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Hello everybody,
I encountered this weird theory that I don't really believe to be valid. But it sounds pretty plausible, so I'm going to let you guys tell me whether it is correct or not.
Anyway, the link is here: http://www.onelife.com/evolve/degen.html (warning: possible crackpot link)
The idea is simple: modern medicine allows many people to live and reproduce that wouldn't have otherwise. This means that certain bad mutations of DNA are not selected against anymore. This means that the human DNA degenerates leading eventually to the extinction of humans in the coming few hundred years.
Apparently this idea is shared by a Cornell professor (who also happens to be a creationist...): http://thetruthwins.com/archives/th...ally-lead-to-the-total-extinction-of-humanity
So a few questions:
1) Is this basically correct?
2) Are there any peer-reviewed papers on this material?
3) How do the modern advances in medicine affect the mechanism of natural selection? It definitely didn't stop natural selection, but did it slow it down? Or did it change?
4) Can anybody name an example of evolution by natural selections in humans in the last 100 years?
5) Is it true that the human being is getting "weaker" genetically due to modern medicine?
6) Is it true that humans have more genetic diseases than other species?
Thanks you!
I encountered this weird theory that I don't really believe to be valid. But it sounds pretty plausible, so I'm going to let you guys tell me whether it is correct or not.
Anyway, the link is here: http://www.onelife.com/evolve/degen.html (warning: possible crackpot link)
The idea is simple: modern medicine allows many people to live and reproduce that wouldn't have otherwise. This means that certain bad mutations of DNA are not selected against anymore. This means that the human DNA degenerates leading eventually to the extinction of humans in the coming few hundred years.
Apparently this idea is shared by a Cornell professor (who also happens to be a creationist...): http://thetruthwins.com/archives/th...ally-lead-to-the-total-extinction-of-humanity
So a few questions:
1) Is this basically correct?
2) Are there any peer-reviewed papers on this material?
3) How do the modern advances in medicine affect the mechanism of natural selection? It definitely didn't stop natural selection, but did it slow it down? Or did it change?
4) Can anybody name an example of evolution by natural selections in humans in the last 100 years?
5) Is it true that the human being is getting "weaker" genetically due to modern medicine?
6) Is it true that humans have more genetic diseases than other species?
Thanks you!
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