Emily Anstett 11/10 Class Reflection

    It is interesting to consider how DNA stores knowledge in an active way.  In science classes we are taught that DNA stores all of our genetic information but that is usually the end of it.  I think it is provocative to consider how dynamic this information is.  It not only helps facilitate our bodily functions and survival but helps our interactions with the environment. Our DNA has infromation and knowledge that helps us adapt to changing circumstances and environments.  This is a critical function to our survival.  However, despite this humans are degrading the genetic diversity of the world.  This threatens our responses and interaction with the environment.  The reduced genetic diversity of the world has threatened its survival.  Part of the current environmental crisis is the result of lost genetic diversity, this can also be seen as a loss of knowledge.  I think this is important when considering the difference of western, “developed” cultures and cultures often deemed as “primitive.”  The “primitive” cultures have an understanding and knowledge that greatly differs from western understanding.  For instance, the understanding of sources of food and medicine from various plants is much greater in indigenous cultures.  However, much of the world’s genetic diversity has already been lost, so the question arises: how can we save the remaining genetic diversity of the world? I think the solution may lie in allowing genetic diversity to recover by stopping industrialized agricultural practices that promote monocropping and deplete genetic resources.  In particular, reverting “ back” to agriculture that is more in tune with how nature interacts in a complex, interconnected system.