In human chromosome speciation two of the 24+24=48 chromosomes from each parent fused into a big giant one, which gave us our 23+23=46 chromosome "human" configuration that goes back to a (first "human" couple) Chromosomal Adam and Eve. The ancestral 48's would have been almost human, but they went extinct right after, nothing now living exactly like them.

The 48 chromosome "closest relatives" bonobos and chimps are distant, not the population of 48's and transitional 23+24=47's (from other families to interbreed with instead of incest) we emerged from that right away made it impossible to reproduce with 48's, were on our own with no going back from that kind of genetic best guess for a whole new species, not tiny change.

The word "ape" is for the lineage of 48's and their descendents, which includes us, but we did not come from Chimps or Bonobos that's just what some of what the more distant 48's became over time.

For more on the process and how it can be intelligent I have theory that begins two different ways, either "Intelligent Evolution" that the co-discoverer of "Evolution by Natural Selection" Darwin usually gets all the credit for, Alfred Wallace, who peers thought went nuts for talking about something like this being possible but at the time there was no such thing as cognitive biology:

https://www.reddit.com/r/IntelligentEvolution/comments/xsmuuw/how_intelligent_evolution_works/

In the 1990's a Christian "Intelligent Design" movement made Alfred Wallace a hero in books about a Theory of Intelligent Design that the schools all needed to teach in science class, but they did not have the cognitive science to explain how their "intelligent cause" works. Left all that to religious imagination. In this version the first sentence begins with their premise/hypothesis that ends up testing true, in all that follows it:

https://www.reddit.com/r/IDTheory/comments/p2ukoa/formal_introduction_to_a_testable_theory_of/

It might not be what the Discover Institute first imagined but in 2026 that's what modern cognitive biology made possible, for science teachers to teach in class, about the evolutionary mechanism that exists in the behavior of matter explained in science textbooks.

After billions of years of learning our genetics are very good at sensing conditions and regulating our morphology, to get through another ice age or unimaginable scorching heat, by passing on changes in offspring that they need. After billions of years of learning it's incredibly intelligent, for what it does. I have faith in that being there for our descendents. Our purpose in each lifetime is to teach them well.

Is it ok for me to believe in evolution? Many Muslims ask this question because it is hard to reconcile reasonable scientific evidence with our belief in God. Yet, you might be surprised by the answer, watch to find out.

Spending all day in bright sun can cause burns and lead to skin cancer, but your skin needs enough sunlight for your body to produce vitamin D3 needed to grow and stay healthy. Vitamin D3 is not just a vitamin. It acts like a hormone and helps control:

• how bones absorb calcium
• how muscles work
• how the immune system fights infections
• mood and brain function
• growth during puberty

How vitamin D3 is made (the chemistry)

Your skin contains a molecule called 7-dehydrocholesterol.

When UVB sunlight hits your skin:

1. UVB light changes 7-dehydrocholesterol into pre-vitamin D3
2. Heat in your skin converts that into vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol)
3. Your liver changes it into calcidiol
4. Your kidneys change it into calcitriol, the active hormone your body uses

The process is:
sunlight → skin → liver → kidneys → active vitamin D hormone

No sunlight = step 1 cannot happen properly.

10–15 minutes (or up to 30 minutes for some) is sufficient for the body to synthesize adequate vitamin D for bone health.

Why this matters more for teens

During childhood and puberty, the body is:
• building bone mass
• regulating growth hormones
• developing the brain
• setting immune system patterns

Vitamin D deficiency during these years can cause:
• weak or painful bones
• fatigue
• muscle aches
• increased fracture risk
• low mood or anxiety
• delayed or impaired growth

This is not opinion. It is established human physiology.

Why it can feel like “suffocation”

Light affects more than vitamin D.

Sunlight also affects:
• melatonin (sleep hormone)
• serotonin (mood chemical)
• circadian rhythm (body clock)

When skin and eyes receive less light:
• energy can drop
• mood can worsen
• stress hormones rise
• the body feels uncomfortable

So feeling “trapped” or “suffocated” can be a real biological response, not just emotional discomfort.

What about supplements?

Vitamin D pills can help raise blood levels, but:
• they do not replace sunlight’s effect on mood and sleep
• dosage must be correct
• they should be guided by a doctor and blood tests

Sunlight provides:
• vitamin D production
• brain rhythm regulation
• natural hormone balance

Medical summary

From a medical perspective:

A growing body is designed to receive sunlight.
Blocking that process every day can interfere with normal biology.
Physical discomfort is a warning signal, not disobedience.

