Only if good thumb typers have more children or reproduce earlier than the rest of us...
Matthew Landis **************************************************** R. Matthew Landis, Ph.D. Dept. Biology Middlebury College Middlebury, VT 05753 tel.: 802.443.3484 ************************************************** >-----Original Message----- >From: Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news >[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Katherine A. Mitchell >Sent: Tuesday, February 14, 2006 4:16 PM >To: ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU >Subject: Re: current natural selection pressures > >Being on faculty, I am surrounded by people a generation younger than >myself. I have noticed that they are very adept at using their thumbs. >They can hold a cell phone in their hand and use the thumb on >that hand to >dial numbers and send text. And that thumb flies across the keypad. I >wonder if our opposable thumb, previously a grasping or >holding digit, will >become more flexible and more similar in capability to our >other fingers. >Would that trait then be selected for? > >Katherine > > >-----Original Message----- >From: Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news >[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of Warren W. Aney >Sent: Tuesday, February 14, 2006 1:04 PM >To: ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU >Subject: Re: current natural selection pressures > > >I may not be the person to raise this discussion to a more rigorous >ecological level, but let me try: > >As I understand one view of natural selection, it is a process >that favors >those qualities that increase the likelihood of a particular >set of genes >being passed on to succeeding generations. So we have the >obvious, e.g., >selecting for opposable thumbs and bigger brains led to selecting for >learning the use of tools (and weapons) which improved that particular >clan's survivability -- and the survival of its gene set. It >also explains >some altruistic behaviors -- taking care of elderly clan >members may have >cost a little in terms of resource allocation, but that may >have been more >than offset by their providing services beneficial to the >clan's survival. >Services such as infant care, child mentoring and the transfer >of accrued >skills, knowledge and wisdom. > >It also may have led to learning some other behaviors such as >killing the >males and enslaving the females of competing clans -- not very >altruistic >but certainly improving the survival of the victorious clan's gene set. > >So why do we now seem to be learning behaviors that would >appear to work >against the survival of the gene set of the "clan" we belong >to? Behaviors >such as being kind to strangers instead of killing the males >and raping the >females, sending aid to foreign countries instead of engaging >in genocide, >promoting birth control instead of large families, honoring >monogamy and >celibacy instead of promiscuity, protecting and conserving >other species >instead of eliminating them as competitors or threats, >honoring humility >instead of belligerence, honoring artists more than soldiers >(okay, this may >be a bad example since we expend much more of our resources on >the military >than we do on the arts). > >It appears, at least to this field ecologist, that we are practicing >behaviors aimed at improving the survival of a whole host of >competing and >maybe even antagonistic gene sets. And most of us (but not all of us) >believe that is exactly what we should be doing. Where and >how is natural >selection at work in all this? > > >Warren Aney >Senior Wildlife Ecologist >Tigard, Oregon > > >-----Original Message----- >From: Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news >[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of isabella capellini >Sent: Tuesday, 14 February, 2006 08:36 >To: ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU >Subject: Re: current natural selection pressures > > >> > Perhaps human intelligence and humility will become >> > > a selective pressure. > > Really?? How? will more intelligent and humile people have more >offspring??? > Isabella > > >Dr. Isabella Capellini, PhD >Research Associate > >Department of Anthropology >Durham University >43 Old Elvet >Durham >DH1 3HN (UK) > >phone: +44 (0)191 3346177 >fax: +44-(0)191-3346101 >email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >webpage: http://www.dur.ac.uk/anthropology/staff/ > > > >___________________________________________________________ >Yahoo! Photos - NEW, now offering a quality print service from >just 8p a >photo http://uk.photos.yahoo.com >
