Biol350

Front 1

(1) It is common to find displays of strong confidence in an ever-promising future for
humanity that is associated with two general kinds of belief that are widely held in the
general public, and also in some professional domains. Briefly describe these two kinds of
belief.

Back 1

a. A belief in everlasting life through religion: allowing virtually all problems on Earth to be essentially dismissed – meaning that the events on Earth are insignificant compared to the promises of religion (such as heaven, eternal life in happiness etc.), ex: “it doesn’t matter what happens to the climate as I’m going to heaven or paradise anyways when I die”

b. A belief that our values are entirely a product of culture: something that is learned and transformable. Therefore humans are in complete control of doing what is necessary for promoting the good of our species - meaning humans are special, and other species on Earth are not. Only humans possess the mental awareness to know what is good for themselves and other species.

Recent studies in evolutionary biology have shown that 1) our long history of unfortunate situations is our fault (so we shouldn’t always trust that we know what is good for us) and 2) that our actions that cause these situations is part of our evolved human nature, inherited from our ancestors. So our behaviour may not be manipulated by culture so easily.

Front 2

(2) The current state of civilization can be described in terms of problems of ‘input’ or
problems of ‘output’. Describe the main current concerns associated with ‘forests’ as a
problem of ‘input’, and describe the main reasons why forests have important value in
terms of providing ecosystem services for humans.

Back 2

Inputs/outputs:
• World timber production has increased by 25% and paper product consumption has doubled within 25 years (1973-1998).
• Asia, Africa, Central/South America have lost 10-20% of their forest area within 15 years (1990-2005).
• Worldwide forest hectares per capita from 3.18 in 1900 to 0.64 in 2000.
Why forests have important value:
They are the Earth’s lungs as a major source of oxygen (together with algae in oceans). They are the Earth’s source of water circulation – up to 50% of water is transpired by forests (sustainable water supply). They protect mineral rich top soil from erosion. They are a major carbon sink – capturing, storing and decreasing global CO2 levels. Forests are home to much of Earth’s biodiversity.

Front 3

(3) World food production now appears to have peaked and prices are sky-rocketing.
Describe the main reasons for this crisis.

Back 3

Food crop production has more than doubled since the 1960s and prices have been halved. However the rate in increase in food production appears to be slowing down. By 2025, cereal production must increase from 2.2 billion tons to 3.0 billion tons to keep up with population growth. While significant progress has been made (between 1990-2002) in providing millions of people with food in East and SE Asia, that progress however has been offset by setback in Africa.
Main reason for peak production and rising prices:
• Drought from climate change
• Lost irrigation from melting glaciers and dried up aquifers
• Rising oil prices
• Arable land at its peak – all available used up
• More arable land used to grow bio-fuel crops than food
• Increasing soil degradation from decades of use
• Rising prosperity of the world’s two largest populations – India and China
• Fishing: fish landings have increased 5 fold in the second half of the 20th century
• Growing food feeds the hungry but also creates more mouths that need feeding

Front 4

(4) The current state of civilization can be described in terms of problems of ‘input’ or problems of ‘output’. Describe the main current concerns associated with ‘fossil fuels’ as a problem of ‘input’.

Back 4

Inputs/outputs: In 1997, 82% of the world’s energy comes from fossil fuels. Middle East has the most oil, North America has the most coal and Russia/Middle East has the most natural gas. Africa and South America have very little of all three. The USA consumes 25% of the world’s energy but only has 5% of the world’s population. World oil consumption has doubled in the past 40 years (1965-2005) BUT in during the same time oil consumption has increased by 7 times in Asia Pacific and more than 26 times in China. We have already found 95% of all the oil there is and we burn 4 barrels of oil for every 1 barrel we find. About 80% of every oil barrel goes towards fuelling transportation. Only about 30 years of easily accessible oil left, after which oil will get scarce and very expensive.
Coal production will peak by 2025. Even though there’s more coal available than oil, coal produces 25-50% more CO2 per unit than petroleum.
Alternatives? Nuclear reactors take 10 years to build and thousands would be needed to replace fossil fuels. Nuclear waste cannot be stored safely forever and uranium is non-renewable resource and mining it contaminates soil and water supplies. Nuclear power is not a realistic global alternative to replacing our need for fossil fuels. No energy source matches fossil fuels in terms of energy density and portability. Also, petrochemicals from oil are used to make solar panels and wind turbines!

Front 5

(5) The current state of civilization can be described in terms of problems of ‘input’ or problems of ‘output’. Describe the main current concerns associated with ‘soil loss’ as a problem of ‘output’.

Back 5

Soil loss is one of the inevitable failures of modern agriculture. The use of oil in fertilizers, pesticides and irrigation has lead to volume and nutrient loss, water pollution, lost biodiversity and salination. Soil degradation is especially high in dry lands due to salination from irrigation. Fertilizer use has doubled in the past 30 years, especially in Asia. Continents with the highest population densities (Africa, Asia) are at highest risk for soil degradation. However North America and Europe have the highest pesticide use. Crops and weeds that are resistant to pesticides have increased. Deforestation (see Peter Salonius article) plays a large role in depleting soils, as forest biomass is nutrient rich and protects the nutrient rich topsoil layer. Modern agriculture is eroding the very soil we need for food production to survive. Civilizations have proven to be only as durable as the fertility of their land.

Front 6

(6) Forecasters worry that climate change may disrupt the so-called ‘global ocean conveyer’. Describe what this is, how it might be disrupted, and what the main consequences would be.

Back 6

The global ocean conveyer: wind pushes warmer, less dense, shallow water. Wind causes evaporation leading to saltier water and wind also picks up heat from the water, warming Europe. The resulting colder, saltier water is denser and sinks. Downdraft of heavy cold water generates a south-going stream. (See the map: Scotland is warmer than Labrador in Canada despite them being at the same latitude – the global ocean conveyer plays a major role in regulating climates)
Consequences of global warming:
Melting arctic ice causes the North Atlantic to become less salty (due to a large influx of fresh water from melted ice). Water therefore becomes less dense and does not sink. This disrupts the conveyer as warm surface currents are no longer drawn to the North Atlantic. Europe and Eastern NA become colder as well – meaning shorter growing season and therefore less crops and food.

Front 7

(7) James Lovelock and other forecasters have predicted that even if we completely stop all fossil fuel burning tomorrow, it is too late to stop climate change. Describe the main reasons why this may be so.

Back 7

1) We have already kick-started an irreversible self-escalating series of natural causes effecting global warming:
More open water and land --> More solar energy absorbed by water and land --> More thawing of permafrost and melting of frozen methane crystals in oceans and more water vapour in atmosphere (that traps heat) --> Increased methane release and CO2 release from decomposition of soil organic matter (because no longer frozen)
2) Other causes of rising atmospheric carbon continue as a product of economic growth associated with pollution, habitat loss and population expansion
Worldwide economic and population growth:
Conversion of vegetation biomass to people and livestock biomass --> Less CO2 removed and more CO2 from respiration
Increased ocean pollution --> Loss of algae biomass and ocean acidification --> Less CO2 removed
Increased forest loss --> Less CO2 removed

Front 8

(8) Many experts today believe that bio-fuel production causes more problems than it solves. Describe the main reasoning behind this view.

