HUMAN EVOLUTION AND THE SPECIAL JEWISH GENETIC
POPULATION
An Evolutionary Trajectory for a
Particular Genetic Population That Exhibits a Propensity for Abstract Reasoning,
and Speculation as to Its Future
Abstract
The trajectory of hominid
evolution is illustrated by bipedality, encephalization and investment in childcare.
Our unique ability to reason abstractly,
expressed by using complex tools, eating cooked meat, language, wearing
personal adornments, cave painting, etc., distinguishes us as modern human
beings. On a different level, Jews also
have distinguished themselves as a special people by their ability to reason
abstractly.
Abstract thought is the basis for innovation and
creativity. Innovation, initiative and intelligence are
keys to this endeavor. It has been so throughout 50,000 years of modern human existence. Abstract thought is a defining characteristic
of human beings.
It is also the characteristic that defines Abraham’s family, the Jews.
During their 4,000-year history, Jewish people have given
rise to a specific genetic population probably through the mechanism of
inbreeding. A proof of a genetic
population is the manifestation of positive and negative genetic outcomes. Within the Jewish genetic population, there
is a disproportionate number of positive and negative genetic outcomes.
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Genetic Outcomes
A positive genetic
outcome for Jews is that they show an unusual propensity for abstract
reasoning. This characteristic may be
possibly modified by cultural adaptation.
A negative genetic outcome is the number of genetic diseases associated
with Jewish medical patients. As this population evolves and medical science
makes advances, Jewish genetic diseases will diminish. The trajectory for Jews in regard to their
capacity for abstract reasoning is open to question.
I developed an appreciation for some of the concepts
associated with population adaptation and evolution when witnessing a marathon
race in Tiberias, Israel several weeks ago The lead runners who lined up at the
forefront of the pack were from Kenya or Ethiopia. These were some of the fastest people in the
world, men who could complete a 26 mile course in a little over 2 hours,
running at a 5 minute/mile pace. Looking
at these amazing runners, I thought what a special gene pool. Over a period of time an adaptive mutation or
mutations have enabled these men to outrun everyone else on the planet…and it’s
happening before my eyes, an example of evolution through selective adaptation,
literally in motion.
On the bus ride back to Nahariya, my home, I got to
thinking about my own gene pool and that of my fellow Jews. I asked myself whether or not there is such a
thing as a “Jewish genetic population”.
All human beings carry a couple of dozen or more mutant genes, and that
the chances of a mutation expressing itself in an offspring are one in four
when you mate with an individual who also carries that same mutant gene. Most mutations, unlike that for the Kenyan
and Ethiopian runners, are not favorable.
If there is a genetic Jewish population, it should express itself in an
unfavorable mutant gene outcome. Likewise,
perhaps there is an expression of a favorable mutant gene outcome.
Arguments In Support of a Jewish Genetic
Population
Is there such a thing as a genetic Jewish population,
keeping in mind that Jews represent only 0.2% of the world’s population? Political correctness and the issue of racism
aside, I think the answer is probably yes, and that it has to do with
inbreeding.
History of Jewish Inbreeding
Historically Jews have been isolated, originally by
geography, then by culture and religion.
All of which leads to inbreeding and a resultant preponderance of mutant
gene expression. It is not a wild
speculation that throughout Jewish history, Jews married, if not a close
relative, then within their tribes or villages or with a fellow Jew. If there is a 4,000-year history of
inbreeding, then there should be evidence of some sort of mutant gene
expression.
Biblical Proofs
for Jewish Inbreeding
The Bible is not a science book; nor is it a history book;
the bible is a religious book. That
having said, my ancient Jewish ancestors married close relatives: Abraham
married his niece, Sarah; Isaac married his cousin Rebecca, as did Jacob marry
his cousins Rachel and Leah. Even Moses’
father Avram married Jocheved his aunt.
[As an aside: While not Jewish, and for whatever reason, Charles Darwin
married his first cousin, Emma.]
A Modern Day Conjectural Proof
Jumping from biblical times to modern times, many
jurisdictions in the USA do not permit marriages between close relatives. However, Rhode Island allows Jewish people to
marry a close relative. Although Rhode
Island does not permit marriages between close relatives, Rhode Island does
make an exception for Jewish people.
Rhode Island allows Jewish uncles to marry their Jewish nieces if they
are part of a community, such as Orthodox Jews, for whom such marriages are
permitted (Rhode Island General Laws: §
15-1-4 Marriages of kindred allowed by Jewish religion). I conjecture that if inbreeding between Jews
was only practiced in antiquity, and not any longer today, Rhode Island would
not have this statute on its books.
Genetic Studies
There is recent published study which suggests that male Diaspora
Jews from Europe, Northwest Africa, and the Near East resemble
each other more closely than they resemble their non-Jewish neighbors. An Archaeo-geneticist,
Martin Richards, found that 50 to
80 percent of DNA from the Ashkenazi Y chromosome (whatever that is) originated
in the Near East. This supports a theory that when Jews were dispersed from
Israel they largely did not intermarry with non-Jews when they settled in
Europe.
