From: Lee Daniel Crocker (lcrocker@mercury.colossus.net)
Date: Thu Dec 18 1997 - 14:40:03 MST
Matt Ridley's "Red Queen" makes a very convincing argument that
the primary function of sexual reproduction is to increase the
genetic diversity of the organisms to stay ahead of faster-
evolving parasites. Evidence for this contention includes the
fact that there is a fairly good correlation between organisms
that reproduce primarily sexually and those with long times
between generations; and that isolated groups of normally sexual
species that become too inbred die out not because of bad
recessives but because of less effective immune systems (i.e.,
if you're too close genetically to your parents, their germs
have had 30 generations to adapt to them, and are likey to be
well adapted to you too).
-- Lee Daniel Crocker <lee@piclab.com> <http://www.piclab.com/lcrocker.html> "All inventions or works of authorship original to me, herein and past, are placed irrevocably in the public domain, and may be used or modified for any purpose, without permission, attribution, or notification."--LDC
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