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Top 10 Evolutionary Adaptations

Posted by Zonk on from the don't-make-me-choose-between-my-brain-and-sex dept.

oneill40 writes "The New Scientist has an interesting article up listing the Top 10 most amazing things to have evolved, including sex, death, the eye, language and parasites!" From the article:"Sponges are a key example of multicellular life, an innovation that transformed living things from solitary cells into fantastically complex bodies. It was such a great move, it evolved at least 16 different times. Animals, land plants, fungi and algae all joined in." J adds: Number four, Language, got a careful look from Carl Zimmer a while back. It's Pinker vs. Chomsky, winner take all, pass the popcorn!

7 of 716 comments (clear)

  1. Bad News by A+Boy+and+His+Blob · · Score: 5, Funny
    Sex may even be responsible for keeping life itself going: species that give it up almost always go extinct within a few hundred generations.
    Bad news for geeks everywhere. The best I can figure is that at some point in the future my genetic material will double and I will split in half.

    And talk about missing options sheesh! Best evolutionary adaptation? I vote breasts!
  2. It's almost too easy... by TheBrownShow · · Score: 5, Funny

    "It's true that many species, including insects, lizards and plants, do fine without sex, at least for a while." ... don't forget about Slashdot readers... ZING!

  3. The most amazing evolutionary result... by Silverlancer · · Score: 5, Funny

    Creationists.

    *ducks*

  4. Re:Death? by Nopal · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Death is what allows evolution to occur in the first place. Without death, organisms couldn't be replaced by ever improving versions of themselves.

  5. Re:Language genetic vs. memetic by michaeltoe · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The capacity to develop and understand evolution is something biological. Otherwise, every animal could learn a language just as complex.

  6. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  7. Bottom 10 Evolutionary advances by dreadlocks · · Score: 5, Funny
    Here goes:

    1. tonsils - create more problems than they're worth. F*cking swelling, soreness and sleep apnea.
    2. appendix - that's a winner.
    3. coccyx - I had to look this up to spell this useless thing right.
    4. funny bone - this has never made me laugh. It has helped with new curse words though.
    5. needing sleep - 8 hours-c'mon, can't we evolve down to 2 or so.
    6. the knee - there has got to be a better way- stretched ligaments, torn ACL's etc.
    7. religion - nuff said.
    8. ingrown toenails - trim trim trim
    9. ingrown hair - great fun digging them out
    10. balding - (or hair migration to the back) what is the point of this "evolutionary advance"?

    I'm sure I missed many