Pure Vilani, having been separated from baseline human stock 300,000 years or so ago, there are obviously going to be some considerable differences between them and standard Humans ... some things for your consideration ...
* Lactose intolerance. The vast majority of Vilani are likely to be lactose intolerant. That is, they are likely to be unable to process fresh dairy products and suffer considerable unpleasant symptoms if they try. Historically, lactose tolerance seems to have developed fairly recently on Terra, perhaps only 4500 years ago ... and is tied (regardless of the theory of its origin you believe) to the development of human stock raising and, probably, a single point mutation that spread widely thereafter.
Since the Vilani seem to have been dumped by Grandfather on a planet which had little in the way of suitable food for them (cf. the development and importance of the Shulgili class), we can reasonably assume that there were no terran milk producing animals ... and, therefore, no reason to develop (or gain an advantage from the development of by random mutation) a lactose tolerance strain of Vilani.
Also note that, since agriculture only developed 10-12000 years ago on Terra, and Stock raising of milk producing animals therefore postdates this, it means that the mutation must be relatively uncommon for it to have taked 5-7000 years to express itself ... making it unlikely that PSV (Pure Strain Vilani) will have developed it in the the period since their contacts with Terran humans may have resulted in the introduction of terran milk producing animals to their worlds.
Also note that the above comments apply to PS Zhodani and PS minor human races scattered by Grandfather and not provided with terran milk producing animals as part of their biological inheritance on their planet of origin.
* Blue Eyes. While the Vilani will likely know of blue eyes (it is relatively common for babies to be born with blue eyes and it may take, in some cases, up to three years after birth for them to produce enough melanin to change to their baseline colour) it is unlikely that they will have adults with blue eyes as all modern blue eyed people seem to have arisen from a single mutation occurring in the Black Sea or Middle Eastern region c. 6-10000 years ago.
Likewise, the prevalence of Grey and Green eyes is probably related to the development of Blue eyes, and is unlikely to exist in Vilani. Hazel and Amber eyes are also unlikely for similar reasons.
The vast majority (c. 99.99999% or more) of Vilani are likely to be Brown eyed.
Since, historically, there is some linguistic evidence to suggest that Terrans initially associated blue eyed individuals with childlike characters, the Vilani may have had similar ideas about the first blue eyed terrans they encountered ...
* Blond(e) Hair: Again, this seems to have been the result of a single pointg mutation around 10-11000 years ago in NW Europe, probably in N Germany or Denmark. Scientists have estimated that the spread of blonde hair through human societies through pure random chance would take c. 850,000 years ... which means that, on Terra, at least, there must have been some evolutionary (including social) advantage in having Blonde hair for it to have become so widespread so fast (no one really understands why).
Redheads are also the result of mutation, but may not have been positively selected as much as negatively selected (there is some argument about how ancient the mutation is in humans ... it does occur in Neanderthals, but that is the result of a different genetic change than the one that causes it in humans, so do not become confused) ... if it is positively selected, it may have something to do with enhancing Vitamin production in high latitudes where there is less sunlight (and the sunlight is less strong) year round, giving an evolutionary advantage; if it is negatively selected, it may have something to do with it causing skin cancer and other problems in equatorial or high sunlight/high strength sunlight climes.
Vilani are almost certainly overwhelming Black or Brown (maybe one or the other) and even Auburn hair is likely to be rare. This almost certainly applies to the Zhodani and other minor human races.
* Blood Types: Baseline humans have four blood types ... A, B, AB and O. The most commonly accepted theory is that O is the baseline blood type for all humans and that the others are mutations from that.
A type seems to have developed around 20,000 years ago in Western Europe, probably around the time that proto-agriculture was developing.
B type seems to have developed around 10,000 years ago in Asia and Japan. There is no firm theory as to why.
AB developed around 1500 years ago when communications and trade between Europe and Asia became common enough for enough people of the two blood types to encounter and reproduce to make further mutations likely.
It is likely, therefore, that Vilani have Type O Blood, and, like modern Terran humans, the majority of their population have that blood typo. Since there seems to be no specific reason why mutations would not be possible, it is likely that, as with baseline humans, there are *other* Vilani blood types ... but it is also likely that these are *different* to types A, B and AB that are the ones found in baseline humans.
The same developments are likely in Zhodani and other minor human races.
Which makes Blood transfusions ... tricky.
So, for a start, your typical Vilani (or non Terran human) is Brown (or Black) haired, has brown eyes, is lactose intolerant and has Type O Blood
:shock:
There are other likely differences, but these are the biggies.