Back 8

Although bio-fuel is advertised as an alternative to fossil fuels, there are several very significant negative consequences associated with bio-fuel production. Bio-fuel production causes the loss of tropical forests and other natural habitats, depletes oil, accelerates climate change and exacerbates world hunger. In South America and Indonesia, deforestation accounts for 20% of all carbon emissions.
Use of oil-based fuel and fertilizers used to grow bio-fuel crops contributes to
1) the ensuing oil shortage
2) climate change by
a. the use of fossil fuels and
b. by cutting down forests to have land to grow bio-fuel crops (forests store and reduce CO2)
3) world hunger by converting crop land to grow bio-fuel crops in developing countries to earn profits
4) loss of forests = loss of natural habitats

The farming of bio-fuels also produces nitrous oxide. Large scale deforestation contributes to adjacent forest decline as well (repeating cycle). Reduced forest area means less transpiration leading to less rainfall. Less rainfall leads to increased drought which accelerates the death of trees. In turn this causes growing termite populations to feed on dead trees as well as the warming of the forest floor and accelerated decomposition of organic soil matter. These activities release large amounts of methane and CO2 into the atmosphere.
Note on biodiesel from algae: There is more energy required (greater carbon footprint) to produce a unit of algae fuel than it does to produce regular diesel (320 g/MJ vs. 86g/MJ).

Front 9

(9) The current state of civilization can be described in terms of problems of ‘input’ or problems of ‘output’. Describe the main current concerns associated with 'population’ as a problem of ‘output’.

Back 9

Overview: In 2009, the world’s population was 6.8 billion and expected to reach 7 billion in 2012 and exceed 9 billion in 2050. Most of those new people will be from developing countries. The population of developed countries between 2009-2050 will only increase from 1.23 billion to 1.28 billion and the increase is only the result of net migration from developing countries. Africa alone will account for 21% of the world’s population in 2050, up from only 9% in 1950.
Births: Fertility rates are highest in poorer countries. Countries will low fertility rates have high immigration rates instead.
Urbanization: The more developed a country is, the greater the percentage of its population live in cities. In 2000, 77% North America is urban compared to 38% in Africa and 38% in Asia.
Agriculture: Between 1960 and 2000, the proportion of the world’s population engaged in agriculture dropped from 60% to 40% - fewer farmers feeding more people
Mega-cities: can megacities of 10+ million survive the effects of climate change, overpopulation and food shortages? Is urbanization on this scale sustainable?
Some scientists (at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry) argue that overpopulation is the worst environmental problem, followed by climate change. Unless families voluntarily reduce birth rates, the world’s population will reach an unsustainable number (possibly as high as 11 billion in 2050) (Royal Society). To maintain 9 billion in 2050 will require the deforestation of 900 million additional hectares of land.

Front 10

(10) Describe the major possible risks involving health care collapse resulting from climate change and peak oil.

Back 10

Overview: Advances in medicine have drastically increased life expectancy worldwide. However, human disease is increasing as well: 40% of the world’s deaths are due to environmental degradation. This includes water, air and soil pollution.
Climate change/global warming: will cause more extreme weather events such as heat waves and storms. Even the developed world is unprepared for such occurrences.
• These can have major public health consequences such as overwhelming sewage systems and inducing smog-filled cities (asthma).
• Heat stroke in the elderly
• Increasing the geographical range of disease carrying organisms, such as mosquitoes and rodents.
• Disease from untreated storm water runoff
• Power outages at hospitals
• Rising energy costs – hospitals use twice as much as other buildings
• Most hospital equipment is petroleum based – costs will increase rising oil costs
Post-antibiotic era: many diseases are developing resistance to current drugs and even if replacements are created, some diseases may not be treatable for up to ten years. At least a dozen countries have has cases of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB). New antibiotic discoveries peaked in the 1960s.

Front 11

(11) Describe the main conditions required for evolution by natural selection to occur, and explain why genetic variation virtually always exists within a population.

Back 11

Evolution occurs because:
1) Individuals display variation in certain traits (variants called phenotypes)
2) Some of this variation occurs from differences in genes (variants called genotypes); and the associated phenotypes are heritable (can be passed down to the next generation)
3) Some of these heritable traits affect varying success in reproduction, either through directly (through sex) or indirectly (through effects on growth and survival to reproductive maturity). I.e. some genotypes are more successful than others in leaving descendants (they have higher fitness) under the existing environmental conditions. This varying success is called natural selection. The result is a change over time in the frequency in different genes and hence their associated phenotypes.
Genetic variation occurs because:
1) Genetic variation ultimately occurs from mutation: changes in the structure of genes caused by environmental impacts or random mistakes in replication during cell division. These changes can be beneficial, neutral or detrimental to reproductive success. Therefore, several different forms of the same gene coexist within a population or species, and there is on-going formation of new forms.
2) Sexual reproduction causes mixing of genes that affect different traits. The presence of one gene can affect the expression of another. Several genotypes, and hence phenotypes, usually coexist within a population or species.
3) Genotype X Environment interaction – some environments disfavour the reproductive success of certain genes while favouring others. Since environmental conditions are not uniform, several different forms of the same gene will exist within a opulation/species because each might be favoured under a different environmental condition.

Front 12

(12) (a) Define natural selection. Does natural selection act on genes, traits or individuals?
Explain your answer. (b) Does the definition of evolutionary fitness apply to genes, traits, or individuals? Explain your answer.

Back 12

Natural selection: is represented by the failure of certain individuals to leave descendants, or to leave as many descendants as other individuals. This failure occurs because certain individuals lack certain phenotypic traits (e.g. ability to avoid a predator, or to attract a mate). Natural selection then acts most directly on traits – favouring those traits that promote descendant production in the individuals that bear them, and disfavouring traits that promote fewer descendants.
B)
Evolutionary fitness applies to individuals. Those who leave more descendants have a higher fitness. Genes are important as they affect the expression of traits and the reason that some individuals leave more descendants than others. Fitness therefore is also meaningfully defined in terms of the number of gene copies residing in future generations.
Why both?
Genes (and the traits they carry) cannot propel themselves into future generations on their own - individuals need to do this through sex. The number of gene copies propelled into future generations is directly correlated with the number of descendent individuals in future generations. Thus, fitness can be defined either way, but it is more mechanistically defined in terms of the number of descendent individuals, rather than gene copies, since it is individuals that can be multiplied as independent units. However, evolution is based on genetic change, which is why it is also meaningful to define fitness it terms of genes.

Front 13

(13) Explain how morning sickness in pregnant women can be interpreted plausibly, through the ‘consilience of inductions’ as a product of evolution by natural selection.

Back 13

Theory by biologist Margie Profet
Nausea is a protection against eating toxins as the poisonous food is ejected from the stomach before it can do much harm. Pregnancy sickness in women protects the fetus against foods with toxins that would be harmful. Plant toxins in dosages that adults can tolerate can cause birth defects or abortion when ingested by pregnant women. Pregnancy sickness begins when an embryo’s organ systems are forming and therefore when it is most vulnerable and it ends when the organ systems are complete and it can handle more nutrients. Pregnant women avoid bitter, high flavoured foods, which are also the ones most likely to contain toxins. Women with more severe pregnancy sickness are less likely to bear babies with birth defects.

Front 14

(14) Describe the main hypotheses that have been put forward for the advantages of bipedalism in humans.

