Assuming not-smoking was outlawed, how long until smokers ruled the planet?
I assume the lungs would be all strongy and powerfulized.
This could be a video like the one linked.-- doctorremulac3, Aug 26 2024 Like this only not as boring. https://www.youtube...watch?v=28CYhgjrBLA [doctorremulac3, Aug 26 2024] My Linky https://www.ncbi.nl...%20characteristics. [Skewed, Aug 26 2024] The first Natural Born Smoker https://www.youtube...watch?v=evIrwW6cLCgNightmares from 1985 courtesy of the uk gov. [Loris, Aug 26 2024] It's not really going to be "strongy" and "powerfulized" lungs.
It's going to be mechanisms for cancer and tumour suppression such as those mentioned in <My Linky>
Together with more efficient lung cleaning mechanisms to help shift from the lungs and break down more of the tar you'll be breathing in and depositing on the lung surface.
You might also expect some gas transfer efficiency adaptions (like that possessed by the ethnic group Sherpas belong to) or larger lung surface areas to help counter the reduction in efficiency caused by the tar lining the lungs.-- Skewed, Aug 26 2024 Okay, now THAT is friggin' interesting!
Sometimes I forget why I come here. Thank you S.-- doctorremulac3, Aug 26 2024 We do have examples of useful adaptions that we can date the appearance and spread of.
The extension of lactose tolerance into adulthood and also the spread of alcohol tolerance in european populations to name two obvious ones.
[Googles]
Lactose tolerance "dates back about 6,600 years" and "remained rare" until around "4,000 years ago", by which point presumably (without reading too much too thoroughly) most europeans had it.
When a useful adaption will turn up is unpredictable but it's spread (after it does) in a non modern population (without medical intervention allowing those without the adaption to survive and reproduce as or nearly as successfully as those with it) if useful enough might reasonably be guessed at as comparable to lactose tolerance in a similar sized population with similar geographic population density.
So something not too far removed from 2,600 years all else being equal.
Howsoever, a significant enough cancer suppressing adaption arriving in an environment where the general population is subjected to high levels of carcinogens (aka smoking) from childhood might reasonably be expected to spread a bit faster ..
.. there's a really high reproductive advantage in not dying of cancer before you hit puberty ;)-- Skewed, Aug 26 2024 Perfect link! [Loris] ;D .. of course, if we ban smoking the first natural born smoker will never be born.
Evolution does tend to need an 'incentive' to work.-- Skewed, Aug 26 2024 And THAT... is probably the the best link I've ever seen here! Bravo!-- doctorremulac3, Aug 26 2024 random, halfbakery