From: Chris Taylor (christ@ebi.ac.uk)
Date: Thu 26 Feb 2004 - 10:59:39 GMT
No arguments about who stays behind to watch the pot I suppose (that was
a little crass but anyway). Also there's perhaps an argument that
someone with a brain, who didn't fit a standard role, would have more
time for thought and observation, and additionally be motivated to find
new and better ways to do tasks.
I bet if you did the brood swap experiment on (palaeolothic) them every
generation they wouldn't spot it -- genetic arguments for us are a bit
irrelevant I think. The dogs have our noses, we devolved that role to
them; so we have no way to assess kinship except through a chain of
evidentiary observations (which is why matriarchy would have been a
damned sight simpler).
FYI whoever it was who was after some Hamilton; if you're near a
library, Hamilton compiled a two-volume collection of his stuff called
'Narrow Roads of Gene Land'. He once said he liked my poster at a
conference :) Poor unfortunate bugger.
Cheers, Chris.
Trehinp@aol.com wrote:
> Dans un e-mail daté du 26/02/2004 05:10:38 Paris, Madrid,
> hkhenson@rogers.com a écrit :
>
>> >Mutual interdependence decreases the importance of the individual.
>>
>> I don't think so, not from a gene's viewpoint.
>
>
>
> There is some evidence that people with handicaps were able to survive
> to a rather old age in the palaeolithic and that the "tribes" were
> supporting their survival. (sorry I can't find the articles ref. on that
> subject) These people, some of which were carrying genetic condition
> wouldn't have survived without the group and their genes would have
> become extinct.
>
> What would be important to understand is what was motivating the
> "tribes" to protect an individual with a handicap.
>
> There is of course the natural empathy for another human being, but
> there may have been more, some early "religious" beliefs and rules, the
> fact that a handicap is only one aspect of a human personality and that
> some other aspects could be quite important to the "tribes" survival as
> a group.
>
> Each one of us using his/her own knowledge, I am working on a paper that
> gives some clues at what may have been the "value" of people with autism
> for a "tribe". Autism is a condition that is now consider to have strong
> genetic components and which by its own mode of expression (poor social
> skills, difficulties in communication and repetitive behaviors) would
> not allow survival.
>
> I have sent to a list specialized in prehistory a post that gives some
> of these arguments.
>
> Anyone interested can contact me off line.
>
> Yours sincerely.
>
> Paul Trehin
-- ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Chris Taylor (christ@ebi.ac.uk) MIAPE Project -- psidev.sf.net ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ =============================================================== This was distributed via the memetics list associated with the Journal of Memetics - Evolutionary Models of Information Transmission For information about the journal and the list (e.g. unsubscribing) see: http://www.cpm.mmu.ac.uk/jom-emit
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