RE: Literal and Not Literal
September 7, 2019 at 4:00 pm
(This post was last modified: September 7, 2019 at 4:12 pm by Anomalocaris.)
It’s irrelevant whether the behavior has any nongenetic basis. Few behavior has no nongenetic basis whatsoever. But no behavior can have no genetic basis whatsoever. The behavior is at least allowed and made possible by their genes, whatever other factors come into play to manifest that behavior. Genes dictate behavior by both allowing it, and not just by mandating it. This is again something shallow reading of evolution and behavioral genetics overlook.
If the behavior is really against the survival of the genome that allows it, than the gene that allows it will tend to be weeded out of the overall gene pool over the long run, while genes which deter this behavior will take hold.
So regardless of whether any behavior has non genetic basis, all behavior must ultimately have genetic basis.
We have plenty of evidence social insects with organization similar to bees have prospered for a long time. Probably 100 million years at least, possibly as long as 400 million years. So there is very good basis to say the behavior like those of worker bees is allowed because it favors the survival of the gene pool to which the worker bee belongs.
If the behavior is really against the survival of the genome that allows it, than the gene that allows it will tend to be weeded out of the overall gene pool over the long run, while genes which deter this behavior will take hold.
So regardless of whether any behavior has non genetic basis, all behavior must ultimately have genetic basis.
We have plenty of evidence social insects with organization similar to bees have prospered for a long time. Probably 100 million years at least, possibly as long as 400 million years. So there is very good basis to say the behavior like those of worker bees is allowed because it favors the survival of the gene pool to which the worker bee belongs.
