On Wed, Apr 9, 2014 at 6:09 PM, Craig Weinberg <[email protected]>wrote:
> > > On Tuesday, April 8, 2014 6:51:13 PM UTC-4, Liz R wrote: > >> On 9 April 2014 04:58, Craig Weinberg <[email protected]> wrote: >> >>> On Monday, April 7, 2014 11:03:35 PM UTC-4, Liz R wrote: >>> >>>> There is an element of this in all evolutionary explanations, but only >>>> until we are in a position to gather enough evidence to make a call for or >>>> against some idea. Evolution has been observed in action, to a limited >>>> extent, and the links between genes and various behaviours, structures etc >>>> is becoming clearer, so we have a better idea as time goes on what >>>> mechanisms have evolved and why. >>>> >>>> For example I recently read something about zebra's stripes being "for" >>>> protecting them from insects (I think it was) rather than making them >>>> harder for carnivores to spot. This was because someone had done some >>>> experiments to distinguish between several theories of what advantage the >>>> stripes gave. >>>> >>> >>> Sure, but mechanisms which have an effect on the world of the body need >>> not have an impact on something that doesn't (like dreams). >>> >> >> ???? Sorry old chap could you clarify ???? >> > > Dreams need not have any possible evolutionary justification, since their > presence or absence is irrelevant to behavior. > How do you know that? It's plausible that they play a role in training for future scenarios, for example. I'm not discounting that there might be more to it than that -- I am fascinated by dreams too -- but to claim that they are irrelevant to behavior seems quite a stretch. Cheers, Telmo. > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Everything List" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/everything-list. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Everything List" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/everything-list. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
