A number of interactive questions are embedded within the short film The Biology of Skin Color, which explores the hypothesis that the variations in skin color in humans arose as adaptations to the intensity of ultraviolet radiation in different parts of the world.
Interactive Assessment for The Biology of Skin Color
View this video on the main BioInteractive site.
This film explores the hypothesis that different tones of skin color in humans arose primarily as adaptations to the intensity of ultraviolet radiation in different parts of the world.
Our human ancestors in Africa likely had dark skin, which is determined by greater amounts of the pigment eumelanin than pheomelanin in skin cells. In the high ultraviolet (UV) environment of sub-Saharan (or equatorial) Africa, darker skin protects against the damaging effects of UV radiation. Anthropologist Dr. Nina Jablonski explains that the variation in skin color that evolved since our human ancestors migrated out of Africa can be explained by a trade-off between protection from UV radiation and the need for some UV absorption for vitamin D production.
An audio descriptive version of the film is available via our media player. Select the “AD” button to enable audio description.
- Topics:
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Human EvolutionNatural SelectionSkin & Musculoskeletal SystemGene Expression & Regulation
- Grade Levels:
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CollegeHigh School — AP/IBHigh School — General