA...]

L'argomento fornisce lo spunto per ulteriori approfondimenti:

Human use heel first gait because it is efficient for walking (Cunningham, C. B., Schilling, N., Anders, C. and Carrier, D. R. (2010). The influence of foot posture on the cost of transport in humans. Journal of Experimental Biology. 213, 790-797)-

Human Gait Adapted for Efficient Walking at the Cost of Efficient Running ScienceDaily. Feb. 12, 2010. Adapted from materials provided by University of Utah.

The Energetic Paradox of Human Running and Hominid Evolution David R. Carrier, Current Antropology, August-October, 1984 Vol. 25 (4):483-495)
Carrier's article on hominid evolution argues that despite the high energy expenditures in hominid running, they developed a distinct economy of energy use through physiological adaptations that helped them overcome this disadvantage. These adaptations propelled them into a superior position in the predatory and evolutionary hierarchy. To support his proposal, he recalls examples of hunters in a number of different cultures that engage in persistence hunting, a technique in which hunters run their prey down until it dies from exhaustion. Drawing from ideas and data from past studies of mammalian locomotion and energy expenditures, Carrier is able to weigh the advantages and disadvantages in various modes of locomotion and physiology ranging from rabbits to humans. He utilizes graphs and diagrams to illustrate his conclusions.