Evolution

[Captain Spod]

I know evolution is a really, really slow process but I imagine that a generation for most species of fly is, by our standards, really, really short.
How many more generations of flies before they understand transparent glass windows?
Thickos.

[Old_Geezer]

If it doesn't stop the species as a whole breeding successfully, an infinite number.

[Captain Spod]

Hmm, don't think so OG. Surely the whole survival of the fittest thing allows the better adapted (those that don't bash their heads, wings, etc. on windows) to oust the thickos so the whole species improves - otherwise we'd still be semi-upright on the savannah.

[Old_Geezer]

But plenty of thickos live to breed so it isn't critical enough.
Even if not infinite it will be as near as makes no difference to us.

[Captain Spod]

I really don't want to sound rude, but if that is the case then why are no early species of hominid left? They all died out because we were just better at everything - they could have continued breeding successfully but they got left behind in all other activities, such as avoiding fractures.

[woofgang]

I think you are missing the point here. There are enough flies who never come into contact with windows to make the fly/window thing irrelevant in terms of their evolution.

[jim360]

Because flies that crash into transparent windows don't usually end up dead -- their exoskeleton is usually tough enough to withstand the impact, so I don't think it forms an evolutionary pressure.

Well, that's one reason, there are a host of others.

[bookbinder]

If a fly generation is really, really short, flies who fly into windows won't live long enough to pass on their knowledge about glass windows to other flies. And the same goes for flies who observe their friends and relations fly into windows; they aren't around long enough to pass their learning on.

[Old_Geezer]

IMO no early species of hominid are left because as soon as one lot got lucky and developed greater intelligence they would have been able to out-expand, out-compete and even where thought necessary commit genocide on other species who were in their way. Tribes tend to fight for land and other resources, there can be only one, eventually; unless they develop sufficiently to respect other species and live in peaceful coexistence.

[Bazile]

Perhaps flies are masochists

[gl556tr]

There's no flies on them.

[Peter Pedant]

// How many more generations of flies before they understand transparent glass windows? //

why not go the whole hog and ask how many generations of flies before one of them reinvents Einsteins equations ?

The diversion onto hominids is I think unhelful. The first person to describe a hominid was Raymond Dart
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raymond_Dart
oops sorry it was a hominin, and he said they (australopithecus) died out because of WAR - very unpopular and now discounted

two other interesting things about Dart
HE is the one that Arthur Keith said " Dart was right and I was wrong". Keith had supported and been gulled by Piltdown Man.
and

secondly - Dart was asked why his lab notes showed australopithecus and homo co-existed and one didnt evolve into the other - so why didnt he print / publish these results.
Dart replied: because we thought no one would believe us.

sorry I divert you from Drosophila.....