LOL Bugsy,

If berating me gives you "great pleasure" then I am glad to be of service. :-D

Just a few points.

Point 1:

"Science fiction" is your term. I call it a speculative extrapolation of what we think we know.

Point 2:

Although I find the whole field of epi-genetic inheritance fascinating, that's not what I was referring to in my previous posts. It turns out there are regions of DNA that do not code for genes but govern the expression of genes. Mutations in these stretches of DNA can have a profound affect on an organism. The real difference between humans and monkeys may not be in our genes but in our "DNA switches" – not to be confused with epi-genetic switches.

Point 3:

You wrote:

"A lot of people also make the mistake of believing that if women were in charge, then certain crises such as war, economic crises etc. may never have happened. This has no basis in history."

I was referring to the fact that, on average, women are known to be more risk averse than men. What seems to be needed among financial traders is a healthy dose of risk aversion.

The remark was, of course, intended to be jocular. In your humourless way you did not pick up on that.

Examinator (and Fractelle)

Sorry that no nefarious Zionist plots emerged in the course of this thread.

Maybe next time.

Oh steven, I'm glad that even though you find me humourless, you still manage to LOL.

I am sure "speculative extrapolation" is what Arthur C. Clarke and Isaac Asimov would have called it also steven. Instead of peer review, perhaps you could get your ideas published in paperback ?

I thought you were talking about new genetics discoveries. My mistake. I didn't realise the level that we were at. Mendels work, while good and the basis of much of genetics, has been modified by other discoveries, such as recombination (which has been known about since before the discovery of DNA). But I must tell you that mutations in regulatory regions in "junk DNA" that control the expression of genes have a normal inheritance and can be modelled in the same way as other genes. This is because they reside within the DNA itself. They are quite well explained by the simple model of Mendelian inheritance with dominance and recessiveness, combined with recombination and selection of course.

Promoters, enhancers, transcription factors etc. are all inherited in a very similar manner to genes.

What's really new is how genes proteins are regulated post-trancriptionally by splicing and protein modification. That's epigenetics.

Hope this helps.

Ah, jocular, that explains that one. Oh dear.

Bugsy

Love a good Asimov, my favourite 'jocular science speculationist' (non word ?), not that crazy about his nom de plume (Paul French)books though.

Sadly I posted a topic along the same lines of speculation before I caught up with your posts. Although there was a feeler for a serious discussion.

Steven
Zionist plot? I never thought of that. I must be slipping, maybe there's a subconscious link intended to show how the Israel/Palestinian conflict is the endgame Good versus Evil. Nostradamus revisited?

Nah, damn those exploding eggs!

Psst Perhaps you should appologise and wipe your face.

"speculative extrapolation"

Very good. I'll file that for reference in anticipation of stevenlmeyer's next "jocular" missive.

I thank all who have vigorously and humorously at times made your positions clear but not always on the subject :Atheists doomed!Religion triumphant! I must admit I have learnt a lot and often felt out of my depths. I have also learnt that erudition doesn't always serve the interests of the erudite who unfortunately isn't always able use the knowledge effectively in argument or discussion but to massage the ego.

The fact remains that the atheist and the God-fearing/loving live their lives as they choose.The atheist is capable of commendable acts that one is inclined to attribute to the God-loving/fearing whilst the God/fearing/loving doesn't always behave in a way their God would approve. There is a gap between belief and application of belief. Death will cliam all indescriminately anyway regardless of the differing belief systems and then what? No one knows. In the meantime ofcourse they live lives full of sound and fury, signifying nothing!
But they love doing it,anyway. That's being human, I suppose

socratease