It's little wonder that quarterbacks are thought of as sports' most stalwart field generals. They hold one of the keys to human evolution in their throwing hands.

Researchers from Indiana University and the University of Wyoming teamed up to study what's known as the "size-weight illusion," which is where someone lifts two objects that are of different size but the exact same mass. The "illusion" is that the person will perceive the larger object to be lighter. And what these scientists found is that the illusion is not only "reliable and robust," but that the illusion is "intrinsic" to humans and that people pick objects based on their perception for how well something can be thrown. This, the authors contend, "unites human throwing and speaking abilities in development in a manner that is consistent with the evolutionary history."

"These days we celebrate our unique throwing abilities on the football or baseball field or basketball court, but these abilities are a large part of what made us successful as a species," said Geoffrey Bingham of Indiana University in a statement. Furthermore, the authors conclude that the study confirms "a readiness in humans to acquire both the ability to throw long distance and to find objects that will maximize the distances to which one can throw."

So when you're watching Aaron Rodgers in the Super Bowl in two weeks, just know that you're essentially looking through a window on hundreds of thousands of years of human evolution, all boiled down to the simple act of tossing a football.

Photo: AP/Nam Y. Huh

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