Why do humans have protruding noses and how fast do signals travel down nerves?

We explore some of the curious questions that science can answer

No snout about it: our conks help us breathe easy (Getty/iStock)

What is the evolutionary advantage to Homo sapiens in having a prominent nose, as most other primates have flat noses?

The nose serves two main purposes: to moisten the air we breathe and to warm it. Races from Equatorial regions tend to have flatter noses, as they don’t need to put extra moisture into the air they breathe, whereas people who live in desert countries tend to have longer noses as the air is dry and needs more moisture added. On the other hand, races from colder countries, such as Inuit people and Tibetans, have flatter noses because the importance of warming the air you breathe is outweighed by that of not losing heat through your extremities.

It is difficult to establish an exact evolutionary advantage, as selective pressures vary between people living in different environments. But the overall advantage compared with primates is that Homo sapiens roamed to practically every environment in the world – and adapted through selective pressures to survive in each particular environment.