Back 14

Earliest evidence 3 million years ago in Africa
Hypotheses for advantages of bipedalism (walking on two feet)
1) Arms and hands are free to hold food
2) Free hands could make tools
3) Lower danger of heat stroke – when foraging in the sun, as the sun’s intense rays would only hit obliquely on upright backs
4) Allows for elevated posture for improved viewing of the landscape as a ground-dwelling species
5) Allows free hands to threaten rivals in competition for food and mates and hence to defuse tense situations – reducing risk and injury and perhaps the beginning of social tolerance

Front 15

(15) Describe the main ideas that have been put forward for the early advantages associated with the discovery and use of fire by humans.

Back 15

First evidence Neanderthals used fire - 100,000 years before present (but probably occurred much earlier)
Advantages:
1) Warmth
2) Ward off predators
3) Cooking – allowing proteins to be more digestible, allowing for more foods that had previously been off limits to humans – thus enlarging humans carrying capacity
4) Brought people together under a leisurely atmosphere, created by warmth and security, possibly facilitating a social sense of community belonging and promoting the development of early communication through symbolism with vocal and hand gestures (does this explain our fascination with storytelling and watching movies on a bright screen in a dark theatre?)
Primatologist Richard Wrangham argues that human evolutionary success is a result of cooking. Once cooking began, the human digestive tract shrank and the brain grew – and pair bonding, marriage, the household and sexual division of labour emerged.

Front 16

(16) Describe the main ideas and hypotheses that have been considered in accounting for the probable adantages of early Homo sapiens over Homo neanderthalensis.

Back 16

- Neanderthals had limited life spans, 30-40 yrs
o Grand-parenting rare – limited ability to accumulate and transmit information between generations
- Humans – 60 yrs
o Supplemental maternal care for offspring
o Grandparenting allowed experience of descendants across two generations – did this instil a sense of time and awareness of legacy through offspring/descendent production?
- Meeting in Europe
o Humans arrived in the Middle East and Spain in large numbers
o Physical strength and brawn no match for slimmer but smarter Cro-Magnons
o Larger size meant that Neanderthals required more food and resources to support themselves
o Smarter Cro-Magnons used tools not only for their original uses, but also for fighting
o If competing with Neanderthals, Homo sapiens had:
. Better tools
. More sophisticated social organization
- Birthing
o Our smaller brains allowed for easier birth – therefore faster reproduction rate, which may have quickly overtaken population of Neanderthals
- Climate change – fluctuations of climate that went changed in one or two generations
o Neanderthals needed much higher calorie intake than Homo sapiens and so could not cope with drastic changes in environment and resources

Front 17

(17) Describe the main ideas and hypotheses that have been proposed for the advantages resulting from the evolution of a sense of time and self-consciousness / self awareness in humans.

Back 17

- A sense of time, together with language, allowed planning for the future
- Power of imagination – those that are able to see beyond the actual the possible are better equipped to handle the exigencies of life than those attached to the merely actual
o The ability to imagine different possibilities, different consequences causes one to be better prepared for situations that require immediate or decisive actions
- Evolution of self-consciousness/self-awareness – Ability to:
o Take oneself as the object of one’s own attention and thoughts
o Form ideas and images of what one is like
o Anticipate outcomes of one’s actions
o Deliberately control one’s behaviour
o Consciously compare one’s own standard to other people
o Experience emotions such as pride and shame
o Infer other people’s internal states by extrapolating from one’s own private experiences
o Predict behaviour of others

Front 18

(18) Describe the main ideas and hypotheses that have been proposed for the advantages resulting from the evolution of spoken language in humans.

Back 18

- Evolution of spoken language linked to larger brain capacity, altered brain structure, development of larynx, tongue and associated muscles
- Rapid communication to:
o Plot strategy
o Brainstorm about how to devise better tools
o How to interpret a cave painting
- Allowed learning from what others have experienced elsewhere or in the past
o Complex information can be communicated to their children and grandchildren that may help children develop thoughts and sense of the world – advantage for survival
- Allowed humans to master the art of living in ever larger units of social organization
o Led to development of agriculture and eventual formation of cities
- Language allowed commanding attention and persuasion of large groups for political and military goals
o Strengthened social communities

Front 19

(19) Describe what forms of early art are represented in the Upper Palaeolithic, and describe the main ideas and hypotheses that have been proposed for the advantages associated with the evolution of art in humans.

Back 19

- Appearance of cave paintings, necklaces and pendants, fired clay ceramic sculptures, stone-carved figurines, and musical instruments ranging from flutes to rattles
o Perforated shells (used as beads)
- Art (possibly stories, dance and music) possibly facilitated group cohesion and hence group survival – and hence individual survival by providing identification of the group’s distinctive culture
- The objects and activities depicted in art were presumably pleasing because they represented things that would have promoted the fitness of ancestors e.g. food hunting, sex, beauty, children, optimal human habitat, attainment of know-how, signals and symbols of safety and familiarity, such as dwellings, landmarks, boundaries and paths
- Hypothesis: Evolution of art an expression of evolution of legacy drive?
o Acquiring/owning art became an indicator of status, with benefits therefore in attracting mates and for use in bride payments; and for leaving a legacy
 Satisfying a legacy?
o Status symbols serve to advertise that one can afford to waste resources and time on luxuries and leisure – like the tail of the peacock – thus serving to advertise high quality to potential mates

Front 20

(20) The agricultural revolution provided many benefits for humans, but there are many indications that agriculture is also responsible for creating many problems. Describe these main problems.

Back 20

- Agriculture brought:
o Infectious diseases and parasites - from close association with domesticated animals, and because crowded, sedentary people, were constantly re-infected with each other and by their own sewage
o A greater risk of starvation and famine due to crop failure – because of dependence on only a few crops
o Malnutrition from a less varied diet. Farmers concentrated on high carbohydrate diets like rice and potatoes, and had high dependencies on these crops. Hunter-gatherer societies, in contrast, had a diet with higher protein and a better balance of nutrients, and so were healthier and suffered less disease
- Agriculture led to division of classes with wealth accumulation by only a few
o Surpluses generated by agriculture creates for possibility for a few to expropriate the surpluses for their own exclusive personal use
o Contrast between disease-ridden masses and healthy non-producing elite in power
 Kings and religious officials to grow fat on food seized by others and taxes
o Surpluses locked up, if you did not work, you did not eat
- Hypothesis: did agriculture also exacerbate sexual inequality?
o Women became beasts of burden and were drained by more frequent pregnancies
- Agriculture sowed more seeds of conflict
o Population overshoot – more pressing needs to expand boundaries, to crow crops in neighbouring lands
o Larger population densities  larger armies
 Due to more food availability and because women could have more babies
 Farming culture out-bred and chased off hunter-gatherer culture
- Lower minimum quality of life and higher maximum quality of life – greater variety in quality of life, did not improve average quality of life
- Crippling overpopulation that has led to large scale environmental destruction
- The cradle of western civilization once had rich fertile lands with abundant forests, but today much of it is barren land and desert
o Turned Fertile Crescent area into desert or scrubland
- Totalitarian agriculture – subordination of all life forms to the relentless, single-minded production of human food
o Humans annihilate all other species that dare compete with us for food
o Totalitarian agriculture based on premise that all the food in the world belongs to us, and there is no limit whatever to what we may take for ourselves or deny to others

Front 21

(21) One of the most conspicuous products of culture is the ‘sacred’ human belief that our journey through history is a long tale of benefits accrued from ‘progress’ and ‘growth’. Describe how this interpretation is debatable based on major events associated with the historical period known as the Middle Ages.

