Evolution & Human Sexuality

Presented by Carl Bajema, PhD, Retired Professor of Biological Sciences, Grand Valley State University

About the Speaker

Recently retired from Grand Valley State University, Dr. Bajema taught evolutionary biology for more than 40 years. He has conducted scientific research involving the measurement of the direction and intensity of selection in human populations. Professor Bajema also has been very active as a science educator helping students, teachers and others gain a better scientific understanding of the natural processes involved in evolution.

About the Event

Announcements

Meeting Minutes for March 22, 2000; #65.

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This was our second meeting in the GRCC Calkins Science Bldg., in downtown
GR. We had robust attendance in this spacious and attractive facility.
Thanks again to Dr. Greg Forbes for arranging for this new meeting space,
which will include an on-site museum and has a computerized greenhouse,
currently.

A couple of us from FAOWM attended the Great Lakes Humanist Society meeting
in Mt. Pleasant, MI for their meeting on Humanist and Christian values
regarding marriage and family. Joel Welty, the Vice President of the GLHS,
put together a hand-out titled: “A Humanist View of Marriage” and had
invited anyone from 24 churches to attend and give input into these matters.
Unfortunately, not one person from the religious community attended. He had
wondered how Christians reconcile the many anti-family and devisive messages
to be found in the Bible with their Christian “Family Values” stance. A
photographer and staff writer for Central Michigan Life, the college paper,
attended for the 1st part of the meeting. The reporter, Stephanie Murray,
did a write up on the meeting for CMLIFE.

PLEASE NOTE: There will be NO regular meeting on April 12. Taking its place
will be the special lecture by Michael Shermer: “Why People Believe Weird
Things” to be held @ the Grand Rapids Community College Calkins Science
Bldg. auditorium at 7PM on April 11 (Tuesday). Plan on arriving early, as
this is expected to fill up quickly. Dr. Shermer will also give a lecture @
Alma College in the L1 lecture hall the Dow Science Center on April 12
8PM.

Upcoming meetings & events:
>APRIL 26: “The Life & Times of Clarence Darrow” to be moderated by Marshall
>Grate.
>APRIL 30 @10AM: Adopt-a-highway, coordinated by Dennis Murphy. Official
>location is from Airway to Beltline.
>MAY 10: “The Ethics of Pre-marital Sex” to be moderated by Rob Adamczyk.
>MAY 14: “Religious Displays on Public Property” to be moderated by Frank
>Bacon.
>JUNE 14: “ALcoholoics Anonymous & Religion” to be moderated by Jill
>Pinkerton.
>JULY 23 @ 10AM: Adopt-a-highway, coordinated by Dennis Murphy.
>SEPTEMBER 24 @ 10AM: Adopt-a-highway.
>OCTOBER 15: Michigan Atheists Convention; Lansing, Michigan.

  • All regular FAOWM meetings are 7PM the GRCC Calkins Science Center.

    Presentation

    Our topic for this meeting was “Evolution & Human Sexuality,” moderated by
    evolutionary biology professor, Carl Bajema. The naturalist W.D. Hamilton
    was mentioned in connection with his ideas on altruism and the “good genes
    mate choice” theory among others. The latter has to do with how animals
    select mates based on their phenotypic indicators of genetic resistance to
    disease. Bright coloration in birds is one indicator, as is symmetry—including the symmetry of the human face in preference to assymetry as an
    indicator of genes resistant to the ravages of disease. Hamilton brought to
    the field a mathematical method of showing how the percentage of shared
    genes influences the behavior of the group. His studies of insect groups,
    where a sterile caste works to promote the reproductive success of its
    genetically similar colony mates, helping to pass along its own genes in the
    process- have been extrapolated to other species. Humans, too, exhibit mate
    selection tendencies that unconsciously evaluate the genetic fitness of the
    potential mate as well as being more invested in kin sharing more of the
    same genes. This brought us to the significantly higher infanticide
    statistics exhibited by non-biological parents in human and other animal
    species. A herring gull study showed that 20-30% rate of infanticide among
    these birds.

