Neoteny

This is a book report on the animal The Axolotl, which comes from Aztecs. Axolotl means water, while xolotl means monster. So this animal is considered a, “Water Monster.” It is a non-native fish that also goes by the name, “Mexican Walking Fish.” It’s an amphibian, like a frog, and is in a paused state of metamorphosis. Their classification is in the phylum, Chordata. The Axolotl was first founded in 1789, in Mexico City. The labs that they were founded in and tested on were in Paris. They are born on land but live the rest of their lives in water like fish. Now since the Mexico City waters are empty there are no Axolotls left there. They are very messy animals that have to have deep water. They do not like strong currents, because they cannot stay stable on the bottom of there home. You can keep the Axolotl as a pet if you really wanted to. But you must have small rocks and sand at the bottom of the tank so that they can hide themselves, and you have to change the 6 inches of water once a week. The do not have to have light, but sometimes they like to have it. The Axolotl manly eats Earthworms, and Bloodworms, but will eat any worms or mini fish. They have to eat every 15-20 minutes or they get sick. But they are very small animals and are not fat at all. The Axolotl lays eggs and they can hatch after 11 days.They grow fairly fast, reaching sexual maturity by the time they are 1 years old, it is basically a baby that keeps reproducing. It can live up to 15 years and can…

People see the animal and compare it to animal characters on television, and toys that have been neotenized. In “Neoteny in American Perception of Animals,” Elizabeth A. Lawrence, a veterinary anthropologist who studied human animal relations, defines neoteny as “a condition in which youthful characteristics are retained in the adult form of an animal” (60). People can neotenize both physically and behaviorally. The slow lorises have become popular for their juvenile traits, that remind people…

Neoteny often affects more than a single characteristic in an animal. In fact, an animal is likely to retain a number of juvenile behavioral and physical characteristics of their ancestor rather than just a single characteristic due to the interconnectivity involves in genetics and behavior (Coppinger, R., J. Glendinning, E. Torop, C. Matthay, M. Sutherland, and C. Smith, 2010). The purpose of this study was to test Benson Ginsburg’s theory that due to the physical and behavioral neotenous…

constantly evolving world is to always be at odds with oneself. To be absolutely certain means that one is in fact living in an illusion. For example, if someone is absolutely certain that they got the best deal for a pair of shoes, then they might purchase the shoes and might miss out on an even better deal at the store down the street. Or, perhaps an expecting mother is so certain that her baby will be born on the exact due date that she postpones making a bag for the hospital until the week…

Shepard mentions how the failure to “identify” with nature in today’s youth might be the foundation for many of their issues. The text concludes by emphasizing the importance of the non-human environment (nature) and mitigated neoteny. Similar to the required readings for week two, Shepard discusses our perception and historical connection with nature. Shepard, P. (2013). Coming home to the Pleistocene. Island Press. “How the Mind Once Lived” Shepard begins by discussing our foraging ancestors,…

example. Why might they be important to consider as we try to understand the development of emotion, and especially individual differences in its development? Happy when you have a baby; babies learn these emotions are connected with certain situations # Nature (Biological) Theories 16. Studies have compared emotionality scores in dizygotic and monozygotic twins. What have been the results, and how do they contribute to our understanding of the sources of social-emotional attachment?…