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Geneticist Claims Human Evolution Is Over

Posted by samzenpus on from the flame-on dept.

GogglesPisano writes "UK geneticist Steve Jones gave a presentation entitled Human Evolution Is Over. He asserts that human beings have stopped evolving because modern social customs have lowered the age at which human males have offspring, which results in fewer of the mutations necessary to drive evolutionary change. Apparently the fate of our species now depends upon older guys hooking up with younger woman. I, for one, welcome this development."

22 of 857 comments (clear)

  1. How convenient! by rk · · Score: 5, Funny

    Imagine that. Old guy scientist claims that old guys should bag young women. "But, baby, it's scientific!"

    I immediately thought of this:

    General "Buck" Turgidson: Doctor, you mentioned the ratio of ten women to each man. Now, wouldn't that necessitate the abandonment of the so-called monogamous sexual relationship, I mean, as far as men were concerned?

    Dr. Strangelove: Regrettably, yes. But it is, you know, a sacrifice required for the future of the human race. I hasten to add that since each man will be required to do prodigious... service along these lines, the women will have to be selected for their sexual characteristics which will have to be of a highly stimulating nature.

    Ambassador de Sadesky: I must confess, you have an astonishingly good idea there, Doctor.

    1. Re:How convenient! by idonthack · · Score: 5, Funny

      MEIN FÜHRER! I CAN WALK!

      --
      Why is it that when you believe something it's an opinion, but when I believe something it's a manifesto?
    2. Re:How convenient! by MightyMartian · · Score: 5, Insightful

      It's difficult to see how a geneticist could actually make such an absurd statement. I suspect either there is major misrepresentation going on, or he's about to have his proverbial testicles handed to him by any number of researchers showing that the claim is factually false and conceptually retarded.

      All sorts of species evolve in spite of any particular start or length of reproductive capacity. Since the vast majority of what diversity between members of a population happens during conception, the evolutionary engine is largely fueled at that point.

      --
      The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
    3. Re:How convenient! by isBandGeek() · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Well, at the current rate, with technological advances keep more people alive that wouldn't have otherwise survived (that's a good thing, except in the case of Paris Hilton and her gal pals), genes will not matter as much. Our evolution will certainly slow, and maybe even stop.

      But if anything, mutations should be increasing with all the potential nuclear devices. That should keep the evolution going.

    4. Re:How convenient! by easyTree · · Score: 5, Interesting

      It's difficult to see how a geneticist could actually make such an absurd statement. I suspect either there is major misrepresentation going on, or he's about to have his proverbial testicles handed to him by any number of researchers showing that the claim is factually false and conceptually retarded.

      You think that's absurd? Read some of the comments. From a quick reading of about twenty, there were four or five who simply don't believe in evolution at all!

      Here are a few examples (because I *know* you're not gonna RTFA):

      Why doesn't the eminent scientist come out and admit that evolution has been the ultimate of hoax's. There is not a single scrap of transpeciation in the fossil record, not one on this entire earth that has been recorded. Just a couple examples of micro adaptation - thats it!

      David, Smithers,

      That anyone believes in this made up religion of evolution still amazes me. So little evidence, so much faith required to buy in. Does anyone not notice how often evolutionists change their stories to fit the latest finding? Study creation, it makes sense and fits the same evidence. I dare you.

      John, WR, USA

      Pathetic. Anyone who in this day and age of genetics believe we humans evolved from ape's (sic) need to wake up.

      Caroline Carter, London, UK

      One problem is that the academic elite is completely sold out to Darwinian evolution, and to oppose it is academic death because Darwinism is a religion that will not tolerate dissent.
      Robert Moore, Canton, U.S.A.

      It seems that there's still lots of randomness of _belief_.

      --
      Requiem for the American Dream
    5. Re:How convenient! by Rob+Kaper · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Read some of the comments.

      Pathetic. Anyone who in this day and age of genetics believe we humans evolved from ape's (sic) need to wake up.

      Caroline Carter, London, UK

      That is of course true. Humans did not evolve from apes but from a common ancestor.

      If you think I'm nitpicking, I find this common misunderstanding to be one of the best ways to tell whether I'm going to have a useful discussion with someone or whether I shouldn't bother in the first place.

    6. Re:How convenient! by electrictroy · · Score: 5, Insightful

      >>>"modern social customs have lowered the age at which human males have offspring"

      That makes no sense. Men have been marrying later (or not at all). Heck Romeo married when he was 16, and that was customary at that time... in the 1800s most americans married at 22.... you don't see that happening today. A lot of people are waiting until their 30s.

      --
      The government is not your daddy. Its purpose is not to raid middle-class neighbors' wallets and give it to you.
  2. Ugh by areusche · · Score: 5, Funny

    "I for one welcome our old men banging young women overlords."

    Keep on dreaming buddy.

  3. Re:Darwinian evolution? by Alexandra+Erenhart · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I agree, but usually those "saved" people don't breed or become uncapable of.

    And I don't know about "de-evolving", but for me it seems like people "with low IQ" (I don't know how to say it without being offensive) are breeding more than smart people, because usually smart people leave having children for later, or even not even have them, for the sake of their careers. I don't have anything against pursuing what you wanna do with your life, but I'd rater have more smart kids being born.

