I've come to see plants as actually living underground with what we call the roots. What is above ground, are just air- and sun-roots.
Are Plants Farming Us?
21–30 of 60 posts
Re: Are Plants Farming Us?
#22"The selfish gene".
Re: Are Plants Farming Us?
#23A core idea of Richard Dawkins's second book “The extended phenotype” is that genes can also select for anything affecting the environment of the organism - i.e. genes for characteristics/behaviours that are external to the organism itself.
So there could be a gene selecting for getting watered by humans (e.g. via wilting or colour).
This can also create a connection between genes and memes e.g. a new flower characteristic could be genetic but affect popular memetic choice.
The concept is hard to grok & explain, so beware that there's a good chance I've misunderstood and mistranslated the idea.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Extended_Phenotype#Summary
Re: Are Plants Farming Us?
#24I read something similar on Yuval Harari's Homo Sapiens, where he suggests wheat domesticated humans not the other way around. An excerpt can be found here [1]. Whole essay is great but I especially liked this part: > The word “domesticate” comes from the Latin domus, which means “house.” Who’s the one living in a house? Not the wheat. It’s the Sapiens. [1] https://www.ynharari.com/topic/ecology/
My theory is that multicellular life itself was developed because viruses wanted a more effective way to travel. Humans are the pinnacle of virus transportation technology, and they've developed very successful behavioral override countermeasures against our pesky use of vaccines.
Re: Are Plants Farming Us?
#25A core idea of Richard Dawkins's second book “The extended phenotype” is that genes can also select for anything affecting the environment of the organism - i.e. genes for characteristics/behaviours that are external to the organism itself. So there could be a gene selecting for getting watered by humans (e.g. via wilting or colour). This can also create a connection between genes and memes e.g. a new flower characte…
Why should it be hard to grok? Selection just happens, it doesn't "care" if it's natural or based on human preferences. Even human-free selection doesn't guarantee a long run since genes can paint themselves into a corner (see natural extinctions). Iow, it's what it is.
Re: Are Plants Farming Us?
#26I read something similar on Yuval Harari's Homo Sapiens, where he suggests wheat domesticated humans not the other way around. An excerpt can be found here [1]. Whole essay is great but I especially liked this part: > The word “domesticate” comes from the Latin domus, which means “house.” Who’s the one living in a house? Not the wheat. It’s the Sapiens. [1] https://www.ynharari.com/topic/ecology/
If you are claiming that a hot buttered dinner roll made from wheat can actually domesticate ME…
… then you’re damn right.
Re: Are Plants Farming Us?
#27I saw the Grok image and just closed it. So cringe
Re: Are Plants Farming Us?
#28What's the point of the ugly genAI interstitial images? The blogging equivalent of wearing a dunce-cap.
Because it works, probably. Blogs (and blog making tutorials) get selected by reach, not content, and images add to that, like arrows and stupid face close ups do on youtube. What you see is a cost-driven transformation of the concept.
Re: Are Plants Farming Us?
#29I feel the same way tending to these goddamn machines. Who's helping whom?
Re: Are Plants Farming Us?
#30I read something similar on Yuval Harari's Homo Sapiens, where he suggests wheat domesticated humans not the other way around. An excerpt can be found here [1]. Whole essay is great but I especially liked this part: > The word “domesticate” comes from the Latin domus, which means “house.” Who’s the one living in a house? Not the wheat. It’s the Sapiens. [1] https://www.ynharari.com/topic/ecology/
My theory is that multicellular life itself was developed because viruses wanted a more effective way to travel. Humans are the pinnacle of virus transportation technology, and they've developed very successful behavioral override countermeasures against our pesky use of vaccines.
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