In the book, Your Inner Fish, by Neil Shubin he presents the notion of evolution and how we can trace parts that make up the human body back to jellyfish, worms, and even fish. The book not only discusses how we arose to be what we are today, but also the implications our ancestors had on our current body plan. In this essay, I will demonstrate that I have digested the entirety of Shubin’s book by convincing you (dear reader) that everything in our bodies is based on simple changes to already existing systems. To make this case, I will use the evidence of limb development in a vast array of organisms, the four arches found in the embryological stage of development, the structures inside our noses, and how our ears have come about all due to modifications.
There is common plan for all limbs: one bone, followed by two bones, then a bunch of little bones, and finally digits. This array of bones is seen in many species including, but not restricted to bats, whales, and lizards. But how do these limbs develop and why do they all look similar? Shubin explains it by conveying that there are certain genetic switches that help assemble who we are. When scientists went looking for this genetic switch in limbs, they found a couple tissue areas in the limbs that allow this body plan to occur. “A strip of tissue at the extreme end of the limb bud is essential for all limb development…This patch of tissue was named the zone of polarizing activity (ZPA).” ZPA allows humans to have opposable thumbs and pinkies. In other organisms, it differentiates the “thumb” side from the “pinky” side. Scientists then wanted to discover the molecule that allowed this changen in the ZPA, the answer is Sonic hedgehog. Shubin points out that every limbed animal h...
... middle of paper ...
...resting thing is that we also share the gene Pax 2 which is active in the ear region and initiates a chain reaction of gene activity leading to the development of the inner ear. This common gene shows evidence of a common history and how our bodies are made up of many modifications.
Neil Shubin’s book is very informative on how our inner fish is real and definitely present in our bodies today. I have given supporting evidence on how our bodies are based on simple changes (relatively) to already existing systems. This is seen even today when scientists study organisms with a simpler body plan than us to understand medical conditions and mutations in the human body. We were created from variations and modifications to become what we are today and this an astounding thing. Our body plan was possible due to simpler organisms and this gave way to the life we know today.
Time: How does the way the writer moves between the past and present and future affect the structure of the book? How might this technique inform my approach?
Though the significant difference in the setting, but equally in the subject of separation, the authors, Bass, and Stuphen, communicate their thoughts mainly through imagery of the situations that happened in their lives. In the poems “The Albatross” by Kate Bass and “Ever After” by Joyce Sutphen, in the book 180 More: Extraordinary Poems for Every Day, they use metaphoric language to expose their feelings. They capture the frustration of being apart from their partners and the urge to understand why the man that the woman in the poem loves is now strange and no longer has any part in their present. Shawn Lewis explains, “Next to the death of a loved one the death of a marriage is one of life 's most devastating experiences.... When the pain
The evolution of man is constantly in question. While we are reasonably sure that modern humans and primates are both related to the same common ancestor, there is constant debate over what initially caused the two species to split into early hominids and apes. According to some, our longest and most popular theory on the division of man and ape is profoundly wrong. However, those same individuals usually offer an equally controversial theory as a substitute, one that is almost impossible to scientifically test or prove. Both the Savanna Theory and the Aquatic Ape Theory offer solutions to how and why humans evolved into bipedal toolmakers. But with enough questioning, each loses its accountability to rhetorical science.
Comparing different works of art from one artist can help a person gain a better understanding of an artist and the purpose of their artwork. An artist’s works of art usually have similarities as well as differences when compared together. Sandy Skoglund is a photographer that stages entire rooms to create a scene for her photographs. Skoglund uses painting, sculpture, and photography to create her artwork. Due to the fact that most of her photographs are created in similar ways, almost all of her photographs have similar components represented throughout the photographs. Differences can be found in her artwork as well. Skoglund’s Revenge of The Goldfish, 1981 (Figure 1), is a popular work of art that is represented at the Akron Art Museum
Beautiful Brains by David Dobbs is an article about why teenagers usually take more risks than adults. In the article Dobbs begins by discussing how his son once got in trouble for speeding down a highway just because he was curious to know what it felt like. He then goes into asking why teenagers often do "stupid" things and then explains that teens have always done that throughout time. He provides scientific evidence that the brain changes between the ages of 12 to 25 affecting our decision making. One way that a reader could interpret this data is that teenagers have a hard time using new parts of their brain and seem to be in a state of retardation. Dobb also describes the reckless acts of teenagers in order for them to adapt to any situation.
