Naked Science Forum

Life Sciences => Plant Sciences, Zoology & Evolution => Topic started by: Petrochemicals on 07/06/2023 15:40:54

Title: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Petrochemicals on 07/06/2023 15:40:54
Given that we have had thousands of years of society, with it's "don't kill" ethos and "no adultery/bigamy" dictate, has this bred into the human population inherent illnesses?
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Kryptid on 08/06/2023 01:08:44
Natural selection still has plenty of sway in human development: disease and accidents are still a big killer in all countries.

I wouldn't be surprised if the incidences of some diseases has increased because of advanced medical treatments. Those with weaker immune systems are more able to survive and pass on their genes in developed countries nowadays.
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: alancalverd on 08/06/2023 17:31:29
Everyone now has a legal right to reproduce, and everyone else has a duty to keep the offspring alive 'cos of its Yuman Rights, so on average the species will be getting less fit and more selfcongratulatory..
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Petrochemicals on 08/06/2023 17:56:34
Everyone now has a legal right to reproduce, and everyone else has a duty to keep the offspring alive 'cos of its Yuman Rights, so on average the species will be getting less fit and more selfcongratulatory..
More than that, over the millenniums, rulers have begot many many children, the rich have carried forward wealth, these genes are the ones that are prevalent, as was seen in the haemophilia of Queen Victoria's families.
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Zer0 on 11/06/2023 20:32:01
This to me, does not seem like Natural Selection atall.

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-65538866
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Bored chemist on 12/06/2023 13:41:39
This to me, does not seem like Natural Selection atall.

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-65538866
It's natural for humans to do artificial things so...

Natural selection still applies to humans.
Imagine that we had a pandemic which combined factors from 3 previous ones.
As lethal as MERS (About 1 in 3 dead)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MERS
As widely spread as covid
and, like bubonic plague, strongly influenced by the genetic makeup of the person.
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/oct/19/gene-black-death-survivors-linked-autoimmune-diseases

What would happen?
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Zer0 on 16/06/2023 19:24:45
This to me, does not seem like Natural Selection atall.

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-65538866
It's natural for humans to do artificial things so...

What would happen?

Yes an Artificial action can be deemed as a Natural response towards untoward changes.

I still think catching the disease & fighting it off by immune responses seems Natural.
But creating & administering Vaccines seems Artificial.
Anyways, if it works, it's Beneficial!

Regarding " What would happen? "
Alot many will cease to Exist & even more shall Survive.
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Bored chemist on 17/06/2023 11:16:27
Regarding " What would happen? "
Alot many will cease to Exist & even more shall Survive.
What would that mean in evolutionary terms?
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Zer0 on 18/06/2023 19:53:27
Regarding " What would happen? "
Alot many will cease to Exist & even more shall Survive.
What would that mean in evolutionary terms?

Immunity for the Survivors.
Until something else pops up.
I've heard Viruses evolve too.
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Petrochemicals on 26/06/2023 13:59:14
So how bad has the situation got, as compared to a populace that would be shaped by natural selection?

There are the obvious early mortality genetic pass ons, early onset cancer as in Angelina Jolie, bad hearts, there are the non lethal ones such as diabetes asthma etc and there are the nondescript pass ons.
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Zer0 on 27/06/2023 19:11:19
So how bad has the situation got, as compared to a populace that would be shaped by natural selection?

The way in which i understand the Subject, in my very own opinion, there is hardly any unaltered lineage of homo sapiens conforming to
 ' Natural Selection ' .

I've heard a bit about beings resorting to ancient primitive methods of lifestyles even in modern times.

But hardly seen any evidence of ' Social Animals '(us) surviving in natural habitats without the usage of Tools or Fire.
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: alancalverd on 28/06/2023 11:31:13
Homo "sapiens" has evolved to its present extravagance and fragility through our ability to collaborate over very large groups, and the independence of our hands and feet - we can stand up and perform complicated and precise manipulations far better than our ape cousins.

Problem is that all this requires a very large brain to body ratio, so our heads have grown to a size that is in many cases incompatible with unassisted childbirth. We have also colonised vast areas of the planet that are actually unsuitable for hairless apes to survive without tools and longterm planning. And then we have overpopulated those regions and allowed parasitic diseases like politics and religion to flourish and compromise both collaboration and planning, so that we spend as much time competing for unsustainable resources as we do enjoying them.

