Re: Grendels was: FT-Fighters and SG-aliens

G'day Andy,

 >The funny thing is, the other day I
 >was wondering how an evolved race
 >that had prodigious numbers of children
 >would cope.

If humans are any indication, have less. There's a strong relationship 
between the removal of stress, an increase in longevity and a drop in 
births. There's even evidence that the drop in human fertility
(especially 
male fertility) has as much to do with the effects of crowding and high 
population densities as it does pollution, diet etc. There's also the 
possibility that the numbers would remain high but the adults would
impose 
a new selection process. Even into this century some tribes used 
infanticide as a means of population control.

 >Normally, this is a survival
 >mechanism in that the assumption is,
 >only a small percentage would survive.
 >If you evolved to intelligence and generally removed
 >yourself from predation, what do you do
 >with so many children?

Depending on the form of reproduction there may well be predation (and 
other pressures) that will still require the species to produce millions
so 
a few get through. For arguments sake, lets say a broadcast spawning
fish 
is the sentient species in question. Its quite possible they would still

produce larvae in the same way and then only educate those that settled 
back as small fish.... if that was the case they'd still require the 
production of millions of young to guarantee a certain number of adults.

 >How do you teach them advanced knowledge?
 >Do you maintain some sort of "strongest
 >survive" mentality, maybe an education
 >system where non-performers are killed?

Or set to other tasks. They may well develop a social system, much like 
wolves and certain fish where only the alpha pair reproduce. Similarly
they 
could end up in a society like the mole-rats or hive insects where the 
majority are workers supporting a single (or few) sexually reproductive 
individuals.

Cheers

Beth

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Elizabeth Fulton
c/o CSIRO Division of Marine Research
GPO Box 1538
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