Are we different from Cyanobacteria?

Recently there was an article in the press, that at the origin of human sins, which are thought to be mortal, lie simple chemical processes in our organisms. Spanish biologist John Medina in the book “The Genetic Inferno: Inside the Seven Deadly Sins" explains the origin of human imperfections through the specifics of human nature and the presence of specific genes. For example, “each person has something like consciousness-alarm clock, which works like a clock and sends signals to our brain".

It's this inner "alarm clock" that structures the timetable according to which our bodies live. The program that turns this alarm clock on and off is written in our genes. They are also the ones to carry responsibility for our lack of desire to work, idleness and despondency. Greed - this obtrusive, but natural fight for property rights and this right being taken away from you. The center of stinginess has been found. It has also been explained, what section of the human brain is excited in the presence of money.

The list goes on. Accordingly, there is nothing bad about sloth or greed. They're natural. It is useless to try and resist these sins, because in our misdeeds are echoes of our animal instincts, which, even now live in the human consciousness.

What an excellent, all justifying, convenient theory!

However everything has its price. An excuse such as this also. It so happens that the person himself doesn't need to be accountable for anything. He is fully ruled by his genes: when he sees money, he becomes stupid from greed; his "alarm clock" doesn't go off, and he doesn't bother to get up and do something - resulting in boredom. A gene called caM-kII gets itchy, and a person gets a sudden boost of pride. And lets not even start on lust. So a human lives like an animal. Like an amoeba. I'll even go as far as to say that a human lives like the most ancient organic life form on Earth - the blue-green algae known as Cyanobacteria.

Well, almost everything fits! Cyanobacteria live on their own and together in groups, the can form balls, crusts and bushes reaching in size up to 10 cm (little villages, settlements and towns). Some of them are capable of movement similar to sliding (like a person skiing). They multiply. Men also. They live practically everywhere - on the surface of the earth, in hot springs where the water temperature can go up to 80℃, on the snow - in polar regions, and in the mountains. Their greatest numbers are found in fresh waters, where they destroy fish and everything else. Man also mastered entire earth's surface and is destroying everything, too.

The activity of Cyanobacteria led to the first global ecological catastrophe in the natural history and to the dramatic change in biosphere. It was “the creator” of what-we-know-now oxygen-containing atmosphere on Earth. Man also brought biosphere to the edge of catastrophe (or will bring in the very near future, since he has these genes for greed and envy). There are, of course, some differences, but they're insignificant. We shouldn't contain ourselves - after all, we only live once.

On the whole, everything in humans comes from nature, and "what's natural, cannot be ugly" (Rus. proverb). Except that there is no space left for man in this picture. There is a proud, lazily-idle, greedy, lustful, envious, voracious, somewhat psychotic animal.

Thank you, Spanish scientist! We no longer need to worry about our imperfections and can finally have a good nights' sleep. Especially seeing as there must also be a gene responsible for that. I'm wondering - is John Medina conducting any research into the existence of a gene for conscience?


A Russian version of this article can be found here.