Human Diversity and Race Week12

Introduction

The lecturer expresses enthusiasm for the semester leading up to a discussion on human diversity and race, highlighting its importance in light of current world events such as the failure of the referendum on the voice, recent elections, and attacks on DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion).

Safe Space and Course Overview

The lecturer emphasizes the need for a safe space to discuss race and human diversity, acknowledging the difficulty and potential for clumsiness in such conversations. The goal is to discuss the history of racism and race science in clear terms, encouraging compassion and patience in tutorials, as some of the viewpoints will be surprising to students. The lecture explores how history, language, technology, and ancestral DNA influence the diversity seen today.

Exam Reminder

The final exam details are reiterated, with a reminder of the two-day window for completion. It’s emphasized that the quizzes, readings and lectures have prepared the students for the final exam.

Lecture Focus: Human Diversity and Race

The core objective of the lecture is to examine the genetic diversity of humans and the concept of race, questioning whether popular understandings of human diversity align with genetic evidence. The lecture will also explore the origins of racial classification systems across different cultures.

Politics of Race and Course Origins

This lecture is described as the most important, stemming from observations of inadequate discussions around race in Australia. It addresses contemporary issues, including the rise of white nationalism, Christian nationalism, anti-Semitism, and the university’s response.

Addressing Student Concerns

The lecture aims to address questions from students who are exposed to content on YouTube, such as racial disparities in IQ scores and theories about Neanderthal DNA. It will also cover the prevalence of diseases and psychological conditions in different groups as potential evidence of fundamental differences.

Macquarie University Incident

An incident from 2005 is recounted, involving a professor at Macquarie University advocating for a whites-only immigration policy, which led to bomb threats. The lecturer expresses concern over the lack of counter-arguments against the professor's views at the time.

Race Realism

The lecturer identifies the arguments as part of a broader "race realism" movement, influenced by Richard Lynn's work on race and intelligence. Mentioning that he used to receive unsolicited copies of Lynn's books. Lynn's work suggests differences in IQ scores among different populations. For example, IQ{China} = 105, IQ{Europe} = 100, IQ{Africa} = 67, IQ{Aborigines} = 62. Aboriginal people in his study had an average mental age at adulthood of eight.

Critique of IQ Tests

The lecturer questions the plausibility of these claims, asking whether an eight-year-old could survive in the Kalahari Desert, and criticizing IQ tests for merely measuring the ability to take tests, which is influenced by education and practice (Flynn Effect).

Flynn Effect

The Flynn effect shows that IQ scores increase over time. In Dutch military recruits, IQ scores rose by seven points per decade. In Spain, it was observed to be six points per decade. Kenya showed a staggering score increase of 26 points on IQ tests.

What IQ Tests Measure

IQ tests do not necessarily measure innate intelligence, but test-taking skills acquired through education. The lecturer illustrates that different cultures may value different skills and knowledge. Bushman IQ tests would emphasize tracking, finding water, hunting, and gathering food, skills for which a Westerner would likely score poorly.

Test Validity

The lecture brings up a question of test validity. Specifically, what does a test actually measure? Innate intelligence? Educational opportunity? Or skill in testing?

Crime Statistics and Human Diversity

Politicians often cite crime statistics to justify racial differences. The origin of human diversity is questioned, considering the limitations of standardized tests and IQ scores.

Genetic Diversity

Human genetic diversity is vast; two unrelated people may have approximately 3,000,000 different alleles, but these differences account only for about 0.1%. Although there is a degree of variance of geography or group, most genetic diversity is found within groups rather than between them.

Genetic Markers

It's difficult to find genetic markers for ethnic differences. There is overlap in genetic variation between Africans, Europeans, and Southeast Asians. Some traits vary together, especially between groups like skin color, hair form, nose shape, and blood type, for which there may be some genetic assortment. The genetic distance breakdown with migration.

Cavalli-Sforza's Data

Analysis of Cavalli-Sforza's data regarding human genetic diversity reveals that Africans are the most genetically diverse population, with the rest of the world's genetic variation being a subset of African variation. The pattern of genetic diversity reflects the order in which groups migrated out of Africa. For example, Australians and Papuans are genetically distinct, not because they’re a different race, but because they are geographically isolated.

Understanding Race

Essentialism posits that races possess distinct characteristic traits, that there are racial populations each with their own traits, and that different races each have their own separate genetic pools. Contrastingly, cultural anthropologists view race as a social construct projected onto reality, leading to real differences. Race-based beliefs can influence biology by shaping treatment and exposure to environmental factors.

Racially Essentialist View

A racially essentialist view suggests that there are separate, distinct white, black, and Asian races. However, genetic evidence does not support essentialism, suggesting that most genetic variation overlaps, except that African populations have a greater total pool of genetic diversity.

