Essay about two related chapters from David Sloan Wilsons Evolution

About two related chapters from David Sloan Wilsons Evolution for Everyone - Essay Example Besides attempting to provide a plausible explanation for the origin of life, evolution also heavily impacts the behavior of species. Evolution holds the key to understanding the behavior of all species including the bizarre infanticide tendencies of particular species. The third chapter of Wilson’s Evolution for Everyone lays foundation for â€Å"the power of natural selection thinking† (Wilson 19). To demonstrate the power of this line of thinking, Wilson dwells on the socially undesirable practice of infanticide. Since the concept of natural selection is driven by the need to have off springs, then killing the off springs is automatically out of question (Wilson 19). However Wilson reveals that there exist certain environmental situations which make infanticide to be desirable. According to Wilson such possibilities like uncertain parentage, poor offspring and lack of sufficient resources create justification for infanticide among some species. In the fourth chapter of the text, Wilson proceeds to justify what he termed as the â€Å"third way of thinking† in the previous chapter. The third way of thinking is just but a simple phrase that Wilson uses to urge the reader to be flexible enough in their thinking to accommodate even the most remote of thoughts that indeed natural selection is responsible for the formation of the world as it currently is through contributing to all the behavioral outcomes of all the species in the universe. While still pursuing possible reasons that make infanticide to be a rational outcome, Wilson eventually derive his proof from the behavior of burying beetles. The Prove It chapter explains the possible reasons behind the actions of infanticide by a species – the burying beetles. Wilson reveals that this specie opts to regulate its brood size purely based on the food resources that are available. The parent beetle opts to kill some of its young ones so as to ensure that the rest c an comfortably thrive. This is one of

Degrees of Homicide Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Degrees of Homicide - Assignment Example dad saw the kidnapper the next day in an interview and in sudden rage, the dad grabbed a revolver from a nearby officer and killed the kidnapper (â€Å"Manslaughter†). Another example is when Dan comes home to find his wife in bed with Victor. In the heat of the moment, Dan picks up a golf club from next to the bed and strikes Victor in the head, killing him instantly (â€Å"Manslaughter: Voluntary†). Involuntary manslaughter involves the death of a human being, but without the intent required for murder, comprising elements such as (1) the killing of another human being was unintentional; (2) the death occurred either during the commission of an unlawful act not amounting to a felony or as the result of criminal negligence; and (3) the defendant’s unlawful act or negligence caused the death (Wallace 8). For instance: two kids were street-racing, one lost control and hit a crowd of spectators. Two of the spectators were killed. The one who lost control was charged with involuntary manslaughter (â€Å"Manslaughter†). Another picture is when a driver is running a red light and then crashing into another car, which kills the other driver (â€Å"When†). Negligent manslaughter is a new type of homicide that the Model Penal Code developed in response to the fact that the voluntary and involuntary manslaughter are difficult to apply in certain situations. It is the unintentional killing of another human being caused by the negligence of the defendant including elements that (1) the killing of another human being was unintentional; (2) the death resulted from a negligent act by the defendant; and (3) the defendant’s negligence caused the death (Wallace 8). A case of negligent manslaughter is: D, an anaesthetist, failed to observe during an eye operation that the tube inserted in V’s mouth had become detached from the ventilator, causing V to suffer a cardiac arrest and eventually die (â€Å"Cases†). A different circumstance is when D pointed a gun at V, without