An almost hairless ape-like creature which lacks the reaction time, the speed, or the strength of other animals around it. It does not have the speed to run-down and capture other animals. It does not have the strength to wrestle large animals to the ground even if they were caught. It does not have the teeth or the claws to defend itself against predators. Young humans are totally defenseless, and incapable of even feeding themselves with food in front of them for years. The human is a creature which would freeze to death in even single winter night in most of the world.

Yet the human has not only survived, but prospered to the point of becoming the dominant creature on its native planet.

Many people believe this is because humans are more evolutionarily advanced than any other species on their home planet. This is just wrong - humans are not more evolved than any other living thing (with the possible exception of extremely simple amoeba-like or virus-like organisms). All have been evolving for the same time - probably around 2.5 billion years. and are just as evolved into their ecological niche.

Humans like to look at their close primate relatives (chimps) and say 'that's where we were 5 million years ago, but we moved on'. In fact the chimps have moved on too. They may look more like the common ancestor than humans do, but they have evolved too. Their body chemistry has evolved, and their brains have also evolved - not necessarily for much greater intelligence (like humans), but probably for greater efficiency. A chimp's brain is as intelligent as it needs to be. It is lighter, less fragile and uses less energy than a human brain. It is well suited to its natural environment.

These are the kinds of changes will not show up in the fossil record.

It is not genetic sophistication which has made humans prosper, but the fact that evolution has thrust them into a particular niche - the niche of humanity - of being able to think rationally.