Evolution

Years ago, October raised the question "Does evolution change?" This questions was raised again by Gravity -- "does Evolution evolve?" Interesting question and we would love to have your comments. We have opened up comments (with comment moderation -- your comment will not post right away -- in order to prevent the inappropriate comments received in the past.) so please let us know what you think!

--------------------
The comments are not showing (not sure what is wrong) so email me. Thanks.

--------------------
P wrote in an email:

Yes, I believe evolution evolves. I also believe that evolution can speed up or slow down, depending on environmental stimulus.

I read an article about six months ago. A study had found that, under the right conditions, a mother can pass altered genes to her offspring to help deal with a changing environment in just one generation. I read this article on the Internet (Yahoo science, I think) and I wish I could remember more about it. I think the study was done on humans, but I'm not sure at this point. I'll do some research and send a link if I can find the article again. It definitely provides at least a partial answer to your question.

"Survival of the fittest" should change with time and circumstance, by its very definition. However, this seems to happen more slowly. Our stress response is a good example. At one point, stress chemicals produced by our bodies played an important role in the survival of our species, by making it possible to fight or run away from a dangerous situation. Now, those chemicals are still produced in response to what is perceived as a threatening situation, however, it's often not a situation from which we can run. In this instance, those chemicals and frequent exposure to them seem to do us more harm than good. The question is, will this change with time in our modern society? A behavior that was a good survival mechanism thousands or a million years ago isn't so frequently necessary now, yet we still have it. It really hasn't been that long since we did need it, in evolutionary terms. And it is still necessary at times. Will we evolve a way to deal with that response when we can't run away?
--------------------------------
P also wrote:

I have another thought regarding evolution. If evolution does evolve, and is influenced by environmental factors, how will technology effect our evolution? Technological innovation on a modern scale has been a major influence in our lives for only the last 100 to 150 years. How will this eventually affect us and our evolution?
------------------------------
October writes:

The need to earn money as a means for survival of our species also changed things; although it is still survival of the fittest. Perhaps it is because we are at the top of the food chain, and our only predators are other humans, that we do not need to worry about things like blending into the environment so predators will not eat us. The characteristics important to our survival are those associated with earning money like brains, looks, creativity, etc. -- this is true worldwide with only a few exceptions. Even in very tribal and rural areas of the World, earning money or whatever means of exchange, is what is important.