• ryannathans@aussie.zone
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    3
    ·
    edit-2
    10 hours ago

    Natural selection is driven by pressures that affect reproduction chances. Like a genetic mutation that makes you sicker

    In nature it’s what cleans the genetics of a species of disease over time, preventing infinite accumulation of negative mutations

    • corsicanguppy@lemmy.ca
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      9
      ·
      9 hours ago

      That’s a little simplistic and forgets one thing: natural selection only cares until you’re old enough to procreate, biologically, and there’s nothing it will do for humanity after that age.

      So yeah, natural selection is totally cool with you dying of a splinter at 16.

      Sorry to bust your eugenics bubble.

      • ryannathans@aussie.zone
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        5
        ·
        7 hours ago

        That’s almost true. I said natural selection only impacts odds of reproduction but there’s a few things that occur after reproduction age in a population that have been studied to be naturally selected tooo

        Behaviours of gays and the elderly are selected for to an extent because they help raise children in the tribe/community/group whilst not affecting reproductive pressures

        Improving survival odds through nurturing children/others leads to groups with those genes doing better, which selects for those genes via natural selection

        If the older members of the group are fitter and can help gather food/hunt then those genes are selected for too through increased survival of their offspring