Do you think this is such a simple question? But the whole scientific world is guessing.
In the article “Why does man need monogamy?” close questions were considered, and there is still no final scientific summary, in general. But the real, extremely heated debate is still underway on a fundamental topic: why does man need sex at all?
The fact is that in nature there is no such prescription, and you don’t get any special reasons for a day with fire. But the reasons for not having sex in a person are more than enough. Not to mention all the infections we know (and are there still unknowns?), There is a strict scientific fact. Those organisms that shy away from “fulfilling conjugal duty,” that is, which have asexual reproduction, have many advantages. And much less energy is spent, while the offspring are twice as much …
One of the most common theories about the nature of sex was called very sweetly – “The Queen’s Theory (Hypothesis)”. As you know, the character of the book of Lewis Carroll gave Alice sensible advice: to run as fast as possible, while remaining in place.
The paradox in biology is read as follows: gene exchange allows you to better defend your body, including from any parasites and viruses, while maintaining your genome in the best “salable” and healthy form. Many scholars have dealt with this theory. There is also the famous book by Matt Ridley “The Red Queen” (1993), devoted to the evolution of sexuality.
But the term itself was invented by another person. He developed this theory in his research. I want to tell you more about him. Not even because his contribution to science is universally recognized – he is one of the greatest theoreticians of the 20th century, the founder of a new interdisciplinary science – sociobiology, the holder of many scientific awards and degrees.
But even more interesting and unusual was the life of this man. The British scientist William Hamilton was born in Cairo (his parents worked there), already in England he became interested in science as a boy. When he was 12 years old, he tried to experiment with explosives (which remained with his father-engineer after the war). The result is an explosion, a miraculously saved life, scars all over the body and amputation of the fingers of the right hand.
Nevertheless, he studied well, was engaged in scientific work, made a number of brilliant discoveries in biology and genetics, many of which we have heard about one way or another (about the intelligibility of females when choosing a male, about attachment to offspring, and much more).
But his scientific activity was often accompanied by exploits in the spirit of the best natural scientists of the past. In Brazil, where he worked, he was stabbed when he refused to obey the robbers. He jumped into the Amazon and poked a hole in his sinking boat with his finger (left hand). In Rwanda, where there was a terrible civil war, he studied ants and was captured as a spy. And when the notorious Nature magazine refused to accept two of his articles, he went to Congo, where the civil war was also going on, to prove the validity of his new theories. There was an epidemic of malaria, from which, already in Britain, Hamilton died in 2000. He bequeathed his body to be buried in the forests of Brazil …
Returning to his theory of the Red Queen, it should be noted that she is still quite considered one of the possible ones. But the main and very strong objection – yes, of course, you need to have sex, but why so often? Why do many animals and people resort to this seemingly simply genetic-protective measure with such a high frequency? And they want even more …
The theory was calculated computer (University of British Columbia in Canada). Mathematics rigorously proved that there are not so many parasites to justify such lovingness. Mathematical modeling showed that sex is extremely rare, on occasion, so to speak, and multiply in a completely non-contact way. So scientists spread their hands and reported that the importance of sex in wildlife will have to be proved somehow differently.
Or, nevertheless, include psychologists in the research … Add emotions, combine with chemical reactions …
But we don’t need to prove anything to ourselves, is it? We ourselves know all that we need. With all my gut.