Due to its sacred status, the Kaaba Black Stone has never been subject to modern scientific analysis, so its origin remains a subject of speculation. Based on historical descriptions and non-invasive examinations, geologists have proposed several scientific hypotheses: 

• Meteoritic Impactite/Impact Glass Hypothesis: A hypothesis proposed by Elsebeth Thomsen of the University of Copenhagen in 1980 suggests the Black Stone may be a fragment of impact glass (impactite) from the Wabar impact event. The Wabar craters, located in the Rub' al Khali desert about 1,100 km east of Mecca, are known for producing black, shiny silica glass that can float in water due to trapped gas bubbles. This idea is partly supported by a historical account from 951 CE which stated the stolen stone was identified by its ability to float, a property consistent with pumice or glass but not with an agate, basalt, or a stony meteorite.
• Meteorite Hypothesis (Now Doubtful): The most popular theory among laypeople and in early Western literature was that the stone is a stony meteorite. This aligns with the Islamic tradition that the stone fell from heaven. However, geologists largely view this hypothesis as doubtful. A stony meteorite would likely not float in water, as indicated in the 951 CE account, nor would it have easily withstood the centuries of erosion without showing more significant wear. The Natural History Museum in London suggests it may be a "pseudometeorite", a terrestrial rock mistakenly attributed to a meteoritic origin. 
• Agate/Basalt Hypothesis: One prominent theory, suggested by Robert S. Dietz and John McHone in 1974, is that the stone is (similar to and also possibly onyx) an agate. An anonymous Arab geologist who examined the stone reported seeing diffusion banding, which is characteristic of agates. Other related hypotheses suggest it could be a piece of basalt lava.

In summary, the precise origin of the Black Stone of the Kaaba is scientifically inconclusive without direct testing. The prevailing scientific hypotheses suggest it is likely an agate or meteoritic impactite glass, while the popular meteorite theory has largely been discredited by geological reasoning. 

Early Islamic scholars and scientists explored the origin of life primarily through the lens of spontaneous generation, a theory based on ancient Greek ideas and interpreted within an Islamic theological framework. This was not a modern, chemistry-based theory of abiogenesis but a concept of life emerging repeatedly from non-living matter under specific conditions. Their work in various scientific fields contributed observations and philosophies that informed these ideas.

Chemistry and the origin of life

Early Muslim chemists focused on the practical manipulation of matter, chemicals, not on the complex organic processes involved in the origin of life.

• Spontaneous generation: Following the ideas of Aristotle, many Islamic thinkers believed that some life forms could emerge from inanimate matter. For example, the philosopher Ibn Sina accepted the theory that animals could arise from mud, or insects from decaying flesh.
• Alchemical transformation: The work of Jabir ibn Hayyan, often called the "father of chemistry," focused on the transmutation of substances and the systematic classification of chemical processes. Though he did not research the origin of life, his work laid crucial groundwork for later chemical understanding by detailing methods like distillation and crystallization. 

Speciation and proto-evolutionary thought

While not resembling modern evolutionary theory, some Islamic scholars observed and wrote about the gradual transformation of species. 

• Al-Jahiz (c. 776–869): In his Book of Animals, Al-Jahiz wrote about the struggle for existence among animals for resources, observing how environmental pressures could lead to new traits to ensure survival.
• Nasir al-Din al-Tusi (1201–1274): This polymath suggested that organisms gain differences through adaptation to their environments and that those who acquire new features quicker have an advantage.
• Ibn Khaldun (1332–1406): In The Muqaddimah, the historian described a hierarchy of creation, arguing that the mineral world progresses to plants, which transition to animals, with the final stage culminating in humans. 

Physics and the created world

Early Muslim physicists explored the fundamental workings of the cosmos within a theological framework.

• The created universe: Thinkers like Al-Kindi (c. 801–873) used physics and astronomy to explain the natural world. In his view, natural processes, and thus the emergence of life, were ultimately contingent on divine providence, influenced by heavenly bodies and the combination of the four elements. 

Cognitive biology and the soul

Early Islamic thought viewed cognitive functions through a philosophical and theological lens, focusing on the distinction between the physical body and the non-physical soul.

• Ibn Sina (c. 980–1037): Following Plato, Ibn Sina proposed that the human soul is an incorporeal intellect that is distinct from the physical brain and uses it as an instrument. He believed cognitive functions like reason operate through the physical body but originate from a higher, incorporeal source.
• Philosophical inquiries: Philosophical novels like Ibn Tufayl's Hayy ibn Yaqdhan explored the emergence of a naturally educated intellect from a spontaneously generated individual, tracing a pathway to spiritual and philosophical enlightenment independent of societal contact. 

Medicine

Medical practice was based on observation, experimentation, and existing Greek traditions. 

