The evolution of intelligence may come with the side-effect of a shortened lifespan. Brain power is energy consuming and being lazy may actually help you live longer if studies on fruit flies hold the same for humans.
The ability to learn does not just harm the flies in their youth, though. In a paper to be published in the journal Evolution, Dr. Kawecki and his colleagues report that their fast-learning flies live on average 15 percent shorter lives than flies that had not experienced selection on the quinine-spiked jelly. Flies that have undergone selection for long life were up to 40 percent worse at learning than ordinary flies.
It does seem that the smarter human beings get, the more capable (and willing) we seem to destroy ourselves. It might also be why those fat, lazy slobs tend last forever. Best to combine the benefits of laziness with intelligence and make your life more efficient by using your brain.
[photo by: exalted]
