Natural Science Forum / Biology / Evolution / April 2005

Four ideas about the origin, that I've been thinking about.
1. One point that seems to prove how inexact the genetic
code is - is wobble in the  3rd position of the codon.
And that breakdown in the exactness of the code at that position,

Why Purines instead of other possible bases?
I suggest because ATP and GTP were better energy sources
that gave the purine bases A and G an advantage.
And then pyrimidines because they better fit the

JE:-
The above can only argue that because all of life has persisted life

I hope this question is not too trivial or has been asked too frequently;
anyhow I did not see it recently in sbe or sbp.
The question is: What is the advantage that drove the development of walking
on two feet in Dinosaurs like T.Rex?

I suggest that there will not be precision
or perfection in the correct origin of life scenario.
I suggest that just the opposite is more likely.
Gould says, " The allure of perfection

I have one earlobe that is attached and one earlobe that is free (not
attached).  Can some explain in laymans terms?  If attached lobes is a
recessive trait (ee) and free lobes is a dominant trait (E_) -- what
would be my genotype for one "dominant" ear and one "recessive" ear?

I read that all live forms in this planet use left handed Amino Acids.
Is that true? Is there any chemical reason for that? Is possible to
produce Right Amino acid based species?

Speciation's Defining Moment
Genetics and genomics enliven an old controversy on reinforcement
By Nick Atkinson
Courtesy of Victoria Braithwaite

I'll try to avoid titling this laid-back solution,
'How an EPT understanding of "lineage" (from a lone line of ascent to
lineages at large)
relates to an EPT understanding of "fitness".'

I think that Maynard Smith and Szathmary have a useful idea in
the title concept of their book "The Major Transitions in
Evolution".  Natural selection has not led to a uniform and
gradual progressive evolution.  The course has been "punctuated"

Perplexed was asking why RNA.
Here at
http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn3778
Note how RNA may have been more stable in

Look at my dinner table.
My salt wants to replicate and my pepper wants to eat!
Who knew chemicals wanted to replicate or had
metabolic desires.  

Life's top 10 greatest inventions
09 April 2005
PONDER this one in the bath. Chances are you've just scrubbed your back with
a choice example of one of evolution's greatest inventions. Or at least, a

I just read EO Wilson's "Consilience: The Unity Of Knowledge" and
thought, My God, he's talking about the Glass Bead Game.  It was all
there: the language to unify knowledge, the importance of connections,
the glass beads themselves which are inate concepts that are the fruit

John Edser wrote:

Edser uttered: