An Enquiry into Evolution

This past Friday I attended the lecture on evolution by Professor Kjar and I found it to be very enlightening. From a biological standpoint, evolution is the change in the genetic composition of a population of living organisms throughout successive generations. This is believed to be a result of natural selection acting on the genetic variation among the DNA of individuals. Eventually this can create a completely new, independent species.

I believe in evolution and have done a lot of my own research on the subject so most of the general information on evolution Professor Kjar discussed I already knew. The most interesting part of his lecture for me was his use of ants in almost every part of the presentation. I am fascinated by the animal kingdom and I do not really know a whole lot about ants. He was incredibly knowledgeable on the different species of ants and their unique lifestyles. The facts on ants and how species of ants are different genetically was very interesting.

The most surprising part of the lecture was the digestive system of the ancient ant species he showed in his presentation. It was really surprising to learn that the adult members of the ant species cannot actually eat anything. They have to put their pupae next to the food and when the pupae feed on the dead animal the adults suck the nutrients out of their offspring. This is amazing that such a small creature that very few people ever notice can find sustenance in such a peculiar fashion. I now think of them as the deadly vampire ants.

I am definitely a person that has their beliefs based on facts of science instead of the faith of religion. Both belief systems have their positive and negative aspects, but I personally am a man of science mainly because of my own observations in life. I live on a farm that raise domestic as well as exotic animals and I have witnessed evolution and natural selection with my own eyes over the course of several years. In class we discuss evolution versus religion and I especially like the readings on Darwin and genetics that we have been reading recently. The lecture has helped me further establish my own beliefs and at the same time has given me a better understanding of the current arguments evolution and religion have with each other. Professor Kjar clearly explained some common misconceptions about evolution, natural selection, theories, and truths that are at the root of many problems religious people have with science and evolution. Overall, his lecture was entertaining, enlightening, and relevant to the topics discussed in core class and to the ideas I personally contemplate on a daily basis.

Picture taken from:http://www.freewebs.com/pddc2008/ant.jpg

Blade Runner

Blade Runner is a futuristic movie that shows our world crippled by economic and environmental exploitation, inhabited by an amorphous collection of people from different cultures. The year is 2019 and the main story is set in Los Angeles. Humanity is fleeing the now completely polluted Earth to new colonies on other planets. However, the exploration and colonization of other planets is difficult. Scientists have supposedly created advanced human clones known as “replicants” to work as a labor force off world. These replicants are not allowed on Earth because of a previous mutiny on a colony. The plot of the movie is mainly about a cop, or Blade Runner, named Richard Deckard who is forced out of retirement to eliminate several illegal replicants on Earth.

Some important questions the movie makes the audience contemplate include: What does it mean to be human, what is the difference between real memories and artificial memories, how does our environment affect us, and what are the ethical issues related to cloning? The movie offers these questions to us without always giving an answer. The culture and environment in the movie is very complex and is expertly illustrated by the amazing views and panoramic displays of architecture in 2019. The special effects and impressive landscapes of shifting color and texture are amazingly well done, especially when you take into consideration the time the movie was made. Ridley Scott directed most of this film in the early 1980s and most of the scenery was created in an abandoned parking lot. The culture is very futuristic in design with immense skyscrapers, giant televisions, floating cars, and neon colors everywhere. The culture in the movie is of a broken down, but advanced society similar to what I would picture the society in 1984 to look like. A select few like Tyrell have everything they could ever want while most of the masses live in slums and survive in the polluted underbelly of the city. This imagery suggests what a culture based on communism might look like a few decades down the road.

The issue of cloning as well as forced labor is brought up in the movie. If cloning was allowed in the same way it was in the movie then how should the clones be altered to make the issue of ethics not important? I think that if the clones were being produced identical to the originals then they should get the same rights as the original person. The replicants in Blade Runner were physically superior in every way to humans except their lifespan was four years. If the humans wanted to use the replicants as slave labor they should not have given them feelings, emotions, memories, and intelligence. Another problem in the movie is the difficulty Blade Runners have identifying a replicant from a regular human. To lessen the moral issue the clones should not look, think, or feel like us. Any sentient creature should not be enslaved to another. This is a common conclusion that Blade Runner tries to bring the audience to by the end of the movie.

Picture taken from: http://www.allposters.com/gallery.aspstartat=/getposter.asp&APNum=6129647&CID=68803241D3724357BE83079826BE3072&PPID=1&search=2003&f=c&FindID=2003&P=1&PP=1&sortby=PD&cname=Blade+Runner&SearchID=

Dr. Kapasula's Lecture on Modern Feminism

Dr. Jesse Kabwila Kapasula's lecture was intriguing and eye-opening. I learned a lot about her native country and about third world countries in general. She discussed the lack of respect third world countries receive in the global community. I knew that the world super powers ran the show in the United Nations, but I did not know that they were constantly slighted and forgotten.

