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To: Elsie
Speaking of mating, I would assume that Multiple Orgasums

Is that "orgasms" or "organisms"? Or maybe "opossums"? In any case, I fail to see what it has to do with your following question:

would be GOOD for the species as a whole, with the repro rate up there, so why do we Humans want to DEvolve, by LOWERING our offspring output?

Um, what? What do multiple orgasms have to do with reproductive rate? Insects don't have them, but they out-reproduce us by factors of hundreds or thousands.

And humans *do* have multiple orgasms (if they're lucky), so what's this about us allegedly "devolving" (again, no such thing) by not having them?

Before you ask a question, please make sure it's a coherent one.

But if you're trying to ask why humans have a low birth rate compared to some other kinds of animals (but not apes, they have a birthrate similar to ours), the reason is that there are many different types of successful reproductive strategies.

One is to crank out offspring as rapidly and as numerously as possible. This is what most insects do, and obviously it works well for them (I'm *still* trying to rid my house of fruit flies after several months... The damned things keep springing back after I think I've eliminated most of them.)

Another is to have only a few offspring, so that you can devote much time and effort into ensuring that they survive.

Insects may reproduce fast and often, but they have a HUGE mortality rate among their offspring. By just dumping them and leaving them, they leave most to die due to predators, weather, etc. Humans only have a few offspring, but we continuously guard and nurture and train them, so that each one has a good chance of surviving to adulthood and carrying on our lineage.

Due to our niche in th world, our reproductive method works well for us, and the insects' method works well for them in *their* niche -- and neither would work well for the other. Insects are poorly equipped (brainwise, among other reasons) to nurture their offspring, and humans are poorly equipped to deal with giving birth to 100+ offspring per year.

And that's what evolutionary fitness is all about -- each species doing well and what "fits" in its *own* situation (environmental or otherwise). It's not about reaching some sort of absolute "best" biological solution in a one-size-fits-all way.

330 posted on 11/14/2004 12:18:55 AM PST by Ichneumon ("...she might as well have been a space alien." - Bill Clinton, on Hillary, "My Life", p. 182)
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To: Ichneumon
The damned things keep springing back after I think I've eliminated most of them.)

This happened to me, too!

(But with me, it was KIDS!!! ;^)

346 posted on 11/14/2004 4:32:23 AM PST by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going....)
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To: Ichneumon
Due to our niche in th world, (I thought We were everywhere?) our reproductive method works well for us, and the insects' method works well for them in *their* niche -- and neither would work well for the other. Insects are poorly equipped (brainwise, among other reasons) to nurture their offspring, and humans are poorly equipped to deal with giving birth to 100+ offspring per year.

 

So the 'smarter' we are, the less kids we have?

 

Now I understand our 'welfare' system!!

347 posted on 11/14/2004 4:35:37 AM PST by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going....)
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