Phil
* Lactose intolerance. The vast majority of Vilani are likely to be lactose intolerant. That is, they are likely to be unable to process fresh dairy products and suffer considerable unpleasant symptoms if they try. Historically, lactose tolerance seems to have developed fairly recently on Terra, perhaps only 4500 years ago ... and is tied (regardless of the theory of its origin you believe) to the development of human stock raising and, probably, a single point mutation that spread widely thereafter.
Since the Vilani seem to have been dumped by Grandfather on a planet which had little in the way of suitable food for them (cf. the development and importance of the Shulgili class), we can reasonably assume that there were no terran milk producing animals ... and, therefore, no reason to develop (or gain an advantage from the development of by random mutation) a lactose tolerance strain of Vilani.
Also note that, since agriculture only developed 10-12000 years ago on Terra, and Stock raising of milk producing animals therefore postdates this, it means that the mutation must be relatively uncommon for it to have taked 5-7000 years to express itself ... making it unlikely that PSV (Pure Strain Vilani) will have developed it in the the period since their contacts with Terran humans may have resulted in the introduction of terran milk producing animals to their worlds.
Also note that the above comments apply to PS Zhodani and PS minor human races scattered by Grandfather and not provided with terran milk producing animals as part of their biological inheritance on their planet of origin.
* Blue Eyes. While the Vilani will likely know of blue eyes (it is relatively common for babies to be born with blue eyes and it may take, in some cases, up to three years after birth for them to produce enough melanin to change to their baseline colour) it is unlikely that they will have adults with blue eyes as all modern blue eyed people seem to have arisen from a single mutation occurring in the Black Sea or Middle Eastern region c. 6-10000 years ago.
Likewise, the prevalence of Grey and Green eyes is probably related to the development of Blue eyes, and is unlikely to exist in Vilani. Hazel and Amber eyes are also unlikely for similar reasons.
The vast majority (c. 99.99999% or more) of Vilani are likely to be Brown eyed.
Since, historically, there is some linguistic evidence to suggest that Terrans initially associated blue eyed individuals with childlike characters, the Vilani may have had similar ideas about the first blue eyed terrans they encountered ...
* Blond(e) Hair: Again, this seems to have been the result of a single pointg mutation around 10-11000 years ago in NW Europe, probably in N Germany or Denmark. Scientists have estimated that the spread of blonde hair through human societies through pure random chance would take c. 850,000 years ... which means that, on Terra, at least, there must have been some evolutionary (including social) advantage in having Blonde hair for it to have become so widespread so fast (no one really understands why).
Redheads are also the result of mutation, but may not have been positively selected as much as negatively selected (there is some argument about how ancient the mutation is in humans ... it does occur in Neanderthals, but that is the result of a different genetic change than the one that causes it in humans, so do not become confused) ... if it is positively selected, it may have something to do with enhancing Vitamin production in high latitudes where there is less sunlight (and the sunlight is less strong) year round, giving an evolutionary advantage; if it is negatively selected, it may have something to do with it causing skin cancer and other problems in equatorial or high sunlight/high strength sunlight climes.
Vilani are almost certainly overwhelming Black or Brown (maybe one or the other) and even Auburn hair is likely to be rare. This almost certainly applies to the Zhodani and other minor human races.
* Blood Types: Baseline humans have four blood types ... A, B, AB and O. The most commonly accepted theory is that O is the baseline blood type for all humans and that the others are mutations from that.
A type seems to have developed around 20,000 years ago in Western Europe, probably around the time that proto-agriculture was developing.
B type seems to have developed around 10,000 years ago in Asia and Japan. There is no firm theory as to why.
AB developed around 1500 years ago when communications and trade between Europe and Asia became common enough for enough people of the two blood types to encounter and reproduce to make further mutations likely.
It is likely, therefore, that Vilani have Type O Blood, and, like modern Terran humans, the majority of their population have that blood typo. Since there seems to be no specific reason why mutations would not be possible, it is likely that, as with baseline humans, there are *other* Vilani blood types ... but it is also likely that these are *different* to types A, B and AB that are the ones found in baseline humans.
The same developments are likely in Zhodani and other minor human races.
Which makes Blood transfusions ... tricky.
So, for a start, your typical Vilani (or non Terran human) is Brown (or Black) haired, has brown eyes, is lactose intolerant and has Type O Blood
:shock:
There are other likely differences, but these are the biggies.
Phil
