Assignment: Revolutions and Human Survival

Assignment: Revolutions and Human Survival

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For your primary post, select ONE of the following discussion topics. Please select only one of the three topics listed. Using your own words, write a primary post of at least 125 words that follows the instructions. Be sure to address everything listed in the instructions. Each topic has two subtopics [a, b]; please address both of them.

Your primary post is worth up to 14 out of 20 points. Also, make a substantive reply to a fellow classmate on any topic. Use your own words. You don’t need to use any sources other than the ones specified, but if you do use other sources, you must cite them.

Topic 1

: Evo-devo. Watch the video (1)* featuring Sean Carroll discussing the science of evolution and the field of evolutionary-developmental biology (evo-devo).

• (a) Describe three things that you learned from the video.
• (b) Of the three things you described, which was the most surprising, and why?
• (c) Discuss what these things teach us about biology.

Topic 2 [article]: The cusp of a revolution in medicine. In a recent op-ed, Craig Venter (2)* shares his opinion that we are “on the cusp of a revolution” in medicine.

• (a)  Describe three things that you learned from this op-ed.
• (b)  Of the three things you describe, which was the most surprising, and why?
• (c)  Discuss what these things teach us about biology.

Topic 3 [article]:  Earth will survive; we may not. In a provocative Op-Ed, astrophysicist Adam Frank says that “pretending we can just extend the Holocene in perpetuity” is just a foolish excuse to put off making inevitable choices brought about by climate change.

• (a)  Summarize Frank’s basic argument.
• (b)  Some biologists, particularly conservation biologists reacted negatively to this essay. What is your reaction to this essay?
• (c)  Explain how this relates to biology.

*References (in Strayer Writing Standards format).

1. Erik Olsen, June 25, 2007, Sean Carroll on evolution and the science of evo-devo, https://www.nytimes.com/video/science/1194817104756/the-science-of-evolution.html
2. Craig Venter, December 13, 2017, Genetic sequencing is the future of medicine, https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/theworldpost/wp/2017/12/13/human-genome/
3. Adam Frank, June 12, 2018, Earth will survive. We may not., https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/12/opinion/earth-will-survive-we-may-not.html