THIRTY FIVE ✖ VOICE

[wedonot]

So much of what we just accept as a given about our physical characteristics is the direct result of adapting to better fit the environment we live in. Some of it's fairly obvious - having a roughly symmetrical body makes things like movement easier and vision more useful, that sort of thing - but some of the adaptations humans have made since the first homo sapiens was born are a bit more complicated to find specific cause for.

For example, eye color is generally considered a polygenic trait, which means that more than one gene pair is involved, versus just one, but blue eyes are the result of one very specific genetic mutation that occurred less than ten thousand years ago. That means there was one founder mutation that gave rise to everyone in Europe with blue eyes.

The trait spread rapidly across the European subcontinent, and while DNA generally gets shuffled and reshuffled each time a new generation is born, people born with this mutation not only have a remarkable number of other genetic markers in common, but this particular stretch of DNA remains so similar suggests that not only are blue eyes a relatively modern mutation, but also that evolutionarily speaking, the mutation had something to offer, otherwise the rapid spread and preservation of the DNA sequence probably would have been less pronounced and perhaps not even have been preserved to the modern era.

It's next to impossible to know what happened ten thousand years ago that made this trait beneficial to early Europeans, but it did, at some point, apparently have some desirable to offer evolutionarily. [He pauses for a moment, chuckling a little.] Or perhaps early Europeans just found blue eyes attractive.

[Private to Erik]

What do you think of David? [He isn't lying in a heap in a hallway somewhere, is he. :|]

[Private to Merlin]

Have you spoken to Arthur?

[Private to Arthur]

I have a favor to ask.

[Private to Barbara]

Do you have a moment?

Comments

[bodilesswarrior]

[A slight, wry smile.] Nothing is ever as simple as it looks.

[Private]

Sure. What do you need?

[Private]

[wedonot]

I was wondering if your offer for escrima lessons was still on the table.

[Private]

[bodilesswarrior]

[Her eyes widen, followed shortly by her grin.]

Of course. I warn you, though, I'm a tough teacher.

[je_suis_avec_toi]

I thought eye color said something about the soul.

[wedonot]

It actually originates with three genes, only two of which are well understood.

[je_suis_avec_toi]

This must be some new science I haven't heard of. I don't mind trying to learn, though.

[truth_is_cold]

[You have an interested Rhade.] During the genetic bottleneck, when breeding became a limited resource because of environmental hardship.

Striking characteristics in the population became much more advantageous, or so the theory goes.

[wedonot]

But it's just a theory. Unless you could bring me a homo sapiens from that period to ask, we're never going to be entirely certain of the reasons behind it.

[truth_is_cold]

It would have been an unfortunate time for them to be in; your offspring would be at even greater risk and you would have to make unfair life or death choices. Not to mention having to face other populations of Homo Sapiens subspecies as potential competition.

Nietzschean prides breed for individual traits themselves. The longer the Prides were at odds, the more pronounced the differences.

Private

[onceandfutureprat]

Yes?

Private

[wedonot]

How would you feel about practicing swordsmanship more than once a week?

Private

[onceandfutureprat]

[Are you kidding, he does it every day at home. He feels good things about this.] If you think you can keep up.

[yeahscience]

What the hell is all this? [He looks agitated, but it's not really directed at Charles.] All this "oh, let me talk about science instead of saying whatever's really going on" bullshit, why do people keep doing that? Oh, awesome, eye color, plants, blah blah blah, The More You Know. Great.

[wedonot]

I'm sorry? [Which is half apology and half what are you on rn. :V]

[yeahscience]

[Jumpstart. :c] Nothing. Forget it. Maybe next time I want to say something, I'll talk about Ice Road Truckers first.

[timesbureaucrat]

Are you sure no one came and tweaked your species' genetics? I know of at least one renegade who has a history of performing genetic experiments on primitive species.

[wedonot]

I have no idea, it's not like I've ever had opportunity to talk with the first blue-eyed human.

[timesbureaucrat]

[Now Narvin is tempted to go check some time. Blue eyes: alien intervention or just normal evolution at work?

There's a pause as Narvin decides whether or not to ask his next question. A bit of a subject change.]

On your world have you encountered cases of a person's genetics being altered against their will? Or of a person's genetics being "designed" over many generations?

[silvestris]

That one founder must have been a busy man. Or woman.

[wedonot]

Apparently. Although I suppose it was a very different time.

[silvestris]

Hey, no judgment. They knew how to live.

[Private]

[wecanavenge]

[Not yet :|] I think someone thought the world needed more Aryans in it.

[He's really pissed about David's design. Which isn' David's fault but you know how good he is about anger :v]

[Private]

[wedonot]

[Gee, you're having an angry overreaction to something, how shocking and out of character.]

Did he say as much?

[trenchcoatedly]

Generally speaking, this was likely related to weather conditions. Lighter eyes permit more sun to strike the optic nerve and the other associated and necessary parts of the eye, and in an area where the dominant weather was dark and cloudy, would create a sharper, clearer picture.

[wedonot]

But we don't know for certain, and it's fairly unlikely ancient people realized the correlation themselves. That's what's so fascinating about it.