20 MAY 2011 by ideonexus
Evolutionary Arms Race Produces Tall Trees
Look at a single tall tree standing proud in the middle of an open area. Why is it so tall? Not
to be closer to the sun! That long trunk could be shortened until the crown of the tree was splayed
out over the ground, with no loss in photons and huge savings in cost. So why go to all that expense
of pushing the crown of the tree up towards the sky? The answer eludes us until we realize that the
natural habitat of such a tree is a forest. Trees are tall to overtop rival trees - of the same and ...As they compete for sunlight.
19 MAY 2011 by ideonexus
Animals Can't Be Perfect in all Characteristics
We can expect bodies to be well equipped to
survive, but this does not mean they should be perfect with respect to any one dimension. An
antelope might run faster, and be more likely to escape a leopard, if its legs were a little longer. But
a rival antelope with longer legs, although it might be better equipped to outsprint a predator, has to
pay for its long legs in some other department of the body's economy. The materials needed to
make the extra bone and muscle in the longer legs have to...Energy and materials put into one characteristic means less for another; therefore, species must find balance.