In literary use, the rudimentary is a person who has come from the past, who has risen from oblivion. The word "rudiment" in a non-biological context means a relic of a phenomenon that has long since disappeared.
Word in nonfiction
A rudimentary is an adjective that is used in biology and medicine to describe a part of a body or organ that has lost its original meaning. The function that this organ performed at the present stage of the historical development of the species is not significant, and it is close to extinction.
The catch is that you can rarely say whether it is a rudimentary organ or not. Indeed, the morphology of an organ, even if it is simply arranged or has a small size, does not speak of its progressiveness or rudimentarity.
Some features of the use of the term
In French scientific sources, this adjective is used in the sense of "emerging", that is, an embryonic one, but with the prospect of development, rather than extinction. In turn, a similar meaning is transferred to organs that arise in phylogenesis (in English and American sources), which means that there is a rudimentary one - this is nascent, as opposed to the generally accepted meaning of the concept.
Human rudiments
Some formations and organs during the evolutionary development of a species lose their function, it becomes unnecessary in the changed conditions of life.
But it cannot be said that the rudimentary organs became useless, they rather changed their function. Examples are given in the table.
Rudiment | Former function | Modern feature |
Coccyx | Motion coordination | Fastening muscles and ligaments, correct distribution of the load on the pelvic girdle |
Appendix (appendix) | Digesting fiber from unprocessed foods | The breeding place of symbiotic bacteria, the production of hormones, vitamin K |
Body hair | Body warming, skin protection | Participation in thermoregulation, obstruction of diaper rash in places of accumulation of sweat glands (axillary cavities, inguinal folds) |
"Wisdom teeth" | Grinding rough raw food | Replacement of large molars in case of loss |
Epiphysis | It is considered the remainder of the structure of the optic tract | The most important regulatory body that affects the functioning of the glands |
On the other hand, the auricles or the fold of the epicanthus do not now perform significant functions in the human body.
Rudiments and atavisms
Both of these concepts are found as evidence of evolution. They are often confused, because these are, in fact, different facets of the same phenomena. Rudiments, as mentioned above, are underdeveloped or are in their infancy, but are characteristic of all individuals of the species. Atavisms are rare and represent a rudiment that has fully developed (tail, body hair on a person).