3 ms·

This is why modern Identity politics which is based on the notion that human behaviour is entirely a social construction is so silly. Proof that even your memor

This is why modern Identity politics which is based on the notion that human behaviour is entirely a social construction is so silly. Proof that even your memory is guided by your DNA.

tovej 6y ago
Biological mechanisms like this are not directly related to human behaviour patterns. This is a pretty big non sequitur. And a conflation of "identity politics" with sociology. And a misrepresentation of sociology!
- jungletime 6y ago
  But thats like saying legs aren't related to human behaviour patterns. Without the DNA for legs, I proposition, humans would act very differently.
  - wizzwizz4 6y ago
    Correct! Likewise, without the DNA for a brain, humans would act very differently. Please give an example of a human without the DNA for a brain.
  - DecoPerson 6y ago
    It’s not black or white. How we behave is obviously heavily influenced by our initial DNA but there’s clearly a heavy influence on “mind” from external factors. It has been shown (proven?) that we can grow beyond things like “identity politics.”
f6v 6y ago
To be fair, chromatin architecture is highly dynamic. The epigenetic marks are established throughout your life as a response to environment.
- daemonk 6y ago
  There is a big difference in definition depending on what part of the term "epigenetics" you emphasize. Emphasizing "epi" means you are looking at architecture/mechanistic of chromatin and how they affect function. Emphasizing "genetic" means you care about whether the mechanism of interest is actually inherited. There are some mechanisms that could perhaps be inherited through maternal contribution of enzymes involved in creating the marks. But trying to imagine how somatic epigenetic markers can be transferred to germ cells and then somehow transmitted to offspring past the epigenetic erasure that happens during fertilization is tough. It is definitely an area of research that I think is actually more interesting than studying the mechanisms themselves.

This is why modern Identity politics which is based on the notion that human behaviour is entirely a social construction is so silly. Proof that even your memory is guided by your DNA.

tovej 6y ago

Biological mechanisms like this are not directly related to human behaviour patterns. This is a pretty big non sequitur. And a conflation of "identity politics" with sociology. And a misrepresentation of sociology!

jungletime 6y ago
But thats like saying legs aren't related to human behaviour patterns. Without the DNA for legs, I proposition, humans would act very differently.
- wizzwizz4 6y ago
  Correct! Likewise, without the DNA for a brain, humans would act very differently. Please give an example of a human without the DNA for a brain.
- DecoPerson 6y ago
  It’s not black or white. How we behave is obviously heavily influenced by our initial DNA but there’s clearly a heavy influence on “mind” from external factors. It has been shown (proven?) that we can grow beyond things like “identity politics.”

f6v 6y ago

To be fair, chromatin architecture is highly dynamic. The epigenetic marks are established throughout your life as a response to environment.

daemonk 6y ago
There is a big difference in definition depending on what part of the term "epigenetics" you emphasize. Emphasizing "epi" means you are looking at architecture/mechanistic of chromatin and how they affect function. Emphasizing "genetic" means you care about whether the mechanism of interest is actually inherited. There are some mechanisms that could perhaps be inherited through maternal contribution of enzymes involved in creating the marks. But trying to imagine how somatic epigenetic markers can be transferred to germ cells and then somehow transmitted to offspring past the epigenetic erasure that happens during fertilization is tough. It is definitely an area of research that I think is actually more interesting than studying the mechanisms themselves.