Terrence Deacon - Molecular Biology: Genes and DNA

What is a gene? Molecular biology, genome, genetic engineering, as well as genes, define our century of biology. But what do these terms actually signify? How to understand each term precisely?

Terrence William Deacon is an American neuroanthropologist. He is currently Professor of Anthropology and member of the Cognitive Science Faculty at the University of California, Berkeley.

Closer To Truth, hosted by Robert Lawrence Kuhn and directed by Peter Getzels, presents the world’s greatest thinkers exploring humanity’s deepest questions. Discover fundamental issues of existence. Engage new and diverse ways of thinking. Appreciate intense debates. Share your own opinions. Seek your own answers.

[asmr_cookies]

Doctor Deacon is amazing, you need a biology or molecular biology background in order to understand what he is saying!

[TheTroofSayer]

I am thrilled to see Terrence Deacon in a CTT interview, whom I have cited in some of my own work. I anticipate, however, that this interview might come across as obscure for a majority of viewers, who, unacquainted with the semiotic theory of CS Peirce, wouldn't know where to start. Let's see if I can provide some broader context:
*Association* : The notion of a molecule as sign implies that a molecule is *associated* with a context, like the presence of other molecules. Viewers can get a sense of how this plays out at the inter/intra-cellular level, in XVIVO’s gorgeous simulation, “The Inner Life of the Cell Animation” (XVIVO Scientific Animation, 2011) (Youtube prohibits the posting of links in their comments sections, but the video is easy to find with the above title and XVIVO in the search terms);
*Biosemiotic theory* : This notion of molecules as signs is an extension of the biosemiotic theory of Jakob von Uexküll, in synthesis with the semiotic theory of CS Peirce;
*Quantum contextuality* : I anticipate that Bell's theorem, and Kochen & Specker (1967), should be playing a more significant role in this notion of molecules as signs.

[niktariahi]

How amazing that a concept in a field, in this case, language, can ignite ideas about a completely different flied, here, biology!
I the idea sound very nifty to me. I'd like to hear coment and criticisms on it.Thanks alot👌👌

[sujok-acupuncture]

Biology : Automated natural intelligence...
Source.. no one knows...
The guest speaker was so good at explaining in depth information. Great thanks to him.

[frederickleung]

DNA is structure and function all in one, basic principle of biology. Biology, chemistry and physic all in one.

[peweegangloku]

I'll eagerly look out for the empirical test for this very fanciful explanation about the origin of life.

[isatousarr]

Understanding the complexities of genes and DNA has revolutionized molecular biology, providing insights into everything from genetic inheritance to the mechanisms of evolution. However, I'm curious about the current advancements in gene editing technologies like CRISPR-Cas9. How are these tools being used to study gene function, and what ethical considerations arise as we gain more power to alter DNA? Additionally, how do we differentiate between genetic mutations that are naturally occurring versus those that might be induced for research or therapeutic purposes?

[angeleverable]

Humanity is DNA's way of expressing itself. We are the greatest vessel for replication DNA has found. But, DNA is a fickle mistress and will dump us over if she finds a better replicator. The analogy to language is perfect. Language speaks through us. Both DNA and language work on the principle of addiction.

[rc]

2:57 enzymes are complex molecules that have already been structured by other rational processes that interpolate with functionality other elementary building blocks of organic nature...

[gettaasteroid]

(9:17) "broken open again" aha! we can't be sure that diploidy behavior wasn't there all along, the naked replicator model might as well be one of Aristotle's kyrogamic sea creatures

[jayachandranthampi]

Genes are Environment "Impressed" & Environment are Genes "Expressed". Its like encoded & decoded Information (Through a Medium). This gives a potential "Gap" state (like Space between cells, neurons etc) which actually is the medium / man as well, to be Animated from a suspended state - finally to Expand / Entropy.

[SRAVALM]

Listening to this a few times over makes me really appreciate Platonics even more and is intimation of how extremely brilliant these men were. A lot of the old philosophers, too, were also scientists. It seems to me this man is entirely hinting at a higher sphere of reality without directly stating it.

