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>Citation very much needed. I'm sure that there are studies but let's be honest. This is just common sense. I'm sure that if you replace Japanese people with

>Citation very much needed. I'm sure that there are studies but let's be honest. This is just common sense. I'm sure that if you replace Japanese people with Berbers from North Africa, Japan will look very different.

fluoridation 4y ago
So you're saying that if you took 50 million Berber babies (for the sake of argument let's suppose that this is possible) and gave them to Japanese families, the next generation in Japan would be significantly more Berberish? Or are you saying that if you took 50 million adult Berbers and deposited them in Japan that Japan would be very different? If you're saying the latter: what role is genetics playing in that scenario? If you're saying the former: no, culture is not a genetic trait. Obviously.
- areyousure 4y ago
  In case anyone is curious, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dual_inheritance_theory https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dual_inheritance_theory mentions the canonical example of cultural and genetic coëvolution: lactose (in)tolerance. In particular, in the given hypothetical, one might predict a change in the dairy culture in Japan if suddenly the population was significantly more tolerant of lactose. (I assume the usual example of lactose intolerant is chosen because it appears some people are otherwise religiously opposed to considering the relationship between culture and genetics.)
  - fluoridation 4y ago
    >one might predict a change in the dairy culture in Japan if suddenly the population was significantly more tolerant of lactose. It might change or it might not. Just because a dietary option is open to you doesn't mean you're going to take it. Nothing prevents me from eating sushi, and I still don't, and the reason is obvious: I didn't grow up eating it, so it isn't part of my normal diet. It's one thing to say that culture and genetics are not completely independent. It's another to say that culture is heavily influenced by genetics, to the extent that it's a hereditary trait.
- bee_rider 4y ago
  I definitely don’t think culture is all that influenced by genetics in any great sense (I mean if everyone is lactose intolerant there won’t be a great milk-based food tradition but that’s sort of incidental). But if you were to drop 50 million foreign babies of visibly different ethnicities into families in any country, they’d of course end up with very different upbringings as visible minorities.

fluoridation 4y ago

So you're saying that if you took 50 million Berber babies (for the sake of argument let's suppose that this is possible) and gave them to Japanese families, the next generation in Japan would be significantly more Berberish? Or are you saying that if you took 50 million adult Berbers and deposited them in Japan that Japan would be very different? If you're saying the latter: what role is genetics playing in that scenario? If you're saying the former: no, culture is not a genetic trait. Obviously.

areyousure 4y ago
In case anyone is curious, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dual_inheritance_theory https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dual_inheritance_theory mentions the canonical example of cultural and genetic coëvolution: lactose (in)tolerance. In particular, in the given hypothetical, one might predict a change in the dairy culture in Japan if suddenly the population was significantly more tolerant of lactose. (I assume the usual example of lactose intolerant is chosen because it appears some people are otherwise religiously opposed to considering the relationship between culture and genetics.)
- fluoridation 4y ago
  >one might predict a change in the dairy culture in Japan if suddenly the population was significantly more tolerant of lactose. It might change or it might not. Just because a dietary option is open to you doesn't mean you're going to take it. Nothing prevents me from eating sushi, and I still don't, and the reason is obvious: I didn't grow up eating it, so it isn't part of my normal diet. It's one thing to say that culture and genetics are not completely independent. It's another to say that culture is heavily influenced by genetics, to the extent that it's a hereditary trait.
bee_rider 4y ago
I definitely don’t think culture is all that influenced by genetics in any great sense (I mean if everyone is lactose intolerant there won’t be a great milk-based food tradition but that’s sort of incidental). But if you were to drop 50 million foreign babies of visibly different ethnicities into families in any country, they’d of course end up with very different upbringings as visible minorities.