Genetic Differences Among Humans - Essay Example

Race and Genetics: Genetic Differences Among Humans Race and Genetics: Genetic Differences Among Humans Human genetics has brought about a social revolution across the globe largely over the understanding, of the concept of the human race. "Race is a biological reality and not just a cultural construct."(Jensen) Various theories converging to the point of origin of hominids from apes refer back to about five million years ago. This is supported by the research on connections between current genetic data and the evolutionary past. ( Cavalli, S.) In 'The Great Human Diasporas: The History of Diversity and Evolution.' (1995). Addison. Cavalli, S. has summarized his research of 40 years on the connections between current genetic data and the evolutionary past. The evidence collected by him has led to the belief that modern humans originated in Africa and The Middle East and then spread out. The researchers from the University of Uppsala, Sweden, (BBC News) have confirmed the findings through genetic study of 53 humans from diverse geographic and ethnic backgrounds, that the roots, of modern day humans are in Africa. This was the first study in which the genome is being used in sufficiently large number of individuals to come up with strong evidence supporting the Out of Africa theory. "Present day inequalities between so called racial groups are not consequence of their biological inheritance but products of historical and contemporary social, economical and political circumstances." (American Anthropological Association) American Anthropological Association. 'Statement on Race.' (1998, May) The statement justifies that the racial groups were created due to present day inequalities. With various points of views expressed, there is a classical confusion about the reality of racial categories, or the relevance of racial identification on the basis of genetic study. A genetic factor that has in recent years become a subject of raging debate in education is 'intelligence quotient' (IQ). In an effort to give race a value for differentiating humans the use of intelligence tests has been introduced. In the United States, during World War I, the military conscripts were put through intelligence tests, which revealed that blacks were at an average 15 points below the level of whites. Since then it has been a subject of debate whether these differences have a genetic basis. 'The high habitability of intelligence and the difficulties of formulating credible environmentalist explanations' have been pointed to explain the difference. Jensen, A. Robert. Intelligence, Race and Genetics. (1999). West View. The arguments by Jensen that intelligence is largely due to hereditary, including racial heritage raised a lot of discussion. Some of the explanations given by the environmentalists include, bias in the tests, the adverse social and economic living conditions of the blacks, discrimination and prejudice and the historical legacy of the slavery, which has demoralized blacks. (Flynn, 1980) Flynn, J.R., Race, IQ and Jensen. (1980). Routledge & Kegan, P. Sarich (2004) made cogent arguments that white race and racial differences are real. He said that the race as a concept is older than the Colonial Europe. Differences in intelligence correlate to the concept of race. Sarich, V. The Reality of Human Differences. (2004). West View Press. Rushton has divided the population in three groups. Africans and Negroes in one group are referred as blacks, Europeans as whites and East Asians and Mongolians in one group as Orientals. He believes that the race differences start in the womb. The blacks are born earlier and grow quicker. They also achieve a faster sexual maturity, family stability and population growth. Rushton, J. Phillip. Race, Evolution and Behavior. A Life History Prospective. (1997). Transaction Publishers. Rushton describes studies that show a consistent pattern of human racial differences in characteristics such as intelligence, brain size, genital size, reproductive potency etc. The Orientals on the other hand have the largest brains and IQ. The difference in the race is both due to genes and environment. Dispassionate readings on the association of IQ with degree of European ancestry, for members of black population, and convergence of black and white IQ in recent years lend no support to the hereditarianism interpretation of the black-white IQ gap. A hundred years of research has established that East Asians and Europeans average higher IQ than Africans. The average IQ of an East Asian is between 101 and 111, Caucasoid population (North American, Europe and Australia) is between 85 and 115, and African population living in North America, South of Sahara and in the Caribbean have an average of 80. (Lynn, 1997) Lynn, R. Race Difference in Intelligence: An Evolutionary Analysis. Quarterly, Spring (1991), Vol 31, Issue 3. Lynn has brought out comprehensive data on the characterization of races based on their IQ. There is sufficient evidence available, which indicates that the IQ gap between the blacks and the whites has reduced considerably from 15 points to 10 points. This cannot be because of genetics. The difference between our grandparents and us cannot be generic; it is the change in the environment. There is another school of thought, which argues that the intelligence, race and genetics are based on folk taxonomies rather than scientific analyses. They argue that race is a social construction with no scientific definition. Thus studies of the relationship between race and other constructs may serve social ends but cannot serve scientific ends. No gene has yet been conclusively linked to intelligence. So attempts to provide a compelling genetic link of race to intelligence are not