----- Original Message -----
From: "Adrian Teo" <ateo@whitworth.edu>
To: "'glenn morton '" <mortongr@flash.net>; "'ASA LISTSERV '"
<asa@calvin.edu>
Sent: Friday, March 31, 2000 3:57 PM
Subject: RE: Preprogrammed?
> Glenn,
>
> The twin studies anecdotes you provided are indeed fascinating and
> eye-catching. However, the data is alot more complicated than that, and
many
> researchers are concern about this being misinterpreted as genetic
> determinism. the concordance rates between MZ twins are typically in the
.50
> range for many personality traits, while DZ twins are in the .30 range,
> suggesting a significant genetic component (see Plomin, Chipueer, &
Loehlin,
> 1990). A correlation of .50 is actually moderately low, considering the MZ
> twins share 100% genetic material. That amounts to explaining only 25% of
> the variance in any trait. Any puzzling finding is that in adoption
studies,
> the concordance rates for biological siblings (50% in common) and adoptive
> siblings (0% in common) show very small differences only, which again
> suggest that genetic influence is small, but significant, with regard to
> complex behaviors in humans.
I am aware that .5 is a poor correlation. Do you have a reference for what
you are saing here? And even if the data you have shows at least some
improvement in correlation for monzygotic twins.
>
> What does it mean to choose one course of action over another? Suppose we
> use the illustration of choosing a can of Pepsi or Coke. To say that one
is
> free, does it imply that one is able to make an purely arbitrary and
> indepedent choice with no connection to one's past history? That notion of
> free will is something I find hard to accept. But if the choice is not
> independent, then past or present forces are influencing the decision -
and
> if so, how is it free?
The point with the twins anecdotes is that the two twins DIDN:T share a
history except that of coming from the same womb. Why should two twins share
the trait of wanting to walk backwards into the ocean? I used to have a guy
who worked for me who engaged in the same ritual everyday at quitting time.
He looked at certain places in his room, felt his pockets, reached up to
turn out the light, then felt his pockets, walked back into his room and
then finally he would turn out the light and leave. Compulsive? yes. Where
did such compulsions come from? I have been hopelessly addicted to science
since as young as 4 and my mother told me it went back even further. Where
did this compulsion come from? My middle son displayed musical talent as
early 2 years old. He is now working in a church as a music director-intern.
I certainly didn't teach that 2 year old music. My youngest really didn't
care so much for music that young. So, how free were my choices, the choices
of my employee, my children? Not all choices are really free--they are in
part determined by our heredity.
glenn
Foundation, Fall and Flood
Adam, Apes and Anthropology
http://www.flash.net/~mortongr/dmd.htm
Lots of information on creation/evolution
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