There is a LOT of bung dna which is only gradually filtered from the gene pool as it becomes too burdensome. Because humans are so clever, we can carry a HUGE amount of dna dross. Those who have good dna can produce so much food, housing, and other essential and even just pleasant ingredients of modern life that hordes of the hopeless can remain alive and breeding.
But nature is relentless and there will be a reckoning. One way or another, bung dna is eliminated.
In the red in tooth and claw world, it's done by some animal coming last in a race of the herd versus a lion.
Like the old joke, when two men were walking through the wilds and came across a tiger. One said "Run!" The other said "There's no point, we can't possibly out run a tiger." To which the first replied, "Yes, but I only have to outrun you."
What's your weird DNA? Is it something like some bloke came over the Bering Strait but unlike most of them, who were migrating up the coast of China, he was from Australian stock? That would be surprising. There seems to be a powerful curiosity-driven migratory adventuring gene in some people. er
My paternal line includes a bundle of stuff from the Calcutta area, but that must have been from 2000 years ago rather than the last 300 years. I guess it's from a French great grandfather who I have suspected of having ancestral origins from the middle east and across to India. An anti-malarial gene I have no doubt came from him and confirmed for me my guesswork. A doctor was somewhat surprised that one of our daughters has that gene - she's so English looking. When she was found to have it, I was pretty sure it was going to be from me and not my wife. Sure enough.
With knowledge of bung dna, we'll be able to select it out of offspring, thereby avoiding a LOT of fear, pain, suffering and early demise. A doctor I know has a familial stomach cancer gene [he's young but has had his stomach removed and it turned out that it was already going cancerous]. He and his wife tried to have a baby by genetic selection but it got too hard and in the end they gave up after substantial expense and are having a lottery baby naturally. While there's a chance the baby will be like him, that's not the end of the world and life is better than not life. It might be fine. Life's like that.
Mqurice |
