Perspectives on Evolution

[popeyespappy]

Interesting.  Would you describe the process of aging as a kind of evolutionary process?  Certainly, the question "Who's aging" is something akin, since 5 year-old bennyboy never died, but clearly does not exist as he did.  I think when you say pattern, it's much like the "Archetypal Man" I mentioned in the OP, it's more man-ness, than any individual man (or even collection of men).

I would describe the process of aging as a kind of evolutionary process, but it is one that does not meet the textbook definition of biological evolution of changes in the frequency of alleles within a population over time. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong here, but it is my understanding that changes in the sequence of an individual's DNA (the order of the C, G, T, and A molecules) are rare. Epigenetic changes that change the way the genes express are the norm though. These types of changes start on day one as soon as specialized cells begin to develop and don't stop until you die.