Back 21

- The Dark Ages – harsh period of famine, suffering, and disease
o Symptoms of overcrowding and poor sanitation
- Fall of Roman Empire
o Competition for power between Byzantine, Islamic and western Christian empires
- Corruption and religious wars (including the Crusades)
- Protracted warfare, famine and pestilence
o The Black Death – caused by a bacterium transmitted by fleas from rats to humans
 Lasted over 200 years and killed an estimated 75 million people world-wide, reducing the European population by about 50%
- Torture was practiced to “combat heresy and witchcraft”

Front 22

(22) One of the most conspicuous products of culture is the ‘sacred’ human belief that our journey through history is a long tale of benefits accrued from ‘progress’ and ‘growth’. Describe how this interpretation is debatable based on major events associated with the historical period between 1700 and 1900.

Back 22

- 1700 – Industrial Revolution
o With discovery of coal, there was less reliance on wood from forests for heating; hence more land could be cleared for agriculture
o Because fabrics could be made from oil, there was less need for sheep-grazing land and cotton-growing land, thus allowing the conversion of even more non-food cropland to food production
- World population doubled between 1650 and 1850, and again by 1930
o Heartless and grasping exploitation, with women and children working 12 or more hours a day for starvation wages in sweatshops, factories, and mines
o As cities became more crowded  hundreds of millions inhabiting slums of inconceivable squalor, prey to disease borne by rats and contaminated water, without means of education or betterment
- Revolutions
o General uprisings, peasant uprisings, colonial uprisings, slave uprisings, worker uprisings – hundreds of revolutions
o Tens of millions of people died
- Disease and famine remained rampant even with technological and medical advances
o Crop failures led to massive death by starvation
 10 million died in Bengal in 1796
 2 million died in Russia and Ireland in 1845-1846
 15 million died in China and India in 1876-1879
 Etc.
o 60 million died of smallpox in the 18th century alone
o Hundreds of millions died of cholera epidemics, plague, yellow fever, scarlet fever, and influenza

Front 23

(23) In BIOL350, we considered hypotheses for the emergence of the ‘drug abuse’ culture.
Briefly describe these hypotheses.

Back 23

- Drug use stems from a selective advantage associated with mate acquisition, or as a bluff to a potentially more powerful enemy, by advertising a message of superiority and bravery
o That “I am so strong and powerful and invincible that I can even rise above this risk to my survival.
o Indulging in dangerous displays to “show off,” to impress our rivals, peers and prospective mates and ourselves; to instil an impression of a strong, brave superior and hence a good defender and provider
- Is drug abuse a product of legacy drive?
o Linked to an ancient selective advantage in finding escape or distraction from awareness of morality, or from the inability to convince oneself that life is not absurd

Front 24

(24) Describe the major factors throughout the journey of human evolution that resulted in the elevation of human carrying capacity.

Back 24

- Fire – used for cooking  allowing meat protein to be more digestible and hence, allowing more foods that had previously been off-limits to humans
- Weapons for killing animals and humans at a distance – allow for more proficient hunting
- Plant and animal domestication and eventually irrigation
o Provided stable, surplus food supply for feeding both growing civilian populations (and invading armies) and hence (perhaps) better health and greater longevity
- Industrial revolution – conversion of the plant’s stored energy and biomass into human biomass

Front 25

(25) The story of civilization can be described as a story of energy use. Describe what this means.

Back 25

- Solar energy is stored on earth first in green plant biomass (photosynthesis)
- Animal biomass gets their energy from plant biomass
- Animal and plant biomass is converted into stored energy as fossil fuel
- In hunter-gatherer societies, human biomass was created from energy came from plants and some energy from animals
o Tool making and fire - Energy from hunting, killing and burning organic matter
- At the end of the agricultural revolution, plant and animal biomass was accumulating slower than the growth of human biomass
o Agricultural - Energy from growing organic matter
- Starting with the industrial revolution, human biomass consisted of both plant and animal biomass, and the stored energy in the earth from fossil fuels
o Industrial – energy from burning fossil-fuel organic matter
- Human biomass continues to grow, but the other sources of energy are being depleted and biomass cannot regenerate at a sustainable rate

Front 26

(26) In BIOL350, we have explored two main views of the mind. Distinguish the main features of these different views.

Back 26

- Evolutionary Science Model
o The mind is already partially and variably structured at birth, and develops from this variation in pre-structure a series of cognitive processes associated with variable intensities of instincts and inclinations that guide a range of variation in particular behaviours. Including variation in capacity to learn from different environments, which in turn can affect the characteristics of culture
- Social Science Model
o The mind is a ‘blank slate’ at birth and our understanding of the world, and the manner in which we think and behave, is acquired through exposure and learning from our environment; hence variation in behaviour is entirely a consequence of variable environments and variation in the opportunity to learn from different environments – i.e. variation in ‘culture’

Front 27

27) Define ‘memes’ and describe what the process of meme transmission involves.

Back 27

- Memes are knowledge, ideas, beliefs, values, and customs that are transmitted from the minds of individuals belonging to a particular population of humans to the minds of future generations as a result of communication and learning
- Memes can be passed vertically in the case of parent to offspring or horizontally in the case of one organism to another
o Vertical: when passed vertically down the generations, memes can accompany genes. In early traditional cultures, there was probably a large degree of synergy between genes and memes and this may persist into modern times. The linked memes in Catholicism that restrict birth control and also insist that offspring are raised in the faith, for example, have the dual effect of increasing the spread of memes and the genes of those professing the memes
o Horizontal: In horizontal transmission, genes do not accompany memes and memes may, from a biological point of view, be fitness reducing. The meme that suggests a career is more important than children reduces biological fitness but it may nevertheless spread through imitation.
- The transmission of memes can be interpreted as replication: a copy of the meme is made in the memory of another individual, making him or her into a carrier of the meme

Front 28

(28) Define what is meant by ‘cultural evolution’ and describe the entities, causes and processes involved.

Back 28

- Entities and definition of the process of change: Change in representation of particularly (only certain behavioural) phenotypes of individuals, resulting because of change in the popularity of memes (ideas, beliefs, and customs), residing (as thoughts and motivations) in the self-conscious minds within a population
- Proximate cause of change: Differential learning and copying success of certain behavioural phenotypes by one generation from previous generations (cultural selection), or by components of one generation from more dominant components of the same generation (persuasion/popularity)
- Medium of action: Communication – where individual minds interact through language (oral and written) and visual signals
- Ultimate cause of change: Differential propagation of memes (ideas, beliefs and customs) that influence the newly more successfully behavioural phenotypes; i.e. change in representation of certain behavioural phenotypes only because of change in ‘nurture’ (i.e. change in the impact of environment/experience in conditioning the outcome of learning and communication), not change in ‘nature’ (genetic make-up)
- Ultimate source of novelty and variation: Imagination/Innovation/creativity within the mind

Front 29

(29) Describe the main evidence that supports the view that ‘culture’, as a distinguishing feature of humans, can be interpreted to a large extent as a product of evolution by natural selection.

Back 29

- That capacity for culture is genetically determined is evident from the fact that humans are the only species that have it. We are the only species that have the genes that allow its expression – i.e. the genes that have allowed:
o Capacity for:
 Self-awareness, imagination, intelligence and memory (that vastly exceeds all other species)
 Communication using complex language
 Learning through stored written language
o Our ancestors had these capacities, which allowed them to produce many offspring
- Culture is manifested as a set of behavioural phenotypes, and genes hold ALL phenotypes on a leash, while at the same time the latter display phenotypic plasticity.
- Cultural variation very often has its roots in the effects of biological evolution
o This occurs when a culture has positive biological fitness
 Spicy foods – preference for spicy foods selected for in hot countries
 Body sizes of potential mates – hunger in Western males is also sufficient to make them prefer larger female bodies than those they would favour in a satiated state
• In populations prone to food restriction, men prefer larger sized women; in affluent Western cultures, men prefer thin women

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(30) Describe how the culture of gossip can be interpreted as a product of evolution by natural selection.