The book I read was titled Prey. It was written by Michael Crichton, who has written many other knowledgeable books. This book is all based around the idea of human curiosity and carelessness. The book has an insert where Michael talks about how these concerns addressed in the book are concerns in real life. The book talks about how nanoparticles accidently let into the air caused some unexpected and deadly consequences. The topic of the book affects me because it gave me some insight on what it was like to deal with situations like that. Also, I hope it allows everyone who reads it to see that we need to be more careful and think of long term results instead of just short term fixes.
Save the Whales, Screw the Shrimp is an essay written by Joy Williams, about the overwhelming complacency that todays culture shows towards nature.Williams argues in a very satirical way, that todays culture has all but completely lost touch with what nature really is, and that unless we as a nation change our morals regarding the role that nature plays in human existence, we may very well be witnessing the dawn of our own destruction.
To gain this great advantage also the feet of the species would need to be rendered flat, as well as the great toe being modified greatly for the advantage of standing straight. Darwin goes on to state in order to add more validity to natural selection that an intermediate form can still be seen in the savages that still have retain some of their prehensile powers which they use to their advantage to climb trees. Moreover, as the hands and feet began to get adapted to man’s new way of life, it would give them various advantages. For instance, being able to defend themselves with stones and be able to attack their prey with them. As this new structure starts to being developed, those who inherit this structure will go on to live and those that don’t will eventually die off. Additionally, as the man became more erect it developed its spinal cord for support as well as other structures. As man, started to develop its mental faculties and started to perfect the way to hunt, it would lead the teeth to be reduced in size and the canine teeth to slowly disappeared Darwin goes on to state that man has lost its hair not because it is advantageous to them in their environment but because of sexual selection. Finally, another structure that Darwin mentions is the tail that becomes vestigial in humans due to simply friction when man sit
There you are holding your camera an arm’s length away from your face, posing in the most flattering position to capture your best angle. There you are taking a photo of yourself to share with all of your Facebook friends. Taking a self-portrait photo, also known as a selfie, is something almost everyone has done in this new generation. This action is typically done without a second thought. In Alex Williams’ article “Here I Am Taking My Own Picture” that second thought is provoked through exploring the quickly spreading trend of self-portrait photography. In the article while Williams’ provides interesting examples on a changing generation as this trend progresses through social media and modern technology; Williams also leaves something to be desired within the article due to a lack of direction in the author’s stance on the topic.
The following essay examines the evolutionary approaches of anthropologists and neo-evolutionists Leslie White and Julian Steward. Although, Leslie White and Julian Steward debated against each other over their respected evolutionary approaches, both approaches do share several similarities amongst each other, even though both anthropologists disregarded any relationship between the two.
Torres M, Gómez-Pardo E., Gruss p. (1996) Pax2 contributes to inner ear patterning and optic nerve trajectory , Development 122, 3381-3391
One of the most important and pivotal physical and biological adaptations that separate humans from other mammals is habitual bipedalism. According to Darwin, as restated by Daniel Lieberman, “It was bipedalism rather than big brains, language, or tool use that first set th...
According to Darwin and his theory on evolution, organisms are presented with nature’s challenge of environmental change. Those that possess the characteristics of adapting to such challenges are successful in leaving their genes behind and ensuring that their lineage will continue. It is natural selection, where nature can perform tiny to mass sporadic experiments on its organisms, and the results can be interesting from extinction to significant changes within a species. Human beings are no exception to biological evolution. Like other organisms around the world, humans have significantly changed over time and have developed all sorts of diverse characteristics.
Man is the product of heredity and environment and that he acts as his machine responds to outside stimuli and nothing else, seem amply proven by the evolution and history of man. Every process of nature and life is a continuous sequence of cause and effect (156).
Without evolution, and the constant ever changing environment, the complexity of living organisms would not be as it is. Evolution is defined as a process that results in heritable changes in a population spread over many generations (8).Scientists believe in the theory of evolution. This belief is based on scientific evidence that corroborates the theory of evolution. In Figure 1 the pictures of the skulls depict the sequence of the evolution of Homo-sapiens. As the figure shows, man has evolved from our common ancestor that is shared by homo-sapiens. The change of diet of homo-sapiens over time has thought to contribute to the change in jaw structure and overall skull shape.