The harmful effects of close inbreeding have been recognized for centuries and, with the rise of Mendelian genetics, was realized to be an effect of homozygosis. This historical background led to great interest in ways to quantify inbreeding, its depression effects on the phenotype and flow-on effects on mate choice and other aspects of behavioral ecology. The mechanisms and cues used to avoid inbreeding are varied and include major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules and the peptides they transport as predictors of the degree of genetic relatedness. Here, we revisit and complement data from a Swedish population of sand lizards (Lacerta agilis) showing signs of inbreeding depression to assess the effects of genetic relatedness on pair formation in the wild. Parental pairs were less similar at the MHC than expected under random mating but mated at random with respect to microsatellite relatedness. MHC clustered in groups of RFLP bands but no partner preference was observed with r
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Are Looks Really All That Matter in Dating?
Before we get deep into this war, let me give you a quick rule of thumb: If you see a post or an article that refers to 80% or 20% when it comes to dating you can pretty much write it off right away.
Hello, I’m a 17-year-old boy in Korea and my life’s been great, I have many friends, my grades are super good, and I have passion and confidence.
What Miscegenation Means for America
Edward Dutton, American Renaissance, December 13, 2020
This essay is adapted from the new book
Making Sense of Race
, which can be purchased here.
When we hear the word “ethnicity,” we tend to think of peoples, such as the Irish or Han Chinese, that trace their ancestry and history back millennia. But, of course, race and ethnicity are dynamic and evolving. Ethnic groups that have a “timeless” conception of themselves have, in fact, experienced more genetic change and engaged in more interbreeding than they might want to admit. Furthermore, there is no reason why we wouldn’t expect new and different ethnicities to emerge in the future.