Back 30

- In prehistoric times, strangers were probably an infrequent and temporary phenomenon. Our caveman ancestors had to cooperate with so-called in-group members for success against out-groups, but they also had to recognize that these same in-group members were their main competitors when it came to dividing limited resources. Living under such conditions, our ancestors faced a number of consistent adaptive problems such as remembering who was a reliable exchange partner and who was a cheater, knowing who would be a reproductively valuable mate, and figuring out how to successfully manage friendships, alliances and family relationships
- The social intelligence needed for success in this environment required an ability to predict and influence the behaviour of others, and an intense interest in the private dealings of other people would have been handy indeed and would have been strongly favoured by natural selection. In short, people who were fascinated with the lives of others were simply more successful that those who were not, and it is the genes of those individuals that have come down to use through the ages. Like it or not, our inability to forsake gossip and information about other individuals is as much a part of who we are as is our inability to resist doughnuts or sex – and for the same reasons
- Gossip serves as a useful social function in bonding group members together – this helped us survive and thrive
- Natural selection shaped a memory to store information about specific people
o When we hear about temperament, predictability and past behaviours of other people, we remember this because knowing these can help us predict behaviour of others
- Sharing gossip with another person is a sign of deep trust – way of bonding people together
- A way of learning the unwritten rules of social groups and cultures by resolving ambiguity about group norms
- Can be effective way of uncovering information about others that may be tempted to violate group norms of reciprocity
o Ostracize the one that doesn’t share gossip/resources
o Outsider less likely to be evolutionarily fit – no one likes outsiders

Front 31

(31) Describe how it is possible to apply evolutionary thinking to an interpretation of the culture of ‘cool’.

Back 31

1. Being cool could have earned social status and attractiveness to mates
2. Being cool can lead to social inclusion
3. Arises from intrinsic legacy drive – desire to leave something of oneself for the future and desire for immortality

Front 32

(32) Describe what “terror management theory” means, and explain the role that it can play in the interpretation/understanding of our human nature, and of our culture.

Back 32

- Due to awareness of death and helplessness and vulnerability, we are in constant danger of being prevented from functioning normally due to overwhelming anxiety
- Anxiety spreads and grows to become absolute terror
- To overcome this, humans have ingeniously but unconsciously solved their existential dilemma by developing cultural worldviews:
o Humanity constructed beliefs about reality shared by individual in a group that serve to reduce potentially overwhelming terror resulting from awareness of death
- All cultures:
o Provide sense of meaning by offering an account of the origin of the universe
o A blueprint for acceptable conduct on earth
o Promise of immortality – symbolically by creation of large monuments, great works of art or science, amassing great fortune, having children and literally through the various kinds of afterlives that are a central feature of organized religion
- Therefore cultures vary considerably but they share in common the same defensive psychological function:
o To provide meaning and value and in so doing bestow psychological composure in the face of death.
- Anxiety – product of evolution by natural selection
o Predecessors who most feared the consequences of death were most driven to conquer it through a determination to leave a legacy of offspring production, a dynasty of descendants
o Evolutionary fitness was therefore strongly promoted by mortality awareness and the fear of its consequences

Front 33

(33) Describe how several products of cultural evolution, involving ‘sacred human beliefs’ can be interpreted as causing about a 300-year delay in the public acceptance of science.

Back 33

- Sacred human beliefs
§ Earth is the center of the universe
§ Human diseases and epidemics are divine judgments on the wickedness of humankind
§ Humans were specially created by God, and the earth was made for humans and belongs to humans
§ Human history has been a long tale of benefits accrued from progress and growth
- Religious institutions presented a barrier to the progress of science because hypotheses from science ran contrary to ancient superstitions and principles from religion.
- Acceptance of contrary evidence from science was slow mainly because of the enormous sway of the church in affecting the politics and personal beliefs of the general public.
- Science seeks to see the world as it is, not as we would like it to be

Front 34

(34) Describe how self-esteem can be considered as a product of biological evolution

Back 34

- Life can have meaning – a sense of personal contentment or happiness only if there is protection from this anxiety of eventual death. There are two ways this is possible:
1. Through a state of mind that promotes confidence in an ability despite inevitable death, to leave something of oneself (a legacy) for the future,
2. Through state of mind that promotes distraction from the awareness of death (e.g through leisure, including materialism/consumerism).
Meaning through self-esteem:
- Drive for self-esteem – product of need to belong to a social group.
o Belonging to groups helped our ancestors survive and reproduce
o People sought self-esteem to minimize exclusion and maximize inclusion
o Seeking self-esteem may have evolved simply as a monitor of how well one is being accepted by others
OR
o Strategy to elevate one’s position in social dominance hierarchy, thus affecting success in the acquisition of mates.
 the more mates one has, the greater his fitness and therefore natural selection probably favoured the ‘self-esteem’ trait as it proved greater reproductive success and FITNESS!

Front 35

(35) According to some authors, one way to define the ‘meaning of life’ is in terms of
‘death’ and ‘distraction’. Describe what this means and what kinds of distraction are typically employed by humans in this context.

Back 35

- “Meaning of life” only understandable in terms of response to our anxiety over the awareness of death
- Life can have meaning – a sense of personal contentment or happiness only if there is protection from this anxiety of eventual death. There are two ways this is possible:

1. Meaning of life defined in terms of DEATH:
• LEGACY DRIVE: state of mind that promotes confidence in an ability, despite inevitable death, to leave something of oneself (a legacy) for the future.
2. Meaning of life defined in terms if DISTRACTION:
• LEISURE DRIVE: a state of mind that promotes distractions from the awareness of death, e.g. through leisure, including consumerism)
Types of Distractions:
1. Intoxication: alcohol and drugs
2. Consumerism/materialism

Front 36

(36) According to some authors, one way to find ‘meaning’ in life is through ‘productive illusions’. Describe what this means and what kinds of illusions are typically employed by humans in this context.

Back 36

Productive illusions allow us to thrive because it distracts us from the thoughts that life is:
- No more than a biological accident
- Not an accident waiting to happen (uncertain future)
Types of productive illusions employed by humans:
1. Religion
• Longing of soul never satisfied, therefore acts of war, terrorism, genocidal mass murder throughout human history were committed in name of religion.
2. Kindness
• Money might buy happiness when you spend on others
• Increased happiness achieved if money spent on gifts and charity, therefore you can buy happiness.
• Possibly a way to increase reproductive success as well.
3. Power or positive thinking
• The ability to delude oneself into thinking that one is happy or decided or believing that one will be happy regardless of life’s circumstances, must have had an enormous fitness benefits for our predecessors.
allowed pursuits associated with legacy drive and leisure drive
• Happy people – satisfy their legacy drive or leisure drive
• Positive thinking – placebo effect
• Tendency to see positive information may be in our genes – suggested by studies
• Smiling helps

Front 37

(37) Describe how humour can be considered as a product of biological evolution.

