Ridley introduces the problem of knowledge versus instinct, and learning versus heritability, but then asserts that natural selection will make universal common knowledge like grammar instinct but will leave things like vocabulary to be learned so that it can change with time. Eric Kandel isolated a chemical called cyclic AMP that is involved in the process of learning by changing itself when something is learned. It has also been shown without a doubt that humans are not the only creatures capable of learning. Bees, mice, and even sea slugs can learn, as proven by Kandel’s study and many others. However, while the human brain is capable of immense amounts of learning, the brain is created and ultimately controlled by genes and related proteins and chemicals.
Citation:
Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters. New York: HarperCollins, 1999. Print.
Citation:
Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters. New York: HarperCollins, 1999. Print.
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