    Dr. Bajema made the point of how human females are unique to primates by
    being essentially in “pernmanent estrus” with concealed ovulation and
    copulation not restricted to a specific time as far as human males can tell,
    influencing the paternal investment, among other effects.

    We discussed the cultural evolution of ideas, where one can trace the
    emergence of practices, myths, and other cultural aspects, see the
    extinction of some, or recombination of old and new cultural units of
    replication (“memes” as coined by biologist Richard Dawkins) into a new form
    that is more successful in spreading. This meme’s eye view says that the
    cultural items themselves benefit from the adaptations they exhibit;
    cultural ideas-in contrast to the adaptation is-always-beneficial- to-
    the- organism concept- means that memes be parasites or commensals as well
    as mutualists with respect to the genetic success of their human carriers.
    Looking at how these units spread has given rise to an epidemiological
    approach in studying cultural evolution. Biologist E.O. Wilson has brought
    our attention to the question of how tightly bound our ideas/memes may be by
    the genetic constraints, or “leash.”

    Charles Darwin wrote of the role of sexual selection in evolution, which has
    been tested and observed in wide-ranging species and is now the centerpiece
    of animal behavior studies. Humans, too, engage in great displays of health
    and wealth and assess these in others almost continually. Symbols are highly
    important indicators of group identification and status, and we talked about
    many of these. In the hand-out Dr. Bajema gave us, he quotes Geoffrey Miller
    on this concept: ”...consumerism is what happens when a smart ape, evolved
    for sexual self-promotion, attains the ability to transform the raw
    materials of nature into a network of sexual signals and status displays.”
    Our proclivity to waste resources can be linked in part at least to this
    drive toward sexiness via displays of consumerism.

    Among the densely- woven tapestry of thoughts expressed this evening, was
    the concept of “faculative” behavior. This has to do with if/then strategies
    for reproductive success that change with the environment. Control of
    territory leads to control of resources, leading to what can be offered
    (“gifts” etc.). When nothing else works, sexual coercion may take place and
    has been observed in many animal species. We talked of the fallacy of
    looking at one gene for one effect, leading to genetic determinist ideas.
    The social environment needs to be taken into consideration as to what
    genetic propensities or strategies may be called up. If we understand the
    underlying causes for behavior, we get that much closer to fixing problems
    that arise.

    Some books and papers Dr. Bajema called our attention to included Susan
    Blackmore’s The Meme Machine that takes off with Dawkins’ “meme” regarding
    how, like genes, memes are replicators that compete to get into as many
    brains as possible, fashioning our minds and culture just as genes have with
    our bodies. Another is David Buss’ The Dangerous Passion, dealing with the
    necessity of jealousy for mate guarding, protection against cuckoldry, etc.
    Daniel Dennett’s book Darwin’s Dangerous Idea and his paper “The Evolution
    of Culture,” Sarah Hrdy’s Mother Nature, that presents evolution from a
    woman’s point of view, involving mothers, infants and natural selection,
    Bobbi Lowi’s Why Sex Matters, Geoffrey Miller’s “Waste Is Good” that looks
    at how wasteful sexual display, creating impressive and beautiful
    structures, is at the root of culture, consciousness and consumerism,
    Miller’s Mating Mind and Thronbill & Palmer’s The Natural History of Rape
    were other books mentioned in what Bajema noted is a flood of books on these
    topics that will be more visible in mainstream society due to the challenges
    to common ideas they present and the sheer number of such books and papers
    coming out now.

    “To start to think mimetically we have to make a giant flip in our minds
    just as biologists had to when taking on the idea of the selfish gene.
    Instead of thinking of our ideas as our own creations, and working for us,
    we have to think of them as autonomous selfish memes, working only to get
    themselves copied. We humans, because of our powers of imitation, have
    become physical ‘hosts’ needed for the memes to get around. This is how the
    world looks from a Meme’s Eye View.” From Susan Blackmore’s The Meme
    Machine; Oxford (pg.7-8).

    Recorder: Charles La Rue