Genetic Traits and Ancestry

There are some traits and genetic markers associated with specific origins (e.g., Neanderthal DNA in European/Asian populations). If a society believes in race, it shapes biology through treatment and environmental exposure.

Out of Africa Theory

About 100,000 to 150,000 years ago, all modern Homo sapiens were in Africa, meaning all genetic variation was in Africa at that time. The population that colonized the rest of the world was a genetic subset of the original diversity. This means the further you get from Africa, the smaller the subset of genetic variation.

The Most Similar Species

We're all African. We see ourselves sorted into racial categories, but in reality our species has multiplied swiftly and travelled extensively, adapting to varied circumstances, with more similarity than difference, and the adaptations we have undertaken in response to those varied circumstances, and those that have been shaped by human pressure, are some of the most prominent features.

Visual Representation

Humans display less genetic diversity than chimpanzees. Humans are geographically invasive, recently arisen species (smaller selection of genetic information among a vast population of people). Species without abundant genetic diversity is not as resilient to selective pressures to one that does.

Reproducibility

Humans can reproduce with each other, regardless of origin. Racist theories about the inability of different races to reproduce are false (e.g., the term mulatto). Genetic mixing may occur despite racism and legal barriers.

Clines

When traits are seen in genetic code, there tend to be a higher percentage expressed from certain geographical areas. As one moves away from these, those numbers gradually drop off. There is no boundary between red-haired and non-red-haired people, nor is there a hard boundary in skin pigment. Frequency varies from high point of concentration as one moves away.

Pigmentation of Skin Tone

Donald Trump at times looks darker than Barak Obama. Even within the same isolated group, different skin, hair and eye coloration may be different. Pigmentation is mostly genetic, though environmental factors often play a role. Proximity to the equator tends to have a high correlation to skin tone.

Teeth and Hair Shape

Indigenous people in Australia, have distinctly blonde hair - a common genetics trait of the Western desert indigenous people. Incisor (teeth) shape differ within racial groups. The high points may be caused by founder effects.

Blood Type

Blood types have no inherent geographical links. They are linked to how endemic historical diseases worked on the human body. It can also have statistical links to founders effect as well.

What Race Is

A biological category, not necessarily representing our true reality. Subspecies have not been isolated to have given us hard group of people. It's a concept used to think of something as innate. It is a more accurate scientific representation to describe something as a folk category.

Medical Education

Racial categories used in medical education affect diagnoses, even doctors' questions. Doctors are affected and influenced by their racial classification processes. These are even sanctioned in textbooks.

Origin of Western Racial Thought

Carl Linnaeus, a father of modern taxonomy, divided humans into four subtypes Americanus, Asiaticus, Africanus, and Europeanus. He also proposed the homoanthromorphy category, which included troglodytes, satyrs, hydras, and phoenixes.

Creation Museum

The Creation Museum explains that races today result from the Tower of Babel. Words such as Caucasian were given a basis for the racist historical theories of Caucasian race. These originate in the Caucasus and describe it to be seat of lightness, beauty, and handsomeness of ancient Germans. In early tests, the size and shape of heads, noses and faces were used to justify the claims that Africans are closer to chimpanzees.

Sample Sizes

Often the sample sizes were too small to fully generate a scientific theory. In that sampling, groups in Nigeria and Sweden would be sampled and compared. Jonathan Marks, an anthropologist, said that all of this is "technologically and statistically very sophisticated, but it's epistemologically primitive." It doesn't understand what it's testing, or it's extreme. There are clines at work, and a test will always give a difference result.

Cultural Classification

Cultural and classification systems are not a scientific reality with our populations. It depends much more on socioeconomically significant groups than upon data.

Australia (Lebanese)

Often, concepts carry different meanings. The term "Lebanese" in Australia is different from what it may mean in Lebanon. Irish ethnicity held an important historical ethnic component in Australia. The United States proliferates categories, counting 19 Latino categories on the census for the classification of their peoples.

Social Status and Ethnicity

Social status depends upon social, cultural and historical significance of ethnic groups. Some groups are stigmatized. Different genetics depend on different social status and ethnicity. The idea of hypodescent is that one ancestor who is a minority will cause one to become a member of the minority group.

Japanese Racial Theory

Japanese racial theory focuses on purity. Distinctions focus largely upon Japanese citizens and outsiders, especially on Koreans. The Burakumin people are indistinguishable, but are considered outcasts within Japanese racial theories.

Brazilian Racial Theory

Brazilian theory depends largely upon appearances, and less on ancestry. The types one might see on the survey are nearly indefinite, with around 500 types that have been reported by some anthropologists. A person may be considered different colors from different families. Also, society affects the color. You may be of a darker skinned individual and rise in power and see yourself to be enlightened.

