[Mehrbod]

من کتاب ساعت ساز نابینا رو خوندم, داوکینز توی این کتاب بیشتر به انتقادات پاسخ میده ولی درباره ی فرگشت و چگونگی کارکرد آن برای یک شخص ناآشنا با فرگشت توضیحات زیادی وجود نداره, برای آشنایی با فرگشت و کارکرد آن کتاب ساعت ساز نابینا گزینه ی خوبی نیست
..

سپاس برای شناساندن کتاب‌ها.

من ساعت‌ساز نابینا را همچنان بیشتر دوست دارم، شاید بیشتر از روی قلم و نگارش ریچارد داوکینز باشد.

بویژه بخش‌هایی که از برنامه‌ریزی او در نوشتن برنامه‌های ژنتیکی آمده بود با آنکه کمابیش کهنه و قدیمی بودند، ولی خواندن آن همچنان شور و هیجان خاصی برایم داشت.

در کنار کتاب‌های بالا، من چندی پیش کتاب بسیار خوب دیگری از بیماری‌شناسی فرگشتیک می‌خواندم به نام «چرا ما بیمار می‌شویم (دانش نویِ پزشکی داروینیک)»، به نوشته Randolph M. Nesse & George C.Williams

بخش‌هایی کوتاه‌ شده از کتاب:

Soppose you are on the side of the mice in cat-mouse conflicts.
The mice say they hate the smell of a cat. It makes
them jittery and unable to concentrate on important matters,
such as food and courtship and babies.

You know of a drug that will dull the sense of smell so that the mice will no longer be
bothered by the odor of cats. Do you prescribe the drug? Probably
not.

The ability to detect cat odor, however unpleasant it may be, is a
valuable asset for mice. The presence of the cat's smell may signal the
imminent arrival of its claws and teeth, and avoiding these is far more
important than the stress of an unpleasant odor.

More realistically, suppose you are a pediatrician treating children
with colds. Colds bring many symptoms that children dislikerunny
nose, headache, fever, and malaise. Acetaminophen (e.g.,
Tylenol) can reduce or eliminate some of these symptoms.

Do you tell the parents of cold-stricken children to give them acetaminophen?

If you are a traditional physician or are in the habit of using acetaminophen yourself to relieve similar symptoms, you
probably do.

Is this wise? Consider the analogy between acetaminophen
and the drug we were considering for the mice.
Like the smell of a cat, fever is unpleasant but useful. It is an adaptation
shaped by natural selection specifically to fight infection.

MECHANISMS TO ATTACK INVADERS

vertebrates in general, and mammals in particular, have
amazingly effective immunological defenses that are in
essence a system of carefully targeted chemical warfare.

Cells called macrophages constantly wander the body
searching for any foreign protein, whether from a bacterium, a bit of
dirt in the skin, or a cancer cell. When they find such an intruder, the
macrophages transfer it to a helper T cell, which then finds and stimulates
whichever white blood cells can make a protein (called an antibody)
that binds specifically to that particular foreign protein (an
antigen).

Antibodies bind to antigens on the surfaces of bacteria,
thereby impairing the bacteria and also labeling them for attack by
specialized larger cells. If the antigens persist, say during a continuing
bacterial infection, they stimulate the production of ever more of the
cells that make that specific antibody, so that the bacteria are
destroyed at an ever-increasing rate. Whatever is recognized as a
properly functioning part of the body is permitted to remain. All
else-disease organisms, cancerous tissue, organs transplanted from
other individuals-is attacked.

How does the body recognize cells as its own? Each cell has a molecular
pattern on its surface, called the major histocompatibility complex
(MHC), which is like a photo ID card. Cells that have a valid
MHC are left alone, but those that have a foreign or missing MHC
are attacked. Interestingly, when cells are infected, they transport
protein from the invader to the MHC, where it is bound. Like individuals
with obviously fake ID cards, such cells are priority targets
for the killer cells of the immune system. The adenovirus, a common
cause of sore throats, has found a way to get around this defense. It
makes a protein that blocks the ability of the cell to move foreign
proteins to the MHC. In essence, it prevents the infected cell from
signaling that it has been invaded.

خواندن این کتاب را به کسانی که با فرگشت آشنایی دارند ولی می‌خواهند دانش (کاربردی) خود را بگسترند، پیشنهاد می‌کنم.

آشنایی با مکانیسم‌های سرشتین و طبیعی که ما به غلت در پی درمان کردن هستیم و دانستن چگونگی آسیب رساندن به خودمان (از میان
برداشتن تَب زمانیکه سودمند است؛ خپه (خفه) کردن واکنش‌های پدافندی در برابر آلرژی‌ها؛ خوردن خوراک و غذاهایی که سودمند نیستند) و .. بی‌اندازه سودمند و بدردبخور است.



پ.ن.
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