Laws Of Nature... ?

[z3ro]

First law of nature(of life) :  reproduction OR  self-preservation?

[p_2001]

reproduction... although it is done with the motive of survival of specie.. not individual..

[z3ro]

I also thought so... but....
dOes this also apply for humans?


you know.. the use of contraception..etc..

[kateus]

I think humans are more for self preservation these days. Though everyone still wants sex, which you could say is the body telling them to reproduce, they do prevent reproduction for many reasons, such as they want to be successful later in life and not be dragged down by a kid. So they put their self in front of reproducing, which shows that survival of their genetic line isn't as important.

[Deque]

On the other hand: Most parents would give their life for their children.
So I think reproduction.

[p_2001]

see... I will answer this again with a question of my own... you and your child are on a gunpoint about to be shot...  what will you do.. use the child as a shield or shield the child with your body?

[kateus]

I think this is a little different than reproduction though. What I understood from biology was that the need for reproduction was to get your DNA into the future generation. But us as human's keep our children and care for them, so then you aren't sacrificing yourself in order to keep your genetic line going, it's more of because  you care about the person. It's like you might sacrifice yourself for your spouse, but that's not reproduction, just caring for other people.

[Kulverstukas]

Reproduction goes in hand with self-preservation. A balance must be kept - too much is bad, but too little is also bad. Right now it is too much.

[Deque]

I think this is a little different than reproduction though. What I understood from biology was that the need for reproduction was to get your DNA into the future generation. But us as human's keep our children and care for them, so then you aren't sacrificing yourself in order to keep your genetic line going, it's more of because  you care about the person. It's like you might sacrifice yourself for your spouse, but that's not reproduction, just caring for other people.

But why do people care that much about their children? I think that strong feeling towards the own children is programmed into us, so we can reproduce. Otherwise people wouldn't go through all the trouble.
Even the society itself has some rules, that are imho for reproduction, like "children and women are the first to be rescued".

[techb]

But why do people care that much about their children? I think that strong feeling towards the own children is programmed into us, so we can reproduce. Otherwise people wouldn't go through all the trouble.
Even the society itself has some rules, that are imho for reproduction, like "children and women are the first to be rescued".

Not to sound sexist or anything, but I think the rule of women and children first is because they are weak and defenceless. Going back in time women and children where protected from raids and pillageing because they simply couldn't defend or fight back.

The question asked needs to be more specific. Self preservation of our individual selves, or as a human race? If the latter of the two, then reproduction and preservation are the same thing. Reproduce to preserve.

[z3ro]

Not to sound sexist or anything, but I think the rule of women and children first is because they are weak and defenceless. Going back in time women and children where protected from raids and pillageing because they simply couldn't defend or fight back.

The question asked needs to be more specific. Self preservation of our individual selves, or as a human race? If the latter of the two, then reproduction and preservation are the same thing. Reproduce to preserve.

Actually by self-preservation I meant survival of our individual self....


So why do people commit suicide? This suicidal bahaviour is observed only i humans(as far as i know  [size=78%])[/size]
A human being would prefer to die rather than suffer...??!

[techb]

I  watched an ant commit suicide before. He jumped off the porch hand rail.

[Deque]

Not to sound sexist or anything, but I think the rule of women and children first is because they are weak and defenceless. Going back in time women and children where protected from raids and pillageing because they simply couldn't defend or fight back.

I don't think this is the reason. Why would a society prefer to rescue the weak individuals instead of the stronger ones in the first place if not for reproduction? They could as well have decided, that the fittest should be rescued, because they have a better chance to survive everything that follows. But they didn't, because women and children are more valuable for keeping the society alive than men (one man can make a lot of women pregnant, it is much harder to keep a good reproduction rate if you have more men than women)

So why do people commit suicide? This suicidal bahaviour is observed only i humans

Suicide is no normal behaviour, it is done because of various kinds of illness.
That also happens to animals. I.e.: http://voices.yahoo.com/real-life-mind-controlling-parasites-571319.html

While some mind influencing parasites eventually kill their hosts by devouring them or leeching off of them to the point of death, others sometimes kill their hosts by forcing them to commit outright suicide. One such parasite is a nematomorph hairworm by the name of Spinochordodes tellinii, which is a worm that actually invades the bodies of various insects, including grasshoppers. When this parasite finds a way into a host, it spends most of its time feeding on the host's insides. Upon growing to a certain length, the parasite then causes the host to committ suicide by "compelling" it to jump into a nearby body of water to drown itself.

[z3ro]

Suicide is no normal behaviour, it is done because of various kinds of illness.
That also happens to animals. I.e.: http://voices.yahoo.com/real-life-mind-controlling-parasites-571319.html

most cases of suicide in humans are NOT due to any illness or parasite of any sort, Right?

[Deque]

most cases of suicide in humans are NOT due to any illness or parasite of any sort, Right?

Parasite - no.
Illness in generall - yes. Depression is an illness, isn't it?