Bacteria, new opinions, old “wrong” opinions…

levi-strauss

Levi Strauss said that people have a tendency to believe that newer thoughts are always better and more correct than older ones.

And this is totally but totally wrong.

bacterial-colonies-agar-plate-flickr-xtinabotIn the old days we thought that species were constant and unchangeable. Now we (think we) “know” they are not. Take for example bacteria or viruses, which change in a fast pace [1] in order to respond to our bacteria-fighting medicine. Right? Wrong! Because even if bacteria change, they STILL REMAIN that specific bacteria! As tapeworms have remain unchanged for almost 250 million years now [2], maintaining a recipe which has proved successful, many other species also remain unchanged (see crocodiles or tortoises for example).

READ ALSO:  Cancer, germs, scientific prejudice…

Yes. Species do change!

But besides the mechanism of change, there is also a mechanism which tries to maintain species the same! Discovering the first, does not have to make us believe that the latter is obsolete or no longer valid…

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