Can you force evolution or is it merely adaptation? What kind of time time table to you think would be needed depending on how grand of a scale you are thinking? Such as will it take another million years before we stop getting goose bumps when we are scared? Can we teach ourselves these types of things or do our bodies and minds just take over and we have no control?
2007-10-30 04:47:54 · 5 answers · asked by Drew 3 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Biology
the only way to "speed up" evolution is to increase the reproduction rate and the rate of natural genetic mutation. this however begs the problem of differential survival and how to best implement situations which will "weed out" the bad geneotypes. for instance, it is entirely possible to "evolve" fruit flies which are adapted to a certian environment within a few months through sucsessive generations and differential survivalship, but for the same thing to happen to humans, you would need to have them reproducing at an extrodinary rate... not going to happen i dont think...
2007-10-30 04:53:40 · answer #1 · answered by nacsez 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sure you could. Evolution is adaptation over many generations, but we can control the conditions to which we (or other species) adapt.
It involves selective breeding. In nature, conditions influence which genes get passed on, but if traits were artificially selected, you could influence the evolution of a species. We've done it since the dawn of civilization, in domesticating animals and breeding them for specific tasks.
In humans, it is known as eugenics, though it has decidedly negative aspects, due to the fact that it would take away a level of freedom (you would be paired with someone with which to have children, rather than being allowed to choose for yourself). It was also used as a justification for the Holocaust. Though what the Nazis practiced was not true eugenics (rather, a justification for genocide), the word still has very negative connotations.
You can teach your body to do an amazing variety of things, though. Using biofeedback and meditation techniques, you can control your heart rate, blood pressure, suppress reflexes, and probably even goosebumps.
2007-10-30 12:19:14 · answer #2 · answered by andymanec 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Scientists do it all the time. Biological evolution is basically the passing on of heritable traits from generation to generation.
Organisms that have a short life span (from bacteria and yeast to mice and rats) can evolve very quickly to extreme environments (from hours in bacteria to years in mice and even humans). How long this takes in humans in the natural world is still a matter of great debate I think.
Finally, scientists are constantly mutating and knocking genes into and out of everything from bacteria to mice. This constitutes evolution as defined since the change in the genome is heritable.
2007-10-30 12:20:10 · answer #3 · answered by ADubya 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You can influence microevolution through artificial selection (favoring reproduction rates of individuals with the traits you selected). This method is seen in dogs, see, and also in agriculture to get desirable food products (only for agriculture, not dogs).
2007-10-30 18:01:39 · answer #4 · answered by High Tide 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
you can but it will take millions of years i you want you could speed things up like that guy said. But i highly doubt you would be able to do that sorry... =(
2007-10-30 11:56:56 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