Back 37

1. Humour when presented to the right person acts as a shared in-jokes which would boost laughter’s ability to generate camaraderie
- Increases sense of belonging and thus directly relates to group inclusion and benefits in form of increased survival.
2. Humour varies within sexes:
- Men funnier than women
- Women request humour, men offer it and therefore this suggests that the ability to make others laugh have evolved at least in part through sexual selection.
3. Humour as a need to elevate relative status:
- Status of the dominant can be punctured by being laughed at ( especially effective if a group of people laugh at the one person)
- Laughter can be used to overthrow the dominant individual
- Laughter can act as an anti-dominance weapon against bullies, know-it-all etc., to elevate status and increase survival.
4. Humour as a pleasure reward for recognizing patterns
- Humour occurs when the brain recognizes a pattern that surprises it
- Recognition of this is rewarded with the experience of a humorous experience – displayed as laughter
- Ability to recognize patterns instantly and unconsciously has proven as a fundamental weapon in the cognitive arsenal of human beings
- Laughter provided pleasurable sensory incentive for recognizing pattern which promoted fitness in our ancestors (similar to sex and pleasurable sensory incentive for producing offspring and hence fitness in our ancestors)

Front 38

(38) Describe the major components of ‘life-history strategy theory’ defined in terms of ‘trade-offs’.

Back 38

Evolutionary fitness
- somatic effort vs reproductive effort
- mating effort (investing in new offspring) vs parenting effort (investing in existing offspring)
- courtship effort (attracting a new mate) vs mate guarding effort (retaining an existing mate)
- 'playing-the-field' effort (courting focus on several potential mates) vs 'falling-in-love' effort (courting focus on one potential mate)

Front 39

(39) Define a ‘fitness signal’. Describe three examples of fitness signals and/or mating tactics that humans commonly display.

Back 39

Fitness signal:
- Hard-wired perceptions that signals good genes that can be passed on to children, but they are perceptions that occur naturally without conscious intent involved in their associated behaviours
- Signals have always associated accurately with genuinely high relative fitness potential
- This is why attraction to them does not need to be accompanied by any awareness of why one is attracted to them
- Signals were attractive to ancestors and this promoted offspring production because the signals were indeed correlated with high fitness

Common displays of fitness signals:
1. Beauty
2. Attraction of females to males
3. Age of partner
4. Courtship signals
5. Intellect

Front 40

(40) In BIOL350, we referred to the ‘curse of being male’. Describe what this means and how its effects are evident today in the ways that men treat and interact with women.

Back 40

“Curse of being male”:
- How can a man be sure of his legacy if he can’t be certain that any of his kids are really his?
- Uncertainty of paternity

Those male predecessors that left the most descendants were those that could minimize their uncertainty of paternity:
• Through the subjugation of females - dominant control over their fertility and sexual activity
• acquisition of multiple sexual partners through polygyny, concubines, mistresses, rape

Pregnancy:
• Used to control a mate’s fertility
Female circumcision
• Helps prevent promiscuous behaviour in daughters
• Ensures female is faithful to future husband
Child marriages
• Keeps girls safe from unwanted sexual advances
Honor killings:
• Punish women who pursue marital infidelity, pre-marital sex, flirting
- Wife beating and sexual violence against women:
• Women lose time in injury, hospitalization, criminal justice systems, dealing with insurance
- Men express sexual jealousy because they are distressed by thought of a partners sexual infidelity and concerned about uncertainty of paternity

Front 41

(41) Define ‘legacy drive’. Describe how and why both legacy drive and sex drive are
likely to have changed as a result of the effects of natural selection over the evolutionary history of humans.

Back 41

LEGACY DRIVE: Favoured by genes affecting behaviours promoting desire for immortality, or a desire to “leave something of oneself” for the future

- Traits of a species that are common today include those of its predecessors that left the most descendants – especially those that promote OFFSPRING PRODUCTION
- The parents of the past that left the most descendants had both
• increased sex drive
• increased legacy drive
- Women with low legacy drives were coerced by men to have children – hence low legacy drive was not strongly selected against, as in men

Front 42

(42) Describe the various domains of legacy drive in humans – i.e. the various ways in which humans are attracted to legacy through memes’.

Back 42

1. The promotion of status for a family name:
• through generation of income, financial investment, or a reputation of integrity, or fame that might be expressed through successful career trophy, championship, award, commemorative plaque or memorial monument

2. Philanthropy and the assistance of others in need:
• Through social work, the health-care profession, volunteering, charitable aid, donation, contribution to endowments

3. The persuasion of others:
• Through positions of leadership in business or government, or through impact as an educator, or through fashions, trend-setting, child adoption, involvement in clubs, association, or politics or through celebrity or popularity with a wide circle of friends

4. The generation, inspiration and promotion of ideas and new discoveries
• Through academic research, scholarship, publication, literature, film, art, music, journalism, or attracting media attention

5. The creation of products or services
• Through invention, technology, commerce

6. The pursuit of “everlasting life”
• Through religion and the recruitment of new believers to religion

Front 43

(43) Briefly describe three evolutionary hypotheses that we considered in BIOL350 for the attraction to sport in humans.

Back 43

Hypothesis 1: Satisfies the need to belong
• For self-esteem, to be socially accepted-promotes the fitness benefit associated with reciprocal exchanges available through group membership, and associated with the advantage of acquiring social acceptance in order to attract mates.

Hypothesis 2: Courtship Display
• Male display of physical strength and skill, as through athleticism, was a fitness signal for our female predecessors during mate choice (correlating with male ability to protect and provide), and so rewarded the reproductive success of our male ancestors; males therefore have an intrinsic attraction to (and curiosity about) such displays in other males as potential sexual rivals.

Hypothesis 3: Satisfies leisure drive
• Providing entertainment, connected to the fitness benefit of being distracted from awareness of mortality

Hypothesis 4: Satisfies legacy drive
• The drive to ‘win’ games of all kinds may represent a delusional substitute for legacy through other domains (for example, career accomplishments and other forms of meme transmission), that is particularly attractive to males because of uncertainty of paternity. Legacy drive engenders a notion of ‘struggle’ and ‘challenge’ and goal-directedness, and sport allows one to be engaged in that sense of striving for a goal, and so to satisfy that inner drive to achieve something significant before death, even though it might only be membership on the winning team at a pick-up hockey game played in an empty arena

Front 44

44) In BIOL350 we considered evolutionary hypotheses for why humans have concealed ovulation and concealed copulation. Briefly describe these hypotheses.

Back 44

Hypothesis 1: In order to enhance cooperation and reduce aggression among male hunters
• How could cavemen bring off the precise teamwork needed to spear a mammoth if they had been fighting that morning for the public favours of a cavewomen in estrus?

Hypothesis 2: To manipulate men into a permanent marriage bond, by exploiting male paranoia about fatherhood.
• Not knowing the time of ovulation, a man must copulate often with his wife to have a chance of fertilizing her, and that leaves him less time to develop alliance with other women. The wife benefits but so does the husband. He gains confidence in his paternity of his children, and he need not worry that his wife will suddenly attract many competing men by turning bright red on a particular day.

Hypothesis 3: To manipulate men by confusing the issue of paternity
• A women who distributed her favours widely would thereby enlist many men to help feed (or at least not to kill) her infant, since many men could suppose themselves to be the infant’s father.

Front 45

(45) In BIOL350 we considered evolutionary hypotheses for why polygyny has been the dominant model for marriage throughout human history. Briefly describe these hypotheses.