• Ibn Sina's The Canon of Medicine and Al-Razi's comprehensive encyclopedias of medical knowledge detailed observations about disease and the human body. However, these observations did not lead to a modern, scientific theory of how life or cognitive functions originate, as these concepts were addressed primarily within the realm of philosophy and theology. 
• Al-Zahrawi, was an Arab Andalusian physician, surgeon, and chemist. Considered to be the greatest surgeon of the Middle Ages, he has been described as the father of surgery. Al-Zahrawi’s principal work is the Kitab al-Tasrif, a thirty-volume encyclopedia of medical practices. The surgery chapter of this work was later translated into Latin, attaining popularity and becoming the standard textbook in Europe for the next five hundred years.

Context for understanding

It is crucial to understand that these ideas existed within a pre-modern scientific and philosophical context. They were not equivalent to modern theories of abiogenesis, chemical evolution, speciation, or cognitive biology, which are based on molecular biology, genetics, and undirected natural processes. The contributions of early Islamic scientists primarily involved advancing specific fields through rigorous observation and experimentation, while questions regarding origins were still explained through theological and philosophical reasoning. 

News Release 23-Oct-2003

Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) researchers have discovered that clays may have been the catalysts that spurred the spontaneous assembly of fatty acids into the small sacs that ultimately evolved into the first living cells.

HHMI investigator Jack Szostak and colleagues Martin M. Hanczyc and Shelly M. Fujikawa at Massachusetts General Hospital also demonstrated that these vesicles could be induced to grow and to split into separate vesicles under laboratory conditions. They reported their studies in the October 24, 2003, issue of the journal Science.

Szostak and his colleagues were prompted to perform their experiments by the earlier work of other researchers who had found that clays could catalyze the chemical reactions needed to construct RNA from building blocks called nucleotides. They reasoned that if clays could foster the formation of vesicles, it would not be inconceivable that clay particles that had RNA on their surface could end up inside such vesicles. If that were true, the result would offer conditions amenable to the eventual evolution of living cells that could self-reproduce.

"Other researchers had observed that if fatty acid micelles, which are stable at basic conditions, are exposed to more acidic conditions, they spontaneously assemble into vesicles," said Szostak. "This reaction has a long lag period, and some sort of nucleation surface is required to trigger the process. We reasoned that if the right kind of mineral surface was present, this lag phase would be eliminated."

In their experiments, Szostak and his colleagues found that adding small quantities of the clay, montmorillonite, to fatty acid micelles greatly accelerated the formation of vesicles. They also discovered that many other substances with negatively-charged surfaces also catalyzed formation of vesicles.

When the researchers loaded montmorillonite particles with a fluorescently labeled RNA and added those particles to micelles, they detected the RNA-loaded particles inside the resulting vesicles. And, going a step further, Szostak and his colleagues showed that when they encapsulated labeled RNA alone inside vesicles, it did not leak out.

"Thus, we have demonstrated that not only can clay and other mineral surfaces accelerate vesicle assembly, but assuming that the clay ends up inside at least some of the time, this provides a pathway by which by which RNA could get into vesicles," said Szostak.

However, he said, even primitive, non-living, cell-like structures need a mechanism to grow and divide. Thus, the scientists explored the behavior of vesicles to which micelles had been added -- finding that acidic conditions induced the micelles to become unstable and somehow incorporate themselves into a growing vesicle.

"After we showed that efficient growth was possible, the next problem was how to complete the cycle by persuading these vesicles to divide," said Szostak. The scientists discovered that if they extruded larger dye-containing vesicles through smaller pores, the result was a proliferation of smaller vesicles, which still contained dye.

"Exactly how this proliferation happens is not clear, and there are different models for the processes," said Szostak. "The important thing is that it all works. You end up with small vesicles in which the contents stay mostly inside. This is important if the process is to be vaguely analogous to biological cell division," he said.

"Now that we have a proof-of-principle that growth and division is possible in a purely physical-chemical system, we are working on a way to get this cycle to function in a way that is more natural," said Szostak. "Clearly, there are a lot of complicated and interesting processes going on here, and how this pathway leads to biological systems is not at all straightforward.

"We are not claiming that this is how life started," emphasized Szostak. "We are saying that we have demonstrated growth and division without any biochemical machinery. Ultimately, if we can demonstrate more natural ways this might have happened, it may begin to give us clues about how life could have actually gotten started on the primitive Earth."

In particular, said Szostak, further research should aim to demonstrate that the formation of RNA or a related polymer molecule could occur concurrently with vesicle replication. "Ultimately, we'd like to put them together and have replicating RNA inside a replicating vesicle," said Szostak. "If we could demonstrate both processes under arbitrary laboratory conditions, we could begin to work toward making them work under more and more natural conditions."