Genome complexity: new review of epigenetics studies (Introduction)

by dhw, Tuesday, May 16, 2017, 08:45 (2748 days ago) @ David Turell

DAVID: As for whales the only way it can work is if He designs all eight stages. Envirnomental change is simple. We see the animals move from land to water as changed mammals, but still mammals, in a new environment with overall environment the same.

dhw: And why did he have to design it in eight stages if he knew what he wanted (though you don’t know why he wanted it)? I don’t know what you mean by a new environment with overall environment the same. The whole point of the changes was to enable the whale to live in a new environment – water not land. And yet you see no link between speciation and the environment.

DAVID: Water and land environments differ but I was referring to overall environmental alterations, not that specific difference in where to live.

I don’t think anyone would claim that every instance of speciation was triggered by a global change in the environment. Speciation has to take place in individuals or groups, and individuals and groups live in local environments. It makes perfect sense to me that a change in local conditions might trigger changes in certain organisms, and if they are successful they will flourish and spread. And I still don’t see how conditions and life can “co-evolve” and yet there is no link between speciation and the environment.