You're right, you have no idea how solid this idea is. And your "catastrophe theory" proves it.
First the mitochondrial Eve and the "primal" Adam did not exist at the same time. Secondly, the mitochondrial Eve is not every human's common ancestor. She is the Most Recent Common Ancestor of all currently living humans with respect to their matrilineal descent. Mitochondrial DNA does not engage in exchange with other genetic material, but is transmitted to successive generations as a virtual clone of the mother's DNA. What is called a mitochondrial Eve [and Eve is a bad way of classifying this] is the women whose mitochondrial DNA exists in all humans now alive. That doesn't make her our single, solitary woman ancestor. It makes her our MRCA traced back through our mothers. All human beings have ancestors not established by matrilineal descent. My grandmother on my father's side is not part of my matrilineal descent, but I am here descendant. I didn't get here mitochondrial DNA. I did get the mitochondrial DNA of my grandmother on my mother's side. In evolutionary genetics, the mitochondrial Eve is not a theory it is a mathematical fact, at least until there is proof that humans had multiple origins. Humans and chimps have a female Most Recent Common Ancestor, Chimps and Gorillas have a MRCA, evidence of which is contained again in the matrilineal line of descent as recorded in the mitochondrial DNA. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Shane Mage" <[email protected]> > I have no idea how solid this idea of a "mitochondrial Eve" is. > However, assuming that it is valid, what follows is that at some time > in the evolution of *homo sapiens sapiens* there occurred such an > enormous catastrophe that in the whole world only one *hss* couple > survived, and so all the races have descended from that couple. ________________________________________________ YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. Send list submissions to: [email protected] Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
