(July 12, 2011 at 11:31 pm)Chuck Wrote: Technically, two organisms that can cross fertilized would be called hermophrodites, not females, and there are many examples of such organisms in different kingdoms of life.
However, there are drawbacks to the hermophrodites solution because that make it difficult for the two collaborating organisms to specialize in roles or pursue different mating strategies.
Interesting. So hermaphrodites appear less frequently for purposes of specialization, possibly forming of social groups? It does make sense that a hermaphrodite group would spend more energy on a wider spread of actions (like breeding, foraging and defense) while the specialized groupings (males, females) can load balance such actions...
(July 13, 2011 at 12:34 pm)Chuck Wrote: You should be scared that in china and India, well over 50% of the under 35 age group consist of males.
I'm tired of being scared. Now I'm just cautious. Those countries have as much of a dagger at their own throats as they at us -- if they neglect their population, it can turn on them; that is why Tienanmen was so terrifying to the Communists when people began to converge on it and why they worked to erase it from their very history.