Australia Today

Unfortunately recent statistics have shown there are significant statistics that are worrying. Three quarters of Australians are still negatively affected by racial sentiment. The deaths in custody by indigenous people are high even 20 years after such a Royal Commission. Many of these deaths came along with the failure of the voice. A large portion report that they have more mental health problems since the failure. There is the anti-Muslim biases as well and the rise of antisemitism. An overwhelming amount of Australian multiculturalism is still uncomfortable and there exists both racism and a perpetuation of racism.

What Does this Suggest?

Racial thinking has taken hold of differences and caused these very differences to have impact for each individuals health and how they are socially categorized. Differences exist, and the challenge is to recognize the overlaps. In spite of these differences, the racial and racist structures still determine, affect and change how we live.

If Not Race, What Is It?

Adaptation of bodies shows how our ancestors did adapt. Cultural behavior can shift. Phenotypic adaptation can emerge. Lactase expression can also appear organically, depending on access to milk when one comes of age. Genetic traits may also be passed along. Our bodies may be adapted better than our actions. We have a greater capacity through intellectual properties (ex. Size of brain).

Skin and Body Shape

Skin and body shape are influenced often by climate and geographic location. Darker skin colors correlate with proximity to the equator, with the only exception to that rule being in the Americas. The average watts per second of ultraviolet radiation is correlated to levels of melanin in one individual.

Types of Melanin

There are several forms. Black eumelanin is found in non-Europeans. Brown eumelanin tends to be less common. Pheomelanin colors the skin and hair reddish (lips, nipples and genitals), and it becomes more pronounced or common in women. Sun will exacerbate its carcinogen potential and effect the body negatively as a result. Humans are dark because we have primates with fur. Our ancestors at some point lose hair and skin became darker.

Dangers of UV Light

The dangers come through too much ultraviolet radiation. Folate is decreased and leads to spinal cord malformation for embryos. This leads to decreased sun cancer and risks to parts that are exposed to radiation. It also decreases impacts on the immune system so one is not as prone to getting sunburned or having too much UV impacting the body. Humans have become darker to offset these things.

How Did Light Skin Arise?

Our primates have a tendency to have light colored skin as they did not have a need to have hair. The body needs sunlight to metabolize vitamin D. Without it there maybe bad bone formation a condition called rickets. People with darker skin are often found to have a deficiency and may also affect male fertility. People may be more open to sunbaths, but certain parts may become more carcinogenic as a result. Blue-green eyes may be an adaptation to the lower light found in northern countries or higher pressure to get more ultraviolet light.

Genetic Evidence Suggests

There is genetic evidence that supports that European and Asian populations are light colors from different mechanisms and points to convergent evolution. Some light skin is a result of sexual selection. Inuit population kept dark skin, from the reliance of vitamin D from fish in their diets. In Australia the "slip, slop, slap" caused issue because of Vitamin D. Regardless, there is a very high instance of cancer so people need to be cautious.

Allen's Rule of Proportion

Allen's Rule proposes that the body type depends on a shorter surface in proportion to kilograms as a result of short limbs big torso. The long limbs of Nilotic Africans were adapted as a result of heat. The bigger one's body, the better is one likely going to preserve heat. A person may blame failure to control their diet on ancestor not as a result of lack. Additionally, there is sex to keep in mind small bodies lead to adaptation on the environment to adapt at various means.

BMI and Lactose

The ability to have people drink milk depends by where the ancestor originated from. Lactose tolerance for adults is a result of tolerance as a Baby. This normalizes when we steal milk as a group that's a Western approach. When lactose may have been very detrimental we wouldn't have had those effects. Lactose intolerance isn't a defect but more about technological and changes on the ways which selection is more pronounced. Coevolution in the animal population is a change technology. Technology from domesticating animals leads to natural selection. 3% lead to significant adaptations on survival for those families. People with high tolerances happen to have cows, ships and goats at every corner. It's linked to all technological changes where those cattle and other animals exist.

Malaria and Sickle-Cell Anemia

Sickle-cell anemia occurs primarily in parts of Africa. It also occurs in various other places, like South Asia, and represents a prime example of racial correlation. Sickle-cell anemia is linked more fundamentally to malaria than to race. One particular gene leads to greater resistence to malaria. This mutation has emerged 4 different times. The constant red blood cell defecation leads to a very painful condition. Some areas aren't as badly affected so as a result selective change isn't very powerful. Over several generations sickle cell increases resilience to malaria. This creates the polymorphism and balancing factors that the body needs. It may increase based on climate changes, even when malaria spreads (by 2050 the eastern coasts of Australia may even be affected).