On 27 May 2014 19:02, 'Chris de Morsella' via Everything List < [email protected]> wrote:
> > Yeah, I already have some genes shared with a sponge. That doesn't mean I > can mate with one. In fact I can't even mate with Cameron Diaz. > > > > Yes… nor would I advise trying to mate with a sponge… or an alien J > > On the other hand we became who we are, also through the exchange of DNA > cross-species. Life is a soup and we are in it and less distinct from it > than we like to believe. Over time beneficial mutations (and to some extent > parasitic selfish DNA) will jump from species to species through means > other than sexual reproduction. > > > Retroviruses, for example. I believe are responsible for a lot of beneficial stuff. There was an article in New Scientist recently that I seem to recall said as much. (None of this makes it more likely that we'd want to mate with aliens or vice versa, however.) -- 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.
