Post by Progenitor A on Jan 5, 2012 10:31:04 GMT 1
Mutations apparently happen accidentally and if they fit the environment in which they occur, they will survive and thrive- if not they will wither and die
But Darwin talks of a concept called 'evolutionary pressure'
Evidently this concept does not apply to the brief description of mutation and adaptation described above because there is no discernible pressure on an organism to mutate - it apparently happens randomly
That concurs with Darwin's use of 'evolutionary pressure' by which he means the pressure to evolve made by sexual attraction and selection
Species that rely on sexual reproduction are attracted to members of the opposite sex that offer the best chance of survival for the species.
Now the mystery is this - how do species know that they are selecting the best partner for survival of the species?
For when an advantageous mutation occurs, the non-mutated specimens of that species cannot possibly know in any sentient way that the new mutant variety offers the best chances of survival of the species it belongs to.
Surely the mechanism here is that sexual reproduction occurs with the non-mutant and mutant of the species and the mutant offspring have the better chance of survival than the non-mutant, therefore the mutant of the species gradually comes to predominate the species?
But that will happen without the necessity of the members of that species being specifically sexually attracted to the mutant of the species, so what precisely did Darwin mean by this form of evolutionary pressure?
It is true that the dominant mutations have signifiers of their dominance, such as extra long or extra colourful feathers in some birds, or even the ability to arrange patterns of stones in others.
How do the members of a species recognize that such indicators actually indicate a better chance for the survival of the species?
Is there some determinism taking place in addition to the accidents of evolution?
But Darwin talks of a concept called 'evolutionary pressure'
Evidently this concept does not apply to the brief description of mutation and adaptation described above because there is no discernible pressure on an organism to mutate - it apparently happens randomly
That concurs with Darwin's use of 'evolutionary pressure' by which he means the pressure to evolve made by sexual attraction and selection
Species that rely on sexual reproduction are attracted to members of the opposite sex that offer the best chance of survival for the species.
Now the mystery is this - how do species know that they are selecting the best partner for survival of the species?
For when an advantageous mutation occurs, the non-mutated specimens of that species cannot possibly know in any sentient way that the new mutant variety offers the best chances of survival of the species it belongs to.
Surely the mechanism here is that sexual reproduction occurs with the non-mutant and mutant of the species and the mutant offspring have the better chance of survival than the non-mutant, therefore the mutant of the species gradually comes to predominate the species?
But that will happen without the necessity of the members of that species being specifically sexually attracted to the mutant of the species, so what precisely did Darwin mean by this form of evolutionary pressure?
It is true that the dominant mutations have signifiers of their dominance, such as extra long or extra colourful feathers in some birds, or even the ability to arrange patterns of stones in others.
How do the members of a species recognize that such indicators actually indicate a better chance for the survival of the species?
Is there some determinism taking place in addition to the accidents of evolution?