[pbs] (no subject)
JamieV.
jamievande at freenet.de
Wed May 9 05:26:28 EDT 2007
Joe , et al,
evolution and its understanding are absolutely fascinating. One of
lifes great puzzles. As Joe mentioned, Linneaus did us a great wrong in
many of his conclusions, but I do not see this as diminishing his work.
He is a product of his times and was undoubtedly under political und
religious pressures, whether he actually believed in them or not. Not
important to this discussion group.
One of the newer and definitly heretical theories on evolution is that
of reticulation. I first came across this in my research of marine
corals and their speciation, which is just as confusing, if not more so,
as with terrestrial plants. Below are a few links that discuss this theory.
Short composed, it supports the idea of hybridization in the creation of
new "species". Again, challenging the idea that species are immutable
entities, which most serious researches have long discarded.
Essentially, we do not have a tree of evolution, rather a net of
evolution (reticulate means netted). Various autart entities
criss-cross through time and hybridize, often/eventually die out in
their previous form and continue to evolve through mutation and further
hybridization. The mechanism is largely controled via natural barriers,
such as mountains, valley, seas, and in the oceans via changes in
currents and moving land masses.
For myself, this is a theory that fits well with what we see and
experience in plants and animals; endless variation and close
relationships. It, also, helps to explain the apparently disparate
results currently reported from gene researchers (bacterial genes in the
human genome! Very interesting and humbling (for us or the bacteria
remains to be answered. LOL)).
http://8e.devbio.com/article.php?ch=23&id=228
http://www.amjbot.org/cgi/content/full/91/10/1700
http://mbe.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/17/6/897
There are many articles available on the internet, these are just a few
that caught my interest.
On the gardening side of life, we are experiencing one of the earliest
and hottest (not to mention dry!) Springs on record in Europe. My
garden is at least three weeks ahead with the first Hemerocallis
blooming, which typically start the first week of June. I experienced a
once in a lifetime event, Narcissus, tulips, Wisteria, tree paeonys,
roses and daylilies all blooming together! Interestingly, most bulbs
have remained on their normal schedule, only being a week earlier with
the Alliums.
Ciao für now,
Jamie V.
Cologne
Germany
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