Rainy Day Reflections on Biology

In Red Bluff, the rainy season is from October to May.  Yesterday, and for the next two days, a Pacific storm has arrived from the West to provide a steady rain, a brisk wind, and cooler temperatures.  Over two inches have fallen already at our home.  

The wild grasses are all green, and most deciduous tress have lost over half their leaves.  A lovely time of the year - even more colorful than spring.  

November - Quotes and Poems

I have been reading the fascinating book "The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution" (2010) by Richard Dawkins.  Scientific reasoning, fact finding, predictive powers, logic, confirmed theories, the scientific community, documentation, research, analysis, pure and applied science, testing ... are subjects that always attract my keen attention.  I have read a number of books by Professor Dawkins - a first rate thinker and writer.  He is also an influential contemporary atheist, and I share is views on religion.  

The human body is over 60% water. 

The typical adult human body consists of about 60 trillion cells (6x10^13). 

There are about 60 trillion atoms in a human cell.

Inside the nucleus of each cell are the DNA genetic
codes that govern growth, structure, and reproduction.
As these DNA strands are modified or reshuffled
during millions of reproductive cycles then variations occur over time.

The earthly timeline is measured in hundreds of thousands
of millions of years for these variations to occur
and some to survive and multiply.

Fascinating!
Amazing!
Complex!

[Reprinted from my 11/20/2016 Blog Post.]