Jeff's Impression of a Blog, 2; DNA, Germs and Steel pt I

[aleksinjapan]

Cmon man, you're nitpicking. You have not addressed any of the MAJOR points of the book. What are the major points? Maybe you should read more than 20 pages to figure that out.

[TheMexicaMovement]

Sorry Jared Diamond: Europeans DID NOT INVENT guns, steel, the wheel, windmills, crossbows, writing, cannons, water wheels, chariots, agriculture, magnetic compass, printing press (Korea), algebra, geometry, maps, abacus, metal armor, metal swords, books, paper, money, sundial, flags, kites, metal helmets, measuring rulers and weights, guitar, bagpipes, harps, pottery wheel, sternpost rudder, lanteen sails, square ship hulls, pulleys, written laws, candles, castles, or the escapement mechanism!

[roidroid]

It sounds more like Jared Diamond is suggesting that the more complex voicebox of humans influenced our collective (incl social) evolution towards complex language. And chimps' LACK of this complicated voicebox steered them away from complex language.

Deaf people do not have a seperate evolutionary branch (incl socially). The children of deaf humans are genetically and socially the same as normal humans.

[thediscerningreader]

How can you denounce something prior to exploring it? Diamond spends only one chapter discussing language. In that chapter he discusses communication precedents in related species, but then goes on to promote the idea that one of the reason's we're uniquely human is that we are hard-wired for complex language in a way that no other animals are, even giving examples of how people create language and grammar on their own when not properly exposed to it. Yours is the opposite of what he posits.

[thediscerningreader]

Of course, I'm referring to the Third Chimpanzee.

[ElHuapango]

You IDIOT! You didn't think out your idea of deaf people well enough. You need to think of hearing impaired as being a sub-population of modern humans. Deaf people evolve independently of the human larger population. Thus, you can't use them in your argument. Two things, 1) finish reading the book before making comments. 2) Finish you undergrad in bio, before making rationales about evolution.

[Urdunchimeg]

have you been around deaf people, the reason why deaf people cannot speak, or cannot speak so clearly perhaps is because as babies grow up they need to hear words and the sounds in order to attempt the speak themseves. However chimpanees can hear, yet their viceboxes are less advanced and tey cannot produce a language that we can understand. lief erikson was the first white man to discover america not columbus, ever heard of te viking colony in newfoundland, columbus wasnt first,

[socialhazard631]

What you are saying is completely ignorant of the fact that these "deaf" people are growing in a pre-developed community, thus providing a universal system of visual communication. You aren't taking into consideration that the only reason they adapt to their environment is because a plausible environment is provided. Our voice boxes are structurally different because evolution allowed it to develop into one that allows us to project our voice in consciously chosen sounds.

[webcoredesign]

Jeff ELECTRIFIED.

[webcoredesign]

Jeff ELECTRIFIED.