However this finding is tempered by another study which
concludes that about 2,000 years ago when the Roman Empire dispersed Jews from Israel
significant portions of the male population married female converts. This conclusion notwithstanding, it would
appear that the Jewish population at large has a unique gene pool.
Genetic
Disease as a Proof of Inbreeding
Most mutations, unlike that for the Kenyan and Ethiopian
runners, are not favorable. This is
borne out when you look at the quantity of genetic diseases that adversely
affect Jewish families. I went to the
website of the Jewish Genetic Disease Consortium and saw listed thirty-six
serious diseases that are more prevalent in either Ashkenazi (Jews from
communities in central and eastern Europe) or Sephardic (Jews originating from
communities in Spain, Portugal, North Africa and the Middle East) Jewish
populations than in the general population at large.
Caveat: It should be pointed out,
however that there may be a sampling bias in terms of Jewish genetic diseases because
Jewish populations have been studied more thoroughly than most other human
populations.
Abstract Reasoning
One definition of abstract reasoning is the ability to
analyze information and solve problems on a complex, thought-based level. The hallmark for modern human beings is the
ability to engage in abstract reasoning.
It is not easy to demonstrate the evolution of abstract reasoning. To do this you need artifacts. For example, a 100,000-year-old sophisticated
“paint workshop” was found in a cave located in South Africa. The
cave contained fossil artifacts that demonstrate the ability of early humans to
source, combine, and store substances in order to make paint. This represents a benchmark in the evolution
of complex human cognition. However,
where there are no artifacts, it is much more difficult to hypothesize, let
alone prove, evidence of human abstract reasoning.
Abstract Reasoning As
Evidenced By the Jewish Genetic Population
Using the Book of Genesis as a
proof, we see that 3,800 years ago, Abraham, somehow or other, put together
that the world is governed by one deity, a supreme deity. This is the revolutionary
concept that we call monotheism. What
makes this leap in abstract thought even more amazing is that in contrast to
how “gods” were perceived at that time, Abraham’s God was invisible and
incorporeal.
About 500 years later at Mt.
Sinai, the Jewish God commanded His people, recently freed from centuries of
slavery, where they were worked like animals, to take one day off a week. He called this day the Sabbath, an unheard-of
abstract concept then and to some extent even now.
Humans who could grasp these
ground-breaking abstract thoughts had to be unique. I call them the “proto-Jews”, and through
inbreeding they have developed into a special population, albeit perhaps
tempered by culture, an extraordinary genetic population.
The Disproportionate Jewish Contribution to
Humankind
If you are not impressed by a proof from the Bible, the try
this approach:
Leading off with
Karl Marx, Jesus, Albert Einstein and Sigmund Freud, one has to wonder: What is going on here? These four individuals are hardly linked religiously or culturally, but inasmuch as they all share a common Jewish heritage, perhaps they also share a particular positive “Jewish gene” for abstract thought.
Consider if you will the Nobel Prize. It was first awarded in 1901 for achievements in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature, and Peace. An associated prize in Economics has been awarded since 1969. Nobel Prizes have been awarded to over 850 individuals of whom at least 20% were Jews, although Jews comprise less than 0.2% of the world's population. Overall, Jews have won a total of 41% of all the Nobel Prizes in economics, 28% of medicine, 26% of Physics, 19% of Chemistry, 13% of Literature and only 9% of all peace awards.
Richard Dawkins who is a biologist, author and atheist expressed
his bewilderment at the disproportionate amount of Nobel prizes won by Jews in
an interview with the New Republic (October, 2013), saying he is “intrigued by”
the “phenomenally high” number of Jewish laureates.
If one was to take the time to research comparable Jewish
achievements in entertainment, politics, business, chess and religion, I am
sure that a similar disproportionate record would be demonstrated.
Does the
Trajectory of Evolution Bode Well for the Jewish Genetic Population?
As to Jewish genetic diseases, the outlook is favorable: as
we advance into the future, medical science will find ways to decrease or
eliminate entirely Jewish genetic diseases.
However, there is a genetic downside. It is called anti-Semitism, and the Jewish
population should seriously consider its implications. Simplistically, if you link the cause of
historical anti-Semitism to envy of the have-nots, then matters will worsen and
get out of hand. The reason for this is
as humankind proceeds into the future, there will be more Jews and therefore
more attendant jealousy which will culminate in more racial hatred, probably
not only directed against Jews, but against any minority that is viewed as an
achiever. It would be of interest to see
and analyze how other distinct genetic populations have fared in their
evolutionary trajectory, and whether they have prospered, assimilated or have
become extinct.
October 7th brings this concern into focus. Thus
far Jewish innovation and initiative have not saved the day.
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