Life Without a Net
biology
Christians Deny Fourth Grade Biology in California.
If it weren’t a serious concern for all Americans, Christian denialism of basic science would be laughable. The latest attack on reality comes from Redwood Heights Elementary School, in Oakland, California. It seems the science teachers there have had the unmitigated audacity to teach 4th graders that the animal kingdom is full of gender diversity. The … Continue reading
Creationism in Schools: What Century is This?
Yes, you are one of those hick hillbillies believing all that religious stuff, and you’re teaching your students to be ignorant racists, and that’s the reality of the situation. How does a person who doesn’t understand basic biology become a biology teacher? Let’s be clear about this: Evolution is the foundation upon which all theoretical and … Continue reading
The Real Crocoduck and Design
This is Tiktaalik. It was discovered by Neil Shubin and several of his colleagues, who had been looking for it for over a decade. In many ways, Tiktaalik is the scientific equivalent of the Crocoduck. It really is a transition between two modern forms of life — fish and amphibians. The details of Tiktaalik‘s “transitional nature” are very interesting, … Continue reading
Arms Races
Competition There are two primary kinds of evolutionary “arms races” — symmetric and asymmetric. A symmetric arms race is one in which two or more competitors are trying to do essentially the same thing. If you imagine a forest full of various trees, vines, and other plants, you can easily see this kind of arms … Continue reading
Why Females are Picky… In the Vagina
The Interwebz are full of paysites, blogs, and infomercial videos ostensibly teaching men how to understand, cope with, and ultimately conquer female choosiness. Sure, there are plenty of web sites for women, too, but none of them teach girls how to get laid. Women already know the secret to that: Leave the house. Sit by … Continue reading
Archive: A Fertilized Egg is Not a Human Being
I have mentioned before that the question of when life begins is a question of politics, not science, and today, I’d like to return briefly to this concept. Make no mistake — both an egg and a sperm are alive, and there is no time at which either stops being alive during fertilization. You and … Continue reading
When the Truth Hurts
There’s a scary article at Hooking Up Smart. It’s a very brief synopsis of two books by Louann Brizandine, a neuropsychologist at Yale who wants to prove that there are real, quantifiable differences between men and women (and everything in between) which must be explained by biology first and culture second. I’ve been thinking about … Continue reading
More on Sexual Selection
I’ve explained in a little detail how female selection can cause runaway growth, as in a peacock’s tail or, as it turns out, a human brain. I’m just going to take a few minutes today to explore one more aspect of the math behind runaway selection. In most sexually reproducing species, there is really no … Continue reading
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