Back 45

Hypothesis 1: Polygyny with ‘bridewealth’ (‘male choice’ and competition for mates):
• In this system, males pay ‘bridewealth’ to secure rights to sexual access to a woman, to compensate her natal family or lineage for her lost labor, as well as to make alliances with other groups. The wealthiest males can pay the most bridewealth in buying daughters of other men, and so have the most wives.

Hypothesis 2: Polygyny with ‘female choice’
• In this situation, the optimal female strategy is to mate with wealthiest available male; in sequence, the first female choosing should mate with the wealthiest male, the second choosing with the next wealthiest male, and so on. The critical factor determining whether monogamy or polygyny predominates is the amount of variation in the distribution of these resources under male control. Under conditions of little or no resource variation, females should choose any male who does not have a mate. Monogamy would be the best mating strategy from a female perspective, because she has exclusive claim to resource under her mate’s control. However, if male-controlled resources are varied, polygyny is the optimal female strategy. This strategy is explained by the concept of a polygyny threshold that is, a point when a female considers the nth wealthiest unmated male and sees a superior option in mating with a wealthier, already mated male because one-half of the total resources he controls exceed the total resources controlled by unmated poorer males. Once this threshold is reached, it is better for females to mate polygynously rather than monogamously.

Hypothesis 3: Monogamy with ‘dowry’ (competition for mates by families of daughters):
• The dowry arises from strategies to marry daughters to wealthy males. Because polygyny is not culturally acceptable in populations with socially imposed monogamy, females compete with other females to mate with wealthy men, thereby securing exclusive rights to male familial resources...this strategy shifts the initial payoff forward by one generation, as parents are really competing to have their daughters’ sons born into wealthy families, compared with the polygynous strategy for competing to have their sons marry multiple women.

Front 46

(46) Describe the various historical motivations for marriage that have affected humans.

Back 46

- “Historical motivations for marriage had nothing to do with love and romance; they involved socio-cultural/economic imperatives:
o A spouse’s family could be a source of wealth
o A spouse’s family might provide advantages linked to social status or alliances
o A spouse could provide offspring for economic purposes to ‘work the family farm’, or to look after you in your old age.”

Why did he get married?
o To provide a safe, reliable outlet for satisfying his insatiable sex drive (when mistresses were in short supply)
o To obtain a housekeeper and cook for his offspring and himself
o To obtain a childcare worker for his offspring
o To obtain certainty of his own paternity (because by having a wife, he could control her sexual activity)
Why did she get married?
o To secure basic provisions for herself and her offspring

Front 47

(47) In BIOL350 we considered evolutionary hypotheses for why most cultures historically have had a preference for male offspring, but also why some cultures have had a preference for female offspring. Briefly describe these hypotheses.

Back 47

• Preference for male:
o Occurs especially in the “wealthy elite”
o When wealthy, there has been a tendency to favour male offspring for inheritance b/c they have greater potential reproductive value (through polygyny), and so providing them with wealth allows them to buy more wives (bridewealth), thus improving the wealthy families sons’ chances of maximizing their own reproductive success in the following generation

Acquired preference for male offspring and desire to leave more inheritance to sons than to daughters --> Drive to continue reproduction when a daughter is born- i.e. drive to try again to add another son --> Maximizes family size- both sons and daughters; Maximizes the total number of grandchildren- because sons can father more offspring than what daughters can bear --> Maximizes the number of future descendants

• Preference for females:
o Daughters are commonly preferred in poor families
o In feudal times, lords favoured their sons, but peasants were more likely to leave possessions to daughters. While their feudal superiors killed or neglected daughters or banished them to convents, peasants left them more possessions...Lower down the social scale, daughters are preferred even today [e.g. in some traditional African cultures].
o A poor son is often forced to remain single, but a poor daughter can marry a rich man. In these circumstances...daughters are better grandchildren production devices than sons... Throughout India, it has always been the case that women more than men can “marry up”, into a higher social and economic caste, so daughters of poor people are more likely to do well than sons. ...If you have no wealth to pass on, use what you have to buy your daughter a good husband.

Front 48

(48) In BIOL350, we considered several hypotheses based on socio-cultural/economic
factors for explaining why lifetime offspring production in females is typically lower in more developed countries. Briefly describe these.

Back 48

• Less need for offspring as labourers on the ‘family farm
• Less need to produce offspring care for elderly parents (who have old age social security or are rich enough to pay for their own care)
• Greater family dispersal; offspring move away from their parents who then become less available as grandparents to assist with child care
• Delayed family starts because of taking time out for education
• Greater availability of cheap and effective birth control methods
• Effects of technology and western lifestyle on health; e.g. chemical pollutants causing reduced sperm count and other reproductive abnormalities
• Status anxiety: maintain the social and economic standing of the family name is harder to do when the estate must be divided among many offspring.
• Female empowerment
• High living standard
• Wealth in modern times is correlated with independence/empowerment for women

Front 49

(49) In BIOL350, we considered an evolutionary hypothesis for why so many women in
wealthy countries choose to be childless, despite that childlessness is evolutionarily
maladaptive. Briefly describe this hypothesis.

Back 49

• WOMEN with higher income are more likely to be childless
• When women have wealth, they are free to exercise their evolved attraction to leisure and legacy through memes, just as men have always been able to do. But his evolved only because men were able to pursue leisure and memetic legacy w/o any penalty on genetic legacy (fitness)- because of their ability to subjugate women and control their fertility. Now that women are also free to pursue more leisure and memetic legacy, there is ‘no one to have the children’; i.e. parenthood, (at least in more developed societies) is now generally no longer forced upon women, and many are just not interested in prioritizing it, because that disinterest was never strongly disfavoured by natural selection- because our male ancestors largely imposed fertility on women, regardless of whether or not they wanted it.

Front 50

(51) Religion has both a ‘vertical component’ and a ‘horizontal component’. Explain
briefly what this means, and describe the hypotheses that we considered in BIOL350 that propose how both of these components could be interpreted as products of biological evolution.

Back 50

• Attraction to legacy through the ‘vertical’ component of religion- belief in a (male) deity (devised by men) that can promise/provide salvation/ever-lasting life, thus alleviating the fear of mortality and the anxiety over uncertain legacy through uncertainty of paternity
o A common theme in all major world religions thus allaying at least some of the horror of mortality awareness and the anxiety over uncertain legacy through uncertainty of paternity, plus helping to alleviate the hopelessness of a miserable life (e.g. many modern religious concepts first appeared in the Dark Ages).

• Attraction to organized religion (‘horizontal’ component of religion)- devised by men and historically controlled almost exclusively by men:
1. To reinforce, through group support, belief by faith (‘our God must exist if so many people can be convinced)- thus reinforcing the vertical component of religion;
2. As a vehicle for meme transmission through attainment of power and a sense of accomplishment within the religious institution;
3. To serve as an incentive for people to behave in ways that promote pro-social reciprocal exchange benefits of group membership- e.g. by not stealing lying, or murdering- because the threatened consequence involves not only shaming by the group against the perpetrator (and hence compromising the ‘need to belong’), but also banishment to an eternity in ‘hell’- and also b/c there is reward to those who ‘believe’ and ‘behave’ because dedication is a ‘follower’ evokes greater trust and so serves to maintain a favourable social reputation within the in-group, including with potential benefits through mate attraction.
• These are said to be cultural by-products of natural selection

Front 51

(52) Do we need religion in order to have an objective basis for moral standards? In
BIOL350, we considered that the answer to this question is ‘no’ when hypotheses based on
biological evolution are applied to this question. Briefly describe the main points in support of this view.

