Thursday, October 08, 2009

You Are (Most Probably) The End of Your Line

Contra Dawkins

Most people in the past do not have descendants.

In a known case, less than 15% of French people alive in 1789 have living descendants.

If evolution is about the winners, then I am on the side of the losers.

4 comments:

Steve Muhlberger said...

What's that French figure based on?

Paul Halsall said...

A comennt by Colin Renfrew in twop editions of his his generally excellent textbook called - _Archeology_.

Sam Clark said...

When has Dawkins ever denied that 'Most people in the past do not have descendants'? And in what sense is 'evolution ... about the winners'?

Paul Halsall said...

In THE SELFISH GENE, Dawkins goes one and on about us alive being winners.