The greatest scientific question of the time, is how we speciated
It's all very well to wonder and endlessly pontificate about the universe and all that, but our very survival depends upon the ability of mankind to understand ourselves, not the universe.
Genetic Mechanisms.
Our survival depends upon understanding how we evolved our unique consciousness. There are two distinct forms of life survival, species life and speciation. The two sexes update their dna by natural and sexual selection at each generation, then at periodic intervals speciation occurs. How and what dna and brain circuits prompt speciation ?. The first point I would like to bring up, is that all genetic mechanisms evolved deep on the evolutionary timescale. Mutation works within the single base pair, it is a mechanism that predates the double helix and the evolutionary innovation of the sexes. Genetic mechanisms change the frequency of dna. Without genetic mechanisms no evolution can take place.
The double Helix.
The evolutionary innovation of the double helix brought about division of labor and this is when life on earth really got going. With division of labor there came into existence an early genetic mechanism vital to the survival of the species and this is recombination, the inter-sexual crossing over of dna, that the male was evolving by intra-sexual competition and survival. Recombination allowed the female to inherit the physical form of the males efforts and life on earth diverged rapidly. Over time all genetic mechanisms evolved, but the brain remained very primitive.
The evolutionary innovation of the double helix brought about division of labor and this is when life on earth really got going. With division of labor there came into existence an early genetic mechanism vital to the survival of the species and this is recombination, the inter-sexual crossing over of dna, that the male was evolving by intra-sexual competition and survival. Recombination allowed the female to inherit the physical form of the males efforts and life on earth diverged rapidly. Over time all genetic mechanisms evolved, but the brain remained very primitive.
Brain asymmetry.
Eventually the primitive brain was colonized in a unique way and this was the sexual sidedness of the brain, or brain asymmetry. The male evolved biases towards the left side of the brain while the female evolved biases towards the right side of the brain. Evolution will eventually fill in every nook and cranny with life survival advantages for the sexes. This sexual bias of the male and female was just another species trait, it was not a form of speciation, but, "set the pattern for brain laterality" and the evolutionary innovation of the all important corpus callosum.
Eventually the primitive brain was colonized in a unique way and this was the sexual sidedness of the brain, or brain asymmetry. The male evolved biases towards the left side of the brain while the female evolved biases towards the right side of the brain. Evolution will eventually fill in every nook and cranny with life survival advantages for the sexes. This sexual bias of the male and female was just another species trait, it was not a form of speciation, but, "set the pattern for brain laterality" and the evolutionary innovation of the all important corpus callosum.
The brain
The brain could not begin to evolve in it's own right until a very special innovation took place and this was brain laterality. Brain laterality created a second male, (the left-handed, right hemisphere dominant male) to recombine the species traits of the sexes. Brain asymmetry had formed both biases of sexes for a particular side of the brain and this in turn formed axonal biases whereby each sex had different axonal connections accross each side of the brain. The female by this time, about 50 million years ago had built up a massive reperatoire of dna that was essentially locked into her own maternal sub-genome. Up until the evolutionary innovation of brain laterality the male led speciation events via physical prowess. Survival of the fittest, but now with the evolutionary innovation of brain laterality and a second male to speciate upon genetic recombinatory complexity, the way was open to the female to take the lead in speciation.
Brain Laterality.
The basis of all evolutionary progression is genetic. Both species life and speciation refine and change dna. As brain laterality formed, the maternal sub-genome began a new direction for evolution and that was based upon the brain finding new life survival strategies. The brain having evolved very little until long after all genetic mechanisms is constricted to the ability of dna to change. The corpus callosum evolved to both restrict sentient consciousness and enhance consciousness. Handedness is linked to specific axonal dieback and enhanced connectivity along the entire length of the Corpus Callosum. The Corpus Callosum can be described as a highly variable governor of the higher states of consciousness, but not highly variable in relation to the physical movement of the organism in the environment.
Under construction, Ian K Pennack.
Brain Laterality.
The basis of all evolutionary progression is genetic. Both species life and speciation refine and change dna. As brain laterality formed, the maternal sub-genome began a new direction for evolution and that was based upon the brain finding new life survival strategies. The brain having evolved very little until long after all genetic mechanisms is constricted to the ability of dna to change. The corpus callosum evolved to both restrict sentient consciousness and enhance consciousness. Handedness is linked to specific axonal dieback and enhanced connectivity along the entire length of the Corpus Callosum. The Corpus Callosum can be described as a highly variable governor of the higher states of consciousness, but not highly variable in relation to the physical movement of the organism in the environment.
Under construction, Ian K Pennack.