Back 51

- The reproductive success of our predecessors was rewarded by moral thinking and associated helpful behaviour (that may or may not be associated with religion)
- Helpful behaviour evolves most readily when recipients are kin (since they share genes), through ‘kin-selection’, but can also evolve through mutualism and reciprocal exchanges between non-relatives
- The crucial point is that whereas the original evolution of these tendencies took place according to the cold and ruthless logic of natural selection- they were selected for if they gave an advantage to the genes of those possessing them
- Obvious displays of largess benefit the altruist by boosting his or her reputation in the community; the altruist is seen a ‘good’ person, someone who can be trusted and with whom it is beneficial to have dealings
- Morality, including giving behaviour through philanthropy, may also be sexy-i.e. provide sexual signalling in mate choice

Front 52

(53) Does Darwinism mean that we cannot be held accountable for our actions? In BIOL350, we considered arguments proposing that the answer to this question is ‘no’. Briefly describe the nature of these arguments in support of this position.

Back 52

• Recognizing that genes can affect behaviour, and that some components of behaviour may be a product of natural selection, therefore, does not excuse immoral behaviours, and does not prevent societies from passing judgement on these behaviours in the best interests of the society as a whole; i.e. it does not compromise our ability to hold people accountable for their actions
• In fact, recognizing that genes can affect behaviour helps us to better understand the potential causes of unacceptable, immoral behaviour, and hence better understand how to respond to it in ways that might help the perpetrator as much as possible, and at the same time protect the best interests of the broader society.
• The danger comes from people who refuse to recognize that there are dark sides of human nature that cannot be wished away by attributing them to the modern ills of culture, poverty, pathology, or exposure to media violence. The danger comes from failing to gaze into the mirror and come to grips with the capacity for evil in all of us.

Front 53

(54) In ‘The God Delusion’, Richard Dawkins argues that, on balance, it would be good for humanity if we could somehow do away with religion altogether. Yet in BIOL350 we considered, based on evolutionary thinking, that religion is probably here to stay. Briefly describe the main arguments in support of this view.

Back 53

• Because religiosity has long been a conspicuous component of cultural norms worldwide, scientists might recognize that religion is very probably here to stay (and so a mission to eliminate it is probably futile if not counter-productive), and that a greater depth of understanding of religion, and how to respond to it effectively, might come from a mission to explore where it came from- particularly in terms of its evolutionary roots, i.e. as a product of Darwinian natural selection at work in our predecessors affecting the way that humans think and behave today

Front 54

(55) In BIOL350 we considered arguments proposing that war could be interpreted largely as a product of biological evolution. Briefly describe the arguments in support of this view

Back 54

• We are all the descendants of the instigators and winners of war. The losers of wars, and those who were inclined to strive for a peaceful arrangement instead of war, were generally less successful historically in propelling their genes into future generations
• A penchant of war rewarded reproductive success for our predecessors by:
o securing more resources and wealth to support survival;
o securing access to more females for reproductive subjugation;
o securing a heroic reputation with the home tribe, thus attracting more mates
• Selection then has favoured in humans (and also in chimpanzees), a brain that in certain circumstances seeks out opportunities to impose violence on neighbours, through collective planning and group-based missions
• Biases that rewarded the reproductive success of our predecessors, or the copying success of copies of their genes:
o Nepotism- humans commonly favour family members because they share genes with them
o Xenophobia- humans are commonly biased toward people with whom they have direct contact b/c, as members of the same social group or community, they are enmeshed with them in a web of interdependent, reciprocally altruistic relationships that promote individual fitness.
o Ethnocentrism- humans are commonly partial to people who resemble them in behaviour or appearance, since this signals that these individuals are likely to share their genes, or be members of their community, or both.
• We are without a doubt the most cooperative and the most ferocious animals...we cooperate to compete, and a high level of fellow feeling makes us better able to unite to destroy outsiders.
• Only human beings play games in which teams try to defeat one another

Front 55

(56) Why is war almost exclusively a male enterprise? In BIOL350 we considered answers to this question based on interpretations involving the role of biological evolution. Briefly describe the main points involved in these interpretations.

Back 55

• Because of polygyny, there has always been much greater variance in reproductive success between males than between females. Hence, we are all the descendants of males who out-competed other males in fierce competition for mates, much of it violent
• The young male syndrome:
o Young men entering the mating arena show the greatest degree of risk taking and violent strategies
• Although men made war, they could not have done so had women not been so adoring of their efforts. In other words, the masculine warrior mentality is a sexually selected trait, bred into ancestral men by women who preferred warrior mates. If warriors were preferred mates, this may have caused genes for warlike behaviour to proliferate...
• There is a far less benign path to reproductive success in warfare: the act of rape. One of the perennial attractions of war is the opportunity to abduct or forcibly copulate with women.

Front 56

(57) According to the Living Planet Report 2008, humanity is presently in ‘overshoot’. Describe what this term means, including the variables that cause it.

Back 56

• The gap between supply and demand: OVERSHOOT
• Ecological footprint= humanity’s demand on the biosphere in terms of the area of biologically productive land and sea required to provide the resources we use and to absorb our waste.
• Biocapacity= the total world supply of productive area
• Footprint and biocapacity factors that determine overshoot
o On the supply side, biocapacity is determined by the amount of biologically productive area available, and the productivity of that area (Area x Bioproductivity= Biocapacity (SUPPLY) )
o On the demand side, the footprint is a function of population size, the goods and services each person consumes, and the resources used and wastes emitted in producing these goods and services (Population x consumption per person x resource and waste intensity= ecological footprint (DEMAND))
• A country’s footprint is the sum of all the cropland, grazing land, forest and fishing grounds required to produce the food, fibre and timber it consumes, to absorb the wastes emitted when it uses energy, and to provide space for its infrastructure. Since people consume resources and ecological services from all over the world, their footprint sums these areas, regardless of where they are located on the planet. Reductions in population, individual consumption, and the resources used or wastes emitted in producing goods and services all result in a smaller footprint

Front 57

(58) According to the Living Planet Report, countries seem to be capable of having an acceptable ‘human development index’, or an acceptable ‘ecological footprint’, but not both. Illustrate this using a simple labeled graph, and briefly describe the main factors that are used to assess the magnitude of these two indices for a given country. Also, briefly describe the main factors that affect whether a country falls within the ‘acceptable’ values for these indices

Back 57

blahhh

Front 58

(59) In BIOL350, we considered what has been described as a “law of population”, stated as follows: “Overpopulation is an inevitable product of natural selection”. Explain what this means

Back 58

• The benefit of producing more than one reproducing offspring (higher fitness) is always enjoyed exclusively by the parent. Hence, if the cost of this extra offspring production (increased crowding) is shared with other parents, then the per capita magnitude of benefit-cost is always greater for individuals that produce more than one reproductive offspring than for other individuals in the same population that produce only one. Hence natural selection will always favour those individual traits that promote high fecundity relative to neighbours, even among impoverished individuals that are already crowded at carrying capacity.

Front 59

(60) Over the past century or so, human societies have responded to the problem of world hunger using solutions that serve inevitably to create more problems. Briefly describe the main points in support of this view that we considered in BIOL350

Back 59

More food --> more mouths to feed
Eventually, so much people we won't be able to sustain everyone.
All problems caused by agriculture and domestication proliferated.