- #1
WCOLtd
- 108
- 1
I am no biologist, but I have read a few laymen books on evolution and I have a bit difficulty accepting one part of evolutionary theory, The notion that genetic mutations and genetic variances occur solely by chance.
It would seem to me, that the evolutionary process would favor organisms which use a responsive mechanism to mutate. This is what I mean experimentally.
If you have a population of an organism in an environment favorable for that organism, and you allow the population to grow for a few generations, there will be less genetic variance than that same organism in unfavorable environments. My guess is that the rate of genetic mutation would increase in hostile environments. It would seem to me that an organism with such a characteristic would be more likely to proliferate - when compared to an organism which has no such characteristic.
I want to take this hypothesis a little further though, to expand the possibility that genetic encoding for any generation of an organism reflects the activities of those organisms, so if say, an organism were to perform a certain variety of functions - in this particular hypothetical experiment; the species is feeding on one specific food type, and it's offspring are proficient at eating this food. I would assume the result to show that the same organism is moved into another environment where it feeds on a different food source - the organism after a period of time adjusts and then produces offspring,
The offspring in the second food source would be born in a higher proportion of having a higher proficiency at digesting that food source and less on the first.
And the offspring in the first food source would have a higher proportion of having difficulty on the second food source.
The question I want answered is "are the characteristics of a population of offspring representative of the experiences of the ancestor?"
It would seem to me, that the evolutionary process would favor organisms which use a responsive mechanism to mutate. This is what I mean experimentally.
If you have a population of an organism in an environment favorable for that organism, and you allow the population to grow for a few generations, there will be less genetic variance than that same organism in unfavorable environments. My guess is that the rate of genetic mutation would increase in hostile environments. It would seem to me that an organism with such a characteristic would be more likely to proliferate - when compared to an organism which has no such characteristic.
I want to take this hypothesis a little further though, to expand the possibility that genetic encoding for any generation of an organism reflects the activities of those organisms, so if say, an organism were to perform a certain variety of functions - in this particular hypothetical experiment; the species is feeding on one specific food type, and it's offspring are proficient at eating this food. I would assume the result to show that the same organism is moved into another environment where it feeds on a different food source - the organism after a period of time adjusts and then produces offspring,
The offspring in the second food source would be born in a higher proportion of having a higher proficiency at digesting that food source and less on the first.
And the offspring in the first food source would have a higher proportion of having difficulty on the second food source.
The question I want answered is "are the characteristics of a population of offspring representative of the experiences of the ancestor?"