You Share 98.7 Percent of Your DNA With This Sex-Obsessed Ape

[Beachwood]

And so do creationists.

So in sum: Genetic evidence shows clearly that while orangutans, gorillas, chimpanzees and bonobos have 24 chromosome pairs, humans and our closest extinct ancestors (Neanderthals and Denisovans) have 23. And we know why that is: In modern humans and these other hominins, chromosome 2 shows clear genetic evidence of a fusion event that must have happened after our lineage split from chimpanzees and bonobos, but before our divergence with Neanderthals and Denisovans. The proof is right there in the DNA.

Faced with this, those who call themselves creationists are in a pretty uncomfortable position. Their bodies' own cells prove them wrong.

Fascinating article about our (and Neanderthal's) evolutionary divergence and just what it is and how we can see it.

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/02/evolution-creationism-bonobos-neanderthals-denisovans-chromosome-two

[Brainstormy]

1. Fun! But . .

I don't get the "sex-obsessed" reference in the headline. Except for the information about Bonobos "using sex, rather than violence, to resolve conflicts"--and how is that a bad thing? I don't see what's there to indicate that the apes are especially sex-obsessed.

[Beachwood]

2. Its a reference to research already out there on Bonobos

Bonobos Have Lots of Sex, Are Awesome, May Hold Key to Our Past

http://www.psmag.com/science/bonobos-have-sex-with-everyone-are-awesome-may-hold-key-to-our-past-59956/

[Brainstormy]

5. well, ok, but

seems to me there's a lot of room between "sexual' and "sex-obsessed." Until the apes get into pornography, prostitution, S&M, sex slavery, etc., etc., I'm inclined to think that we're the ones who are obsessed.

Thanks for the link. Interesting!

[Beachwood]

6. I agree. It was a poor headline grabber. n/t

[FiveGoodMen]

8. From documentaries I've seen

they ARE into incest and pre-adolescent sex-play.

[Brainstormy]

9. Hey, according to Wikipedia

homosexual behavior has been observed in about 1500 species, ranging from primates to gut worms, and is well documented for 500 of them. (Although, to be fair, the Wiki acknowledges that such behavior is seen as "controversial" among social conservatives. )

ROFLMAO

[libodem]

3. I think Chimps are a lot meaner

Bonobos have many behaviors that are affectionate and they stimulate each other for fun. Seems like they mount each other for dominance, too. Look them up.

[Sarah Ibarruri]

4. I guess it's because fundies are not interested in hearing that all animals on the planet are

related and because fundies like to pretend they don't like sex.

[longship]

7. Well, bonobos ARE sex obsessed.

That's their deal. They are also very cool animals.

Gotta love them.

[Pterodactyl]

10. The difference between a computer program that runs and one that does not...

...can be a single line of code. "Sharing" DNA does not make humans more ape-like and it does not make me think of apes as more human.

[Beachwood]

11. Welll that's an interesting analogy.

I never quite thought of DNA that way.

You realize we have about 32 million lines of DNA code, right?

And 01.3 % of that is a heck of a lot of lines of code.

[Pterodactyl]

12. Yes, it is a lot of information.

[Tien1985]

13. Yeah. All it takes is one out of place semicolon

and blip--a whole different function.

[RainDog]

14. k&r n/t

[Bonobo]

16. Who? Me? nt