A report just published in the Journal of Evolutionary Appendages has found a direct correlation between the diminishing widths of coach class seats and shrinking elbows among coach class passengers.
“We haven’t tracked a finer example of evolutionary biology at work since the increase in finger dexterity following the introduction of free wi-fi,” said JEA editor Bob Payne.
The study also found that a result of the shrinkage has been a marked decrease in violence among passengers sharing arm rests.
“With not much of an elbow to poke, and the impossibility of making one’s self heard over small children, there’s not much for someone to do but sit there and be quiet,” Payne said.
Payne said the study projects that elbows will be able to shrink another 14 percent before the airlines begin looking for new ways to maximize the number of people a plane can carry.
“A promising development in that area is having appendages surgically removed before departure then reattached at destination, with the airline getting a percentage of the surgical procedures,” Payne said.
Payne said that while some non-scientists have been surprised by how quickly human elbows have adapted to new space restrictions, he said it is no more unusual than how fast the human tongue has hardened as a result of the increasing number of opportunities to bite it, not only in travel, but in every facet of daily life.
Travel humor writer Bob Payne has been editing the Journal of Evolutionary Appendages since its inception.
BigStock photo.
