Unit 8 Reflection

Unit 8 was all about the constant change in our environment. Constant change refers to the change in organisms to fit their surroundings or evolution. Evolution is key because without evolution species go extinct. Species rely on genetic variation either in the form of a recessive gene, or a mutation to evolve. The species with the superior genetics necessary to survive get to pass down their genes to the next generations. Over a long period in time the species with the better genes become the population and therefore evolution occurs. Darwin documented these changes in his observations of natural selection. The galapagos finches were an example of evolution because they were all the same type of finch before they ended up in different islands. These finches evolved to suit their new environment and soon became so different they could not mate again with the finches on the other islands.

The thing with animals is if they can not support themselves, they do not get to reproduce and their inferior genetics does not get passed on, however in humans, even if you can not support yourself or your children, you often are able to reproduce. Is it fair to the children you are creating to be raised in poverty and not have a chance to change their social standing? The example I'm coming back to is in India, the walk to the beach is often littered with children begging for money, they come back home to an alcoholic father that beats them and a mother that is pregnant not by her wish or consent. Is it fair to the children to be born and not cared for? Shouldn't they have the opportunity to go to school and be someone instead of begging on the streets? Not just in India, though that is where my example is from, is the idea that people that can not care for their children give birth to them and are not able or do not wish to raise them and is it fair to the child to be raised in neglect?

If that does not involve evolution or natural selection, what about the Nazis idea of an Aryan complex? Having blond hair and blue eyes does not mean genetically you have a higher chance of survival, but it meant you were better, or superior. In another example, apartheid in Africa shows the stigma of looks being the judgement of superiority. Native Africans were completely segregated from the Caucasians in apartheid run Africa and they were not allowed to reproduce with each other for the fear of having mixed blood. If you had blue eyes and blond hair and gave birth to a child with brown eyes and brown hair, your child was not as good as someone with blond hair and blue eyes. In 2017, we look at this in disgust. We say, how on Earth did we think this is a good idea? But we still do it, not with humans but with our animal companions. Who are we as humans to manipulate other species to our benefit? Is it morally accepted to manipulate chickens and animals to eat, and then say judging humans by their appearance is wrong? It is interesting to see peoples point of view change when they enter animals in the question. Are animals not living breathing organisms?

This unit raises a lot of questions on morality, just like the previous unit on Ecology (http://vedabioblog.blogspot.com/2017/03/unit-7-reflection.html). But it also is not just about understanding the idea of evolution, its understanding we are the objects of evolution just as the food we eat is a object of evolution. Evolution is all around us and we can track it by looking at fossil remains and more. We are evolution, your dog is evolution, everything is an example of evolution. If you look back far enough, we all evolved from nothing.

http://www.angelfire.com/cellophanetales/evolution.html : An example of the importance of understanding evolution.

https://www.papermasters.com/origins-of-man.html

Above is an example of evolution in humans and below is an example of natural selection and how organisms that are suited to their changing environment survive and become the population. 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/121935927@N06/13578828153