One thing that is apparent from our longer lifespans is that, as we age, the human form is prone to many genetically driven debilitating conditions. In other words, the longer we live the more likely we are to succumb to some genetically prescribed condition, notably cancers and degenerative illnesses such as Alzheimer’s. Similarly, throughout our … Continue reading Genetic Engineering: Essential and Inevitable
We may not be due our year end, a salary review or our final exams but it should not mean that we are exempt from an appraisal of how we are performing as a species. Are we achieving what we are supposed to be striving for? How well are we doing? How do we compare … Continue reading A Genetic Appraisal
All too often we will admire Nature for the beauty it produces, for the complexities it displays and for the variation it generates; but Nature also represents a cruel world. It’s a harsh reality – a dystopian state. If you are to ask what a dystopian world would look like, you would quite likely point … Continue reading Genetic Dystopia
Once a life is lived, its genetic outcome is spent. If a species has not taken advantage of the genetic opportunities presented to it, then that is a wasteful loss of potential. In a relentless battle for survival, to miss out on a resource that could prove beneficial might be considered as both negligent and … Continue reading Genetic Banking
Development – whether that is industrial, technological, economic or social – has expanded exponentially over the last couple of hundred years. This sudden upsurge contrasts with the slow, steady and incremental progress that had for many generations preceded it. Why has that suddenly happened? What triggered it? What sustains it? How long will it continue … Continue reading Mobility … Our Genetic Path to Development
Different animals have different reproductive strategies. The only common characteristic is that each strategy is purposefully designed to secure the best reproductive partner available. By doing this an animal aims to give their off-spring the best genetic prospects. A common reproductive strategy is for the male to acquire a particular territory and then to seek … Continue reading Bagging a Territory to Secure a Mate
On its back with its feet in the air, a wood louse was stranded in the middle of my patio. Defenceless and in the open, its future looked bleak. Gallantly, I came to the rescue. I turned it over. But, more than that, I moved it to a less exposed part of the garden where … Continue reading Interfering with Nature
Our sex life is our business. We operate, sexually, as if we are running a business. The way we form relationships is similar to the methods employed by any commercial enterprise. It all comes down to marketing. As individuals we are just another product on the supermarket shelf. As such, we must sell our self … Continue reading Geneterprise – The Business of Sex
Of all the factors that account for the existence of humankind the most significant is that of luck. We have been fortunate to have chosen the genetic pathways to get us where we are today. They have ensured our survival and our undeniable success as a species. There is a saying, “you make your own … Continue reading The Mathematics of Genetic Success
Here’s a genetic oddity…. Why do we have different blood types? You would think that human blood would be the same all over. It’s a commodity product. It is there to do a job. It dispenses nutrients through the body, it delivers oxygen and takes away carbon dioxide, it staves off infections and it carries … Continue reading Blood Types – Do they Exist by Chance or by Design?
Genetically Wrapped 