Disease and the how it helps us

[Aardvark]

Where does intelligence come from? It is a byproduct of evolution itself, it was the intelligence that allowed our ancestors to create tools which benefited our survival. However, even back then they didn't really breed to their max capacity.

 

 

What makes you think that early people didn't breed to their 'max capacity'? It is highly probable that they did breed to their 'max capacity'. With no knowledge of birth control and very high infant mortality rates not to breed to 'max capacity' would likely result in a groups extinction.

[Mokele]

if quality of life didn't matter why don't we all have nine kids with crappy impoverished life that breed when they are 15 since it surely is possible. Our DNA would still be propagated wouldn't it?

 

It's about ecology, and strategy.

 

Think of it like gambling. Each offspring is an energy gamble. If you/they win, they reproduce and further your genes. Otherwise something eats them.

 

On one hand, you could spread your energy out, making a large number of high risk bets. This is analagous to having lots of offspring: you produce huge numbers of babies, each with a minimal investment/bet, and hope that by sheer probability, one of them will survive and reproduce (because if even one does, then they'll have *lots* of babies like you did).

 

On the other hand, you could place a lot of your energy in a few, low-risk bets. This is analagous to having only a few kids, but putting as much energy into them as possible to ensure they suceed and get to reproduce.

 

Ecology, evolution, and physiology play a large role in determining what strategy is best. If offspring mortality is high, no matter *how* well invested, and spending extra energy on kids doesn't significantly increase their liklyhood of survival, then it's smarter to use that extra energy to have an extra kids (in analagy, bet on more roulette numbers rather than betting more on one number). This is often seen at the low end of the food chain, with the reverse (few, well-invested kids) seen at the top of the food chain (usually).

 

Sometimes, biology limits one's choices. There are no *true* mass-reproducers among mammals, because of our biology; even rabbit reproducion pales in comparison to that of frogs or fish. Conversely, the external fertilization and aquatic eggs of frogs constrains them to the 'lots of kids' strategy; they simply *cannot* invest more (usually; dart frogs occupy a unique niche that has allowed them to circumvent this, emphasizing the role of ecology as well as biology in selection of reproductive strategies.)

 

Like in most of evolution, there's no *universal* strategy; which is best depends on the phylogenetic and ecological situation.

 

Mokele

[Kleptin]

Um...while that was a really good post, I think it shows us how branched from the topic we are...soooooo...disease...