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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Hriston" data-source="post: 8872575" data-attributes="member: 6787503">I don't assume it's biological. There are lots of non-biological factors that affect variation in human lifespan. It has been estimated that only 20-30% of the variation is due to genetics. The rest is due to behavior and environment.I imagine elven spirits as being destined to dwell within the world for as long as it lasts, whereas humans are destined to die and depart to the Astral Plane and beyond, so it would make sense for elven bodies to have some biological component that would allow them to remain physically incarnated for huge spans of time, but even elven bodies don't last forever, which is why they must depart the Prime Material and live out their years in the Feywild, or linger on as un-bodied ghosts should they choose to stay. Elves have every reason to perfect a culture and lifestyle designed to prolong the lives of their bodies.But how much of a biological difference, accomplished through gene-editing or similar, would really be necessary to give humans a longer average life span? Would such alterations make them a different species from us?Why is it biological? Are you imagining a physical difference that could be studied if you dissected an elven eye, like inverted rods or something? It's possible, but too sci-fi for me. I prefer to think there's something magical about their eyes -- a gift bestowed upon them as the people who would awaken in a time of great darkness. Or perhaps they have a cultural practice of using averted vision to enhance their night vision.There’s a wide variety of sleep behavior across human cultures. In preindustrial Europe, biphasic sleeping was considered normal, and in many nomadic and “hunter-gatherer” societies, people sleep on and off throughout the day or night for shorter periods of time. It’s not inconceivable that elven society could develop something like yoga nidra or "yogic sleep" to the point where it entirely replaces the need for sleep.I don't imagine elves as having pointed ears. Sacrilege, I know! I imagine them having normal human ears and features, although being visibly distinct as a group in physical appearance and modes of dress, just the way various human groups are. However, if there was an ethnic group of humans that displayed pointed ears, do you think that would be a reason to classify then as a separate species?Right, and I'm definitely not saying there's anything wrong with seeing them as a separate species or subspecies from humans. It's just not how I imagine them.Agreed, which is one of the reasons why I put all three groups under Homo sapiens.</blockquote>

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