Something that surprised me was the feminism present in Beyonce’s song “Single Ladies”that she showed during her lecture. Beyonce shows her pride and strength as a woman in modern times through her song. In the song she is a girl who is dealing with her ex-boyfriend and she tells all the men in America that if they like a girl they need to marry her to capture her heart. This shows the power of women in today’s society. Women make the final decision in the relationship and this shows the strength of women and the modern importance of feminism.

The most interesting aspect of her lecture for me was her connection of feminism to third world countries. I thought feminism was only strong in more modern cultures and advanced societies. I thought it was fascinating that feminism still had a hold on third world countries, even in remote parts of Africa. This notion that feminism can be found anywhere adds to my understanding of order and chaos. Feminism is a representation of order when it is in a chaotic society. It shows a unity and order among strong women and has a powerful influence in some societies.

This can tie into our discussions of Burial at Thebes. Antigone can be viewed as an example of a feminist in ancient times. She is a strong woman that is willing to sacrifice her life to uphold her beliefs. A powerful woman with a strong will, she even stands up to a king and respected, elder relative to fight for her belief. The Burial at Thebes is an old example of feminism that was rare in Greece, but has been remembered for millennium.




Picture taken from: http://www.starpulse.com/Music/Beyonce/gallery/SGY-016822/

Professor Lemak's Music and the Burial at Thebes

Social justice is the concept of a society that gives individuals and groups fair treatment and an equitable share of the benefits of society. This includes a fair distribution of rights, assets, and benefits among all members of a society. Social justice is based on the idea of human rights and equality for everyone. Moral authority is the privilege of being respected for having good character or knowledge, especially as a source of guidance and usually as a ruler.


However, the terms justice, authority, responsibility, morality, and freedom are never absolute. There is not a perfect definition of each term that can be used universally in every situation. Many factors determine the current meaning and proper use of these terms which include: opinion of the individual and society, as well as the time period, location, tradition, and current related events. The position of authority can be a very stressful and difficult job for some people. The rulers must balance social justice with their own sense of morality when they issue and enforce laws. This can be seen in Burial at Thebes when Creon is forced to make a decision that will determine the fate of Anitgone. Antigone personifies social justice and its struggle with moral authority. She believes in equality under the will of the Greek gods. That is why she felt it was necessary to bury both of her brothers despite their different actions and loyalties. Creon is the authority figure who must decide the fate of the brothers’ bodies as well as any who interfere with his word, which is law. This not only shows the balance of social justice and moral authority, but also the difficult task of creating just laws and not unjust ones by mistake.


Creon eventually concedes that his decree was against the will of the people. If he loses the respect of the people he loses his legitimacy and authority. He relinquishes his hold over Antigone and gives in to the demands of the masses after originally sentencing her to death. He takes responsibility for his actions like Antigone had done earlier when she admitted to her unlawful but just deeds. He is too late in changing his mind and tragedy results, but the main idea here is the balance of power and freedom. For any form of government to survive long it must quickly establish a balance between power and freedom. The power is ultimately in the hands of the governed whether it is a democracy or a dictatorship. This is because the people have to give up their rights and freedom to allow another person or people to rule over them. They do this to establish order and create a strong wall of protection. People in power must be watchful of the public’s opinion because the masses simply have to take back the rights and freedoms they temporarily gave up in order to destroy the government’s foundations.


Professor Lemak discussed this balance of power in Burial of Thebes, but he also used his own life experiences to show his own personal struggle with those in power and how he came to respect true leadership. He talked about his teenage years of natural rebellion in which he used music as a way to fight his parents and authority in general. He would listen to any music his elders did not like, sometimes because they disapproved of it. He saw this as a natural part of life and if a person was a real patriot they would take steps to challenge authority. It is a part of our cultural heritage to confront authority and question its methods and actions. It is not necessary for people to use violence or go to any extreme measures, but it is important that people challenge their leaders in some way to determine for themselves if those in power are worthy of maintaining it. We do this every time we fight with authority figures, vote against a government official in power, or listen to music our parents don’t like. Professor Lemak now understands some of the difficult choices those with authority have to make, but he also understands that it is our responsibility to question the decisions they make. This is all a part of the complex balance in society of moral authority and social justice, power and freedom, and authority with leadership.




Painting of Anitgone by Frederic Leighton in 1882
Painting taken from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antigone