In consequence, unless we radically reform human society, we have doomed our species to revert to living as diminutive tropical hunter-gatherers. Problem is that most of those who know how to do that, have been systematically or accidentally exterminated in the name of Faith or Progress,
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: paul cotter on 28/06/2023 16:48:22
Sssh, Alan, keep your voice down, a post like that might invite yor_on to join in and add thousands of pages of futility.
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Petrochemicals on 28/06/2023 17:56:27
So how bad has the situation got, as compared to a populace that would be shaped by natural selection?

The way in which i understand the Subject, in my very own opinion, there is hardly any unaltered lineage of homo sapiens conforming to
 ' Natural Selection ' .

I've heard a bit about beings resorting to ancient primitive methods of lifestyles even in modern times.

But hardly seen any evidence of ' Social Animals '(us) surviving in natural habitats without the usage of Tools or Fire.

Not really, small villages became imbred, for example

https://cyclingmagazine.ca/sections/news/cycling-played-a-huge-part-in-reducing-inbreeding/

"Even" the royals managed to marry within the family, exasserbating at least their own haemophilia situation and God knows what else. It is a clear case of societal constructs overriding the survival of the fittest and due to the prominence of the Royal position they no doubt managed to increace the ammount of Royal DNA in the populace. This is just one example.
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Zer0 on 30/06/2023 18:23:02
Sorry!
By Unaltered Lineage, i did Not mean DNA or Epigenetics.

I was thinking about
" Social Animals " .

I can easily Discard the ' Tool ' usage point.
Other species have been Observed to use tools.

But i Cannot get over the Fact that No other species Knowingly creates, controls & extinguishes Fire!
(xcept DragonZ)

I view Us as Homo Deus.
& I do Not see any Sapiens anymore.
(personal belief)
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Bored chemist on 01/07/2023 14:54:33
Immunity for the Survivors.
OK, that seesmsensible.
Now consider this odd fact.
There's a group of people who are relatively immune to HIV because they are descended from plague survivors.

For a few hundred years the "after effects" of the black death on HIV susceptibility were apparently irrelevant.
Then a new bug turned up...

It seems to me that we haven't finished evolving yet.
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Bored chemist on 01/07/2023 14:55:01
never say never.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire_adaptations#:~:text=An%20example%20of%20animals'%20uses,the%20escaping%20insects%20and%20rodents.
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: alancalverd on 01/07/2023 16:33:15
No other species Knowingly creates, controls & extinguishes Fire!

Some Australian crows carry burning twigs from forest fires to start grass fires, then feast on the escaping insects and lizards. Interestingly, if a grass fire gets out of hand, the thermal breeze carries insects inwards and upwards, so there's a real feast of cooked protein at about 3000 ft.
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: paul cotter on 01/07/2023 17:44:24
Corvids seem to be the smartest of birds, often fashioning tools to obtain food. I had not heard of the burning twigs but I have no problem believing it.
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: alancalverd on 02/07/2023 11:25:59
Allegedly they learned the trick from native Australians, the smartest of humans, who use controlled burning to clear scrub for cultivation.
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: evan_au on 03/07/2023 10:46:26
Quote from: alancalverd
Some Australian crows carry burning twigs from forest fires
In Australia, I have heard them called "fire eagles", rather than crows/corvids.
- The Wikipedia link describes it as a "black kite"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire_adaptations#Animal_use_of_fire
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: paul cotter on 03/07/2023 20:14:06
Yep, that's what I found too when I followed up on the story. I still think the corvids are among the most intelligent of birds.
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Zer0 on 03/07/2023 22:56:21
Hmmn...in light of the new Revelations, i now have to discard both the ' Tool & Fire ' options.
(just remembered the Electric Eel, ruled out too)

But then again, where does the Natural seem to turn into Artificial?

Do any Other species conduct Agriculture or Farming?

Surely there ain't no examples of intravenous fluid transfers or caesarian c-sections in the Wild, isn't it?
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Zer0 on 03/07/2023 23:07:18

It seems to me that we haven't finished evolving yet.

But there should be a differenciation between Natural & Artificial evolution, isn't it?

Natural Immunity obtained from exposure to the virus & Artificial Immunity acquired thru Vaccination are both Immunities.
But there is kinda a difference between the two, Right?

ps - Evolution seems like the norm, but does the possibility of Devolution exist atall?
Any cases of that already happening in the wild or nature?
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: paul cotter on 04/07/2023 09:31:57
Zer0, one species of ant consumes only a fungus which they grow underground. Another herds aphids for their sugary excretions.
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: alancalverd on 04/07/2023 12:00:11
Termite mounds provide solar-driven air conditioning, a zillion years before homo sapiens came up with passive houses and heat pumps.