[ghaderpashayee]

This video is more science than philosophy! I couldn't understand it properly 😅

[MrKuzder]

Ok, im looking for help.
If what he said is true i any way this should mean that the universe would be filled with such building blocks. We would find such on earth, in the void, the moon, mars etc.
Or there is something I do not see?
Thank You

[aaronrobertcattell]

the energy is not free it is coming from somewhere

[tedgrant]

Another mystery that we can't explain is rain
It comes down from Heaven and doesn't go back !
(Isaiah 55:10)

[JungleJargon]

Sooner or later people are going to have to face the fact that the continents broke apart in the days of Peleg, 100 years after the global flood. An asteroid hitting the earth could have been a major contributing factor along with centrifugal force of the spinning Earth which caused the continents to slide north as a result. South Africa appears to be where the South Pole was before the breakup.

* It’s the reason for the glacial striations stamped on top of bedrock like a gigantic (broken) seal covering South America, Africa, India and Australia from glaciers that were moving from south to north from the time when the continents were all still connected to Antarctica at the South Pole. Of course this was after all the sediment layers from the global flood were deposited.

* It’s the reason fossils including Spinosaurus and sediment layers line up between South America, Africa, Madagascar, India and Australia. (The fossils and sediment layers were deposited first and then the continents broke apart, 100 years after the global flood.)

* It’s also the reason there are many frozen animals and forest ecosystems buried by tsunamis from the rise of sea levels in North America and Siberia as the continents were being shoved into the Arctic from the centrifugal force after the earth broke apart, possibly due to hardening of the sediments and other contributing factors.

* It’s the reason animals made it to South America from Africa and humans did not make it there since they were still trying to build the Tower of Babel before the breakup of the continents. However jaguars were separated from leopards, greater grisons were separated from African honey badgers, tapirs were separated from …tapirs, otters were separated from …otters and all of the other animals arrived at various isolated places around the world before the breakup of the continents.

* It’s the reason why the lifespan of humans was cut in half *a second time* since the global flood from a less than 500 year lifespan to a less than 250 year lifespan. It was a time of dramatic changes.

* It’s the reason why the meaning of the word Peleg in Hebrew that meant “divided” turned into “as (where) the waters flow” (in between the continents) in the later Aramaic form of Hebrew. That’s quite an impressive but understandable change in meaning.

* It’s the reason people isolated into family groups and began speaking their own language. (Everything that happens is of course ultimately by the power of God.)

* It’s the reason for the formation of the Marianas trench and other subduction zones. The potential for movements of the plates and continents is very likely considering the volumes associated with them. It wouldn’t take much geologically speaking to get them to move although they have reached a place of equilibrium at this point.

*Last but not least, it’s the reason penguins never made it to the Arctic since there was no land there for them to breed in the Arctic. …And now you know the rest of the story, the whole story.

[Jinxed]

This, if accurate, just moves the question of "why" back a notch. And any solution to that will do the same.

[SRAVALM]

Having real clarity of mind and illuminated ability in evaluation is kind of rare. Honesty is good – but when ones notions are wrong, it becomes futile – truthfulness is great in it grasps the very unknown itself and seeks to explore this, and as this inquiry proceeds forms a geometrical equation revealing the connection of all things. There are amazingly brilliant men in their respected fields, but many of them fail to see the relations. Many persons with some authority do believe that scriptures are one thing, science another, and physics is other than metaphysics, and field theory a completely different thing altogether. Interesting how technology evolves, biology evolves, everything involves....but their minds remain trapped.
I look for the man of illuminated thinking because it indirectly reveals that he has attained great clarity in mind, and this requires not only time and effort but a yearning in thy heart.

[saliksayyar]

Chicken and egg problem . Too many givens, no real mechanism how it started. Enzymes are complex, they are unable to replicate themselves. They are tools of the cell, but where is the machine tool factory and the plans?
I hope he gets to hear himself.