feasible at this time. (Sternberg, Grigorenko, Kidd.2005.) There is not enough evidence to strongly support the idea that the people of any race are more or less intelligent than those of any other race. Sternberg, J. Robert. Grigorenka, L.Elena. & Kidd, K. Kenneth. Intelligence, Race and Genetics. (2005, January). American Psychologist. No gene has yet been conclusively linked to intelligence. The intelligence science is still an imperfect science. Using meta-analysis, when all studies are taken together, genetics appear to determine roughly half the intelligence and environments the other half. A news article in Medical Research News on "Race Difference in Average IQ are largely Genetic' (2005) shows that scientific evidence based on magnetic resonance imaging of the brain size has concluded that race differences in average IQ are largely genetic. Human species has no races in the biological sense. There is no single form of intelligence. It is the formal education that helps individuals develop a variety of cognitive abilities. Race is socially constructed and not based on genetic differences. This view is challenged by the genetic research and endangers the pursuit of racial equality. Though the present trend indicates that Out of Africa theory justifies the spread of humans into various continents, a lot of experiments will have to be undertaken in the genetic fields to arrive at some definite conclusion. Intelligence has formed a backing for the division of mankind into races. The intelligence is still not perfect and needs to be developed. The genes dealing with intelligence have yet to be discovered, but the study must continue to prove that we all have a common ancestor. The governments have to pass executive orders (State of Maryland Executive Order) to ensure a discrimination free environment and ensure provision of equal employment opportunities irrespective of ancestry, color, creed, genetic information, race, sex etc. Works Cited American Anthropological Association. Statement on Race. (1998, May) The statement justifies that the racial groups were created due to present day inequalities. Cavalli, S., The Great Human Diasporas: The History of Diversity and Evolution. (1995). Addison. Cavalli, S. has summarized his research of 40 years on the connections between current genetic data, and the evolutionary past. The evidence collected by him in his interaction with pygmies, movement of population during spread of agriculture, and the study of Human Genome Project has led to the belief that modern humans originated in Africa and The Middle East and then spread out. Chicicchia, B. Kenneth. Race and Intelligence. Encyclopedia of Psychology. (2001). Adconian Media Group. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_g2699/is_0005/ai_269900597 Flynn, J.R., Race, IQ and Jensen. (1980). Routledge & Kegan, P. Genetic Study: Roots Humans in Africa. (2000 December 06). BBC News. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/1058484-stm Jencks, C. & Phillips, M. Why do Achievement Gaps Exist (1998). Brookings Institution. www.learningpt.org/gaplibrary/text/scholarsprovide.php The article suggests that the Americans have been aware of a gap in the black-white test scores in IQ since World War I. No satisfactory explanations have been given nor have they suggested ways to close this gap. Jensen, A. Robert. Intelligence, Race and Genetics. (1999). West View. The arguments by Jensen that intelligence is largely due to hereditary, including racial heritage raised a lot of discussion. The book is based on three principles he believed in. One, IQ is real, biological and highly genetic. Two, race is a biological reality and not just a cultural construct. Three, the cause of 15 points average IQ difference between the blacks and the whites is largely genetic. Lynn, R. Race Difference in Intelligence: An Evolutionary Analysis. Mankind Quarterly, Spring (1991), Vol 31, Issue 3. www.geocities.com/race_articles/lynn_race_diff.html Lynn has brought out comprehensive data on the characterization of races based on their IQ. He uses generic analysis to define the different races and then demonstrate that there are differences in the test scores. He goes on to explain the test gaps with the application of evolution theory. He has also brought up a discussion on race denial, geographical groups and clusters. Race Difference in Average IQ Are Largely Genetic. (2005). News. 20 Apr 2005. Psychology, Public Policy and Law. American Physiological Association. www.news-medical.net/id=9530 Rushton, J. Phillip. Race, Evolution and Behavior. A Life History Prospective. (1997). Transaction Publishers. Rushton gives out incendiary theory that separates races of human beings evolved by different reproductive strategies to cope with different environment and those strategies led to physical difference in brain size and hence in intelligence. He describes studies that shows a consistent pattern of human racial differences in characteristics such as intelligence, brain size, genital size, reproductive potency etc. Rushton, J. Phillip. & Jensen, A.R. Heredity, Environment And Race Difference in IQ. Psychology, Public Policy and Law. (2005, June). Vol II. No 2. http://taxa.epi.umn.edu/mbmiller/journals/pppl/200504/2/302-2html#c20 Sarich, V. The Reality of Human Differences. (2004). West View Press. www.skeptic.com/eskeptic/05-02-18.html#raceskeptic State of Maryland, US. Executive Order 01-01-2007-09. www.gov.state.mdus/executiveorders/01.07.08Fairhiring.pdf Sternberg, J. Robert. Grigorenka, L.Elena. & Kidd, K. Kenneth. Intelligence, Race and Genetics. (2005, January). American Psychologist. www.apa.org/journals/releases/amp60146.pdf No gene has yet been conclusively linked to intelligence. Chart Showing How Criteria Requirements Were Met Read More