[ExI] evolution and the supernatural

[John Clark]

On Wed, Feb 26, 2020 at 4:25 PM Keith Henson via extropy-chat <
extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> wrote:

>
>> Using a condom is not the best way to get your genes into the next generation
>> either.
>
>
> * > No, but condoms have been around for such a short time that they have
> not been a serious factor in human selection.*
>

Exactly. Genes layed down the law but genes haven't had time to plug the
loopholes in the law that the brain it had made had found. Genes never
anticipated condoms and wouldn't have liked them if they had, but brains
did like them. And brains won.

* > Brains are constructed by genes. *


Yes.


> > *In the long run, genes get their way by shaping what we want.*
>

There is no reason to think that must be true because genes have no
foresight, but brains do. Our genome only contains 750 meg of information
so there is absolutely no way they could anticipate every possible future
situation and give us canned responses on the best way to propagate our
genes in every conceivable circumstance. So instead genes have information
on how to build a brain that in effect says "wire up neurons in this way
and then repeat 86 billion times, and after that have the brain do whatever
it thinks best to get our genes into the next generation". But brains are
far smarter than genes and are better lawyers, and so have managed to find
loopholes in the orders the genes have given them. Hence the existence of
condoms.

John K Clark
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