So far, I have read the first two chapters of the book and already, I am starting to think of evolution in different ways. On page 8, there's table which has an overview of how the author will connect evolution and biology to security issues. Many different academic areas will be discussed and tied into the topic, including ecology, evolutionary psychology, and paleobiology.
In Chapter One, it was expressed that more security was not preventing the ability to catch terrorists, because the security checks were all the same and were not varied. I thought this was an interesting point because it seems like having more security would be enough. However, I think that a few extensive and thorough security checks would be as effective as having multiple similar security procedures. This, of course, would cause checkpoints to be time-consuming, but in my opinion, possibly worth it. I had an experience abroad, I had to go through at least five security checkpoints before I entered an airport, and once I was inside the airport, there were even more stops to check if I had any illegal items in my luggage. Right before boarding the airplane, a lady before me had her carry-on searched one last time, and an officer discovered that she was carrying a knife. So even after at least ten stops, either nobody had detected anything, or they didn't think that her knife, which she said was for cutting fruit, wasn't dangerous enough.
One example of a human inability to adapt that was mentioned was, according to Taylor, when a great number indigenous people in Central and South America were killed by the infectious diseases brought by the conquistadors. A question I had was about this quote on page 15: ... societies ... "evolve to become so specialized that adaptations in response to risks to survival is not possible and collapse or destruct becomes inevitable." Were the indigenous people possibly an example of this quote? However, the quote suggests that all organisms in the population were kille. Do y'all know any examples that would apply to this quote?
Although I am not reading this book, I am really looking forward to reading more posts about it since I am currently taking an international politics class (for international studies as well)! I remember Dr. Johnson mentioning that game theory will most likely be introduced in this book and I can't wait to hear your thoughts on it. I am hoping that more on security and cooperation among nations/organisms will also be discussed.Really interested in hearing more about your book!
ReplyDeleteRend, the example that springs to mind in response to your question is an extinct species of hominids that had such massive teeth and jaws for eating hard seeds and nuts that their head was so heavy it was a fitness disadvantage. Dr. Mathews will talk about that example in detail in her guest lecture in our class in April. I think the example you describe of the indigenous people isn't one of super-specialization, but instead is one of vulnerability to a new disease, because the population had never had the chance to evolve immunity to this threat. I think these are two different examples of how an new environmental challenge can cause a population crash.
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