Evolution, Morphology and Exobiology

i am a student of pharmacy. i want to know how can i start a career in exobiology.

I've come across the trend that almost all crops lost genetic diversity during domestication as a result of selection. But some species seem to have lost more than others. For example maize retains around 83% of its diversity but rice retains only around 10-20%, yet they likely both suffered similar selection pressures. Is there any reason why there would be such variation in genetic diversity loss? I know perennials have retained more diversity than annuals because they've experienced fewer bottlenecks, having only recently been domesticated. But why would maize and rice, both domesticated at similar times and with similar selection pressures, have such variati…

I belive that Archaeopteryx is a bird and it has nothing to do with transitional form. Below is a brief info about this subject: ARCHÆOPTERYX AND OTHER ANCIENT BIRD FOSSILS While evolutionists have for decades been proclaiming Archæopteryx to be the greatest evidence for their scenario concerning the evolution of birds, some recently-found fossils invalidate that scenario in other respects. Lianhai Hou and Zhonghe Zhou, two paleontologists at the Chinese Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology, discovered a new bird fossil in 1995, and named it Confuciusornis. This fossil is almost the same age as Archæopteryx (around 140 million years), but has no teeth in its mouth.…

Can someone provide me examples of species from the following groups: - euryhaline/stenohaline osmoconformers - euryhaline/stenohaline osmoregulators Examples from those 4 different groups would be much appreciated, as I am struggling to find info on these I understand mussels to be euryhaline osmoconformers, so that's one example but if anyone could provide examples of other euryhaline osmoconformers (as well as the other 3 groups), that would be much appreciated Thanks for taking the time to read this

Hi all I was wondering whether anyone knows of any research about the effects of non-alpha males/females observing alphas? For example, do observers tend to model themselves on alphas? If so, does this have known or hypothesised evolutionary value? And if so, does anyone know about any chemical mechanisms that might be involved? (Cortisol, adrenalin?) Thanks and regards Max

Just a quick link to a great series on the anatomy of nature's 'giants', Inside Nature's Giants, available on Channel 4 On Demand and via Youtube: http://www.channel4.com/programmes/inside-natures-giants/4od http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-w0EgXPFj68 The team comprising: Mark Evans, an experienced vet and anatomy expert; anatomist Prof. Joy Reidenberg; Simon Watt, an evolutionary biologist; and, Darrell Evans, an expert in human anatomy, work together to dissect a variety of large animals. Episodes The Elephant The Whale The Crocodile The Giraffe The Great White Shark The Monster Python The Big Cats The Polar Bear The Sperm Whale The Camel Th…

http://pharyngula.org/index/weblog/comments/dino_lungs/ discussion, with diagrams, of the avian "four-stroke" lung as contrasted with mammalian two-stroke more efficient at extracting oxygen, and helps achieve lighter body structure maybe a lot of people know about this, but I thought Pharyngula had a nice clear description and interesting reflections about it

Does Maslow's theory of need hierarchy have as it's base evolutionary constructs? Does the peak of the Maslow pyramid represent the attribute of a "evolved" mind? (self - actualization)

I was watching a show the other day which stated that the poles might reverse one day soon. Well.. as most of us know, certain migratory birds, even messenger pigeons use the magnetic field as a compass. So if the poles reverse, does that mean many birds will migrate "north" instead of "south" due to the pole shift? What will happen to them? Would this pole shift possibly cause a mass extinction for many species?

Well, I guess the thread this guy posted to got deleted and he probably got banned, after I had typed up a whole response at that! So here's what I had to say in reply...

Normal physiological conditions or pathological conditions, aldehydes and ketones, such as acrylic aldehyde (acrolein), crotonaldehyde (crotonaldehyde), 4 - hydroxy-nonenal (4-HNE in) and malondialdehyde (malondiadehyde) , if many components, including proteins and nucleic acids in the cells in vivo accumulation of too much will cause damage. This damage will lead to gene mutation, chromosomal breakage, abnormal cell signaling pathways, serious damage will result in apoptosis or necrosis. Intracellular defense system of the class of toxic metabolites of oxidation or reduction. Human arginase, type II(ARL2) are a new member of the aldo-keto reductase superfamily, which hav…

I've got a few moments at work lets see if any of you have some ideas. Strong cohesive groups are vital for human survival and the traits that has been a highly conserved. Some of the characteristics of this type of group are: shared beliefs/world view, emotional interaction, and a leadership/follower dynamic. This trait has allowed us to reach very high levels of technology extremely quickly. On the downside these tendencies have been a causal agent in many of the most destructive behaviors: War, gangs, immigration restrictions, racism, religious conflict, environmental destruction, etc. (pick a problem with humans and this usually plays a role). I am wond…

