« Econometrics of Bigfoot and UFOs | Main | Mirrors as a means of reducing (increasing?) bias »
Dealing with Darwin
A man who knows he has this allele, she added, might be able to use the knowledge to ignore tugs of restlessness he might feel in his marriage: "You can say, 'Oh, it is just my DNA, and I am going to ignore it.' "
...Fisher [an academic researcher], who described herself as a romantic, said she would not reject a potential mate who has two copies of the risky allele. She paused, then added: "But I might not start a joint bank account with them for the first few years."
Here is the full story. Maybe they should put that on a T-shirt: "Oh, it is just my DNA, and I am going to ignore it."
Posted by Tyler Cowen on September 2, 2008 at 06:10 AM in Science | Permalink
Comments
Ha:
"Genesis Biolabs offers the first genetic screen for marital success!"
They screen for the "ruthlessness gene". But if the "game" nerds are right, maybe ruthless people are better at attracting and keeping partners.
You could end up divorcing someone because of the same traits you screened them in for!
Posted by: Jason Malloy at Sep 2, 2008 10:16:34 AM
reminds me of the science fiction book "Thirteen" by Richard Morgan, which deals with gene variants and how society deals with them. Good stuff if you like violent, procedural science fiction.
Posted by: guy in the veal calf office at Sep 2, 2008 1:33:32 PM
easy way to target people for hormone treatments....
(this locus has associations with other traits, including behavioral economic responses in stuff like the 'dictator game')
Posted by: razib at Sep 2, 2008 2:53:41 PM
I wouldn't be surprised if there were a similar gene in women... perhaps a "crazy" gene.
Posted by: MHQ at Sep 2, 2008 5:28:40 PM
"Oh, it is just my DNA, and I am going to ignore it."
Wouldn't work on a tshirt, but damn that's funny
Posted by: Robert Olson at Sep 2, 2008 5:38:12 PM
"Oh, it is just my DNA, and I am going to ignore it."
This is a less colorful paraphrase of Steve Pinker's "I just tell my genes to go jump in a lake".
There is a rather obvious homunculus problem here though. And Pinker should know better having debunked "the God in the machine" in The Blank Slate.
As if there is a "you" and "your genes". Should the people without the gene variants tell monogamy "to go jump in a lake"? Either way it is genes influencing the behavior. There is no "default state" that is free from DNA.
Even if you do this for a purely rational reason, say you don't want to hurt someone by breaking up with them (and this is arguably "rational"), it won't be because you are "defying" your genes, but probably because you have another strong genetic predisposition in conflict with your others - like an incredibly high social sensitivity towards seeing emotional pain.
Pinker's desire to be a famous scientist - instead of have kids - for instance (the origin of the quote) very obviously has a lot to do with unique genetics.
Clone me a dozen Pinkers and I guarantee they'll all make the same decisions, and all tell you they told their genes to go jump in a lake!
Posted by: Jason Malloy at Sep 2, 2008 7:07:02 PM
"Clone me a dozen Pinkers and I guarantee they'll all make the same decisions, and all tell you they told their genes to go jump in a lake!"
could Identical twins be used to test that theory? I have several twins in my family, and their all quite individual personality wise.
Posted by: PragashP at Sep 2, 2008 9:39:56 PM
Bharath Paper Conversions – manufacturers and exporters of high quality paper cones, paper tubes, paper cores, edge protectors, composite cans, conical bolt boxes, mailing tubes, construction cones, waxed paper cones.
Posted by: bala murugan at Sep 9, 2008 12:44:44 AM