A neighbor is studying communication and collaboration between fish. Not sure about devolution, which seems only relevant after centralisation, but there is certainly plenty of delegation and specialisation between sharks and cleaner fish - evidence of sharks and rays forming orderly queues and always returning to their favorite cleaner wrasse, doubtless to talk about cricket (she studies Australian reef species) whilst the business is done.     

I'm intrigued to know how some distinct bird species evolved. Swallows and barn owls like to nest inside buildings, and house martins nest under the eaves of human habitations, but barns and houses  are very recent, in evolutionary terms, compared with the time it would take for an entire species to evolve. Or did they always nest in trees as distinct species and suddenly learn that human structures were warmer and drier? So why don't crows do the same?

Some male birds collect shiny objects to attract females. How did the bower bird manage before homo sapiens provided him with metals and plastics? And why did these become more attractive than flowers and fruit?

I watched a pair of pigeons  building a nest in an aircraft hangar. He flew in and out every minute or so, delivering tiny twigs that he presented to her. She rejected about 60%  and wove the rest into an amazingly robust and stable structure on top of a roof girder. So how did he know what size to look for, how did she decide whether each one was going to usefully fit anywhere, and where did they get the design from?

Hummingbirds have a clear target, but hoverflies seem to keep station for several minutes in a random position with no obvious food source nearby, occasionally zoom off somewhere else, then return to exactly the same position. Hovering is the most difficult and energy-intensive exercise in a flying machine, and the best airborne GPS will only get you back within a few feet of your target, so why and how do these little bugs do it?
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Zer0 on 05/07/2023 21:46:30
Zer0, one species of ant consumes only a fungus which they grow underground. Another herds aphids for their sugary excretions.

This Thread has taken an interesting turn & seems intriguing.
Hope the @OP is Fine with it?
(btw any preference for reference? like PC or Pete or Petro ?
Plz do lemme know)

A few more ruling outs...
Sonar...Bats.
Night vision...Owls.
Infrared...Snakes.

Gosh!
I heard the Egyptian Dung Beetle tracks positions in moonless nights using the Milky Way Galaxy.

Was thinking, what about the act of commiting Suicide?
& Then i found this...WoW!

https://www.popsci.com/insect-self-sacrifice-exploding/
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Origin on 05/07/2023 22:11:27
Do any Other species conduct Agriculture or Farming?
Ants do ranching with aphids and leaf cutter ants grow a fungus that is the only thing they eat.
Edit:
I just saw someone used the exact same examples before me - oops.
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Zer0 on 09/07/2023 22:06:05
Do any Other species conduct Agriculture or Farming?
Ants do ranching with aphids and leaf cutter ants grow a fungus that is the only thing they eat.
Edit:
I just saw someone used the exact same examples before me - oops.

Thanks for not deleting your Post.
I've seen this happen before on the Forum.

Just goes to show, No matter how Different we seem from the Outside, We All are mostly so similar from the Inside.

Final Question!
If everything else around Us is so Remarkably Similar, then what's the Point in being a Speciesist?
(& is dat even a word?)
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Petrochemicals on 09/07/2023 22:51:48
Do any Other species conduct Agriculture or Farming?
Ants do ranching with aphids and leaf cutter ants grow a fungus that is the only thing they eat.
Edit:
I just saw someone used the exact same examples before me - oops.

Thanks for not deleting your Post.
I've seen this happen before on the Forum.

Just goes to show, No matter how Different we seem from the Outside, We All are mostly so similar from the Inside.

Final Question!
If everything else around Us is so Remarkably Similar, then what's the Point in being a Speciesist?
(& is dat even a word?)
Evolutionary dead ends are a thing
Quote
In spiders, 23 species scattered across eight families share a social system in which individuals live in colonies and cooperate in nest maintenance, prey capture, and brood care.]

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17236425/#:~:text=Evolutionary%20%22dead%20ends%22%20result%20from,lowered%20diversification%20rates%20of%20lineages.
Title: Re: Has natural selection been nullified in humans ?
Post by: Zer0 on 20/07/2023 19:58:47
@Pete

Many a times i do not Understand your responses, but at times when i do, They make Sense.

ps - Good Work!