  4. Re:Darwinian evolution? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Your radical new ideas have already occurred to Mike Judge.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idiocracy

  5. Re:Seems a little strange by Trip6 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It used to be that you had your kids within a year after reaching puberty. And you died by 40. Today society outlaws this behavior, and even people having kids in their 20s are deemed "too young." So what is this guy talking about?

    --
    I hate being bipolar; it's awesome!
  6. Evolution doesn't just "stop"... by Ruke · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It's not like evolution just stops because of technological advances. We're just evolving within a different environment, with different selective pressures. Remember, evolution isn't driving us towards a "best," it's driving us towards a "works for now."

    Besides, society and technology have only been around for a few thousand years. If you're an optimist, the future of the human race looks really hot, and is fairly promiscuous. If you're a pessimist, society collapses, and we're back to the good ol' fashioned try-not-to-die for a while.

  7. Idiot by DrSkwid · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Yeah, were under no evolutionary pressure. The world is in stasis. There will be no more pandemics like Spanish Flu that wiped out tens of millions of us a couple of generations ago.

    What a fucking tool.

    --
    There are places where the networks are not touching,and there are places where they are-Boeing's Lori Gunter
  8. Re:Right for the wrong reasons by tibman · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It's not devolving, there's no such thing. People will evolve to best adapt to the environment over a long period of time. If the best way to survive is have the "talking shit and lying out your ass" trait then you'll start to see it more. If rich & smart people aren't reproducing as much then apparently there is a level of stupidity and poverty required for reproduction. Though that is not necessarily a bad thing. Nature doesn't give a fuck about money or intellect, only the ability to survive the longest and create the largest amount of progeny.

    --
    http://soylentnews.org/~tibman
  9. Re:The Problem is Natural Selection by Fieryphoenix · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Utterly wrong on so many levels. Natural selection is going along just fine and dandy, thank you very much. The human environment has simply changed. The hemophiliacs now are fit, because their environment no longer kills them. Evolution is only ever relative to a species' environment, and many traits formerly selected against due to lethality are no longer relevant in this brave new world.

  10. Anonymous Coward by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    This is absolute garbage science of the highest order and I'm surprised it is even mentioned here.

  11. Idiotic by Xonstantine · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Evolution of a species only stops with extinction. Period.

  12. Re:Not evolving because why? by SanityInAnarchy · · Score: 5, Interesting

    One moment he's complaining that fewer mutations are being produced, the next he's complaining that the mutants are thriving. Which is it?

    It's not that the mutants survive, it's that everyone survives, so there's no basis for any one mutant having a better chance of survival. Which means we'll just have a lot of mutants.

    Evolution can't work if "survival of the fittest" really means "survival of everyone". It looks like we'll either stagnate or evolve completely randomly, in all directions that don't outright kill us. Probably some combination -- all these random mutations won't get really exaggerated, because they'll just be absorbed back into the population.

    Of course, that's not really the end of human evolution, it's more the end of meaningful human evolution. Idiocracy is an example of how humanity could (or already has) evolved in a direction we probably don't want, and don't think of as "progress" -- but Darwinian evolution does not necessarily equal progress.

    I'm not really sure what the endgame is. I really only see three outcomes: Idiocracy (we stop caring about real science, and fall back on Darwinian evolution); MAD (we blow ourselves up (selecting ourselves out), and science dies with us); or posthumanism (science continues at roughly the pace it has, which means we'll use technology to enhance ourselves).

    --
    Don't thank God, thank a doctor!
  13. Re:Darwinian evolution? by StrahdVZ · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Or more accurately, his ideas have been studied/proposed since the early 1900s.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugenics

  14. Re:Darwinian evolution? by fyoder · · Score: 5, Funny

    Modern medicine may SAVE people that "should have" died and not passed on their genes.

    Hell, I do that all the time when I slam on the brakes for idiot pedestrians. I feel like such a traitor to Darwin. I'm screwing up the whole system.

    --
    Loose lips lose spit.
  15. Obligitory: 'You must be new here!' by rts008 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "I, for one, believe kids (and adults) should play outdoors and get dirty to help boost their immune systems and reduce the likelihood of allergies.

    Eat more dirt"

    I happen to agree 100% with you, but I could not resist...Sorry!

    If you want to grow a strong, healthy child, you need a lot of dirt, fresh air, and sunshine to allow for strong roots.
    It also was way cool to grow up on a farm with room to explore and discover my world on my own.

    Sadly, this is becoming a rarity for kids now.

    I guess times change though, and before I start a 'Get off my lawn!' rant...
    I have always kept in mind something my grandfather used to tell me:
    (rough paraphrase)' Life is like a river- water and life are connected for a reason- a river has falls, slow pools, eddies, whirlpools, boulders, sandbars, rapids, all of those things and more. Remember, stagnant water breeds mosquitoes. Who wants that?'

    That wisdom he passed to me has enabled me to keep faith in the good overall fate of the human race lately.

    --
    Down With Slashdot BETA!!! I've been around the corner and seen the oliphant; you can only abuse me from your perspecti
  16. you never saw this? by way2trivial · · Score: 5, Interesting

    http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6057734.stm

    we are also apparently splitting into two sub-races.. I call them the morlocs and the eloi
    (as I tend to represent the morloc heritage more closely)

    --
    every day http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random