My dad found this about 10 years ago while digging a water well line. We thought it was pretty neat so he kept it and forgot about it until recently. I was wondering if anyone could shed some light on it as far as does it seem to be a fossil or just a foot shaped rock? There are what looks exactly like five toes and a well formed foot about an inch long encased in (limestone?) with what looks like a knee joint peeking out of the top, length about 1 1/2" from bottom of foot to top of joint. He started to remove the rock with a Dremel tool but stopped in case he damaged it, other than that it is exactly how he found it. Was found 3' to 4' deep under a layer of lignite south…

now, many people are researching molecular biology, developmental biology, etc. trying to find the law of evolution at the level of genes. what is the role of palaeontology in this field? and what about system theory?

We like what we lack?? A very simplistic short version, but its the gist of what im trying to say. Japanese, Chinese, Philippines people in general would like the opposite to have blue or green eyes, because the countries themselves have a population that generally lacks this feature. More so than populations that have a lot of light-eyed people. Is this true? Is this testable? Can this possibly be appiled to other traits in general like height or even body type? My anecdotal evidence, which is the strongest kind,lol, is when i went to Asia, i noticed so many of the girls liked guys with light eyes and skin. This can be explained by possibly cultural more…

A puursit of evidence to support a hypothesis rather than the pursuit of data to explain a observation ...I too have collection of numbers and ideas that support the possibilty of faireys ....

I'm wondering about the advantages and disadvantages of genetic enhancements like making a designer baby. these types of things really interest me so please help. I'm also talking about animals and plants being altered genetically. thanks.

There has been a lot of debate about whether organisms evolve in a gradual way with changes occuring in a normal rate or often need sudden bursts of big changes followed by some small mutations. Now a days there is a compromise on both sides accepting each others argument. But I really have a problem with this model How big is really big in terms of evolution? I think we need to have a criteria to distinguish big changes from small changes. A mutation to one of the pigment proteins changes the colour of a flower attracting new pollinators and in another case a mutation in the Hox genes can create macroevolutionary changes changing crustaceans into insects. I think it is t…

In light of the recent ruling in PA, a friend and I got into sort of tuffle...about evolution. I said it was fact. He...said it was just theory. Putting aside religious overtones...what I need is is three or four or more, quickie flashpoints that prove that evolution is a fact. These must be concise, accessible to the common man, i.e, not filled with biolgocial jargon overload. If you can help I would appreciate it. Max

I have long been interested in the prospects for improving upon the physical and neurological aspects of human beings, through ever advancing biotechnology, gene editing (CRISPR/Cas), brain-computer interfaces and so on. Obviously, this is an enormous subject, encompassing many different fields of research, but after reading numerous related books and following the science news in these areas every day, I definitely believe that what I'm alluding to is not only possible, but inevitable. There are many good reasons for doing so, ranging from making us less prone to the effects of aging to making us increasingly immune…

In another thread (not worth reading) there was a link to this paper: https://phe.rockefeller.edu/news/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/Stoeckle-Thaler-Final-reduced.pdf One of the interesting (fascinating, even) results of their study is that species are well defined by the mitochondrial DNA "barcode"; in other words the individuals within a species have one barcode, those in another have a different one and there is nothing in between. As one of the authors put it: "if individuals are stars, then species are galaxies". Although I can't see it in the paper (I have only skimmed it and much of it is over my head - without giving it more time than I have available!) it …

Today's Science magazine has an article about (I suspect in part genetic-based) altruism have to go to the local public library for this one, but a brief summary is online http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/311/5765/1248 Perspectives BEHAVIOR: Who Are More Helpful, Humans or Chimpanzees? Joan B. Silk Humans, including infants, are more willing than closely-related chimpanzees to cooperate and behave altruistically and cooperatively, probably in part accounting for their evolutionary success. Science 3 March 2006: Vol. 311. no. 5765, pp. 1248 - 1249 The author is in the Department of Anthropology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, …

I know there have been plant fossils found there, but have there been any animal fossils? If so, what kind of animals? I thought that since it is far away from everything, it must have been that way for a while(continents don't drift incredibly quickly) which means that when it was in a warmer spot, it definitely, could have still been so isolated making it such that the animals could not interbreed with others. This presents the possibility of quite unique life(somewhat like the case of Australia).

My feeling is that the autonomic nervous system governed life in early man but the central nervous system "evolved" rapidly, in fact so rapidly, that our course of life came to be determined by the latter more than the former? My query is whether this is a continuing process or is it subject to limitations governed by evolutionary constructs ? Please advise.