Evolution and Illness
Sharon Moalem’s primary goal in Survival of the Sickest is to explore the evolutionary history behind certain illnesses, diseases, and genetic disorders. Many of the chapters center around the question of why, if these diseases and disorders are harmful, evolution has not simply selected for individuals who do not have them. Moalem uses the book to illustrate how many inherited conditions still exist because they historically helped fight against more dangerous and life-threatening conditions…
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Interspecies Connectivity and Adaptation
Survival of the Sickest focuses on the interconnectedness of all life on Earth. Moalem examines not only how humans pass down genes from one generation to the next, but also the constant and parallel evolution of other types of beings—plants, animals, bacteria, viruses—with which we share the planet. Even though many humans might believe that we live and evolve relatively independently of other organisms, in reality we frequently cause adaptations in other beings and vice…
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Environment, Ancestry, and Race
Just as the evolution of other organisms has had a major effect on human evolution, the environment in which people live also plays an important role in making certain genes more advantageous. Whether it is a population’s exposure to sun, the climate in which one’s ancestors lived 10,000 years ago, or different social customs that have developed in particular areas of the world even in the past few centuries, our ancestors’ environment has been a…
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Genetic Expression, Acquired Traits, and Mutation
As Moalem takes readers through the different factors that can affect evolution and the human genome, it appears at first that the cliché phrase “biology is destiny” might be true, as various evolutionary pressures select for advantageous genes. Yet in the later chapters of the book, Moalem makes a point of illustrating the ways in which DNA can adapt at early stages of an individual’s life. Even though one’s genetic information might be inherited from…
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Interdisciplinary Science and Research
Moalem’s book draws on a wide array of scientific research and studies—crucially, though, Moalem doesn’t simply focus on studies about genetics and evolution. Instead, he demonstrates how research on a completely disparate topic might actually provide essential insight into our genetic development. And because there is so much that we still do not know about how our genes have developed, he argues that we need to continue asking questions and conducting research in all…
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