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Volume 4 of V: The Last Man - SAFEWORD ~ the three main characters Yorick, geneticist Dr. Alison Mann and Agent 355 are plodding along I-40 through the American Mid-West, one foot in front of the other.
Yorick and 355 pause mid-conversation as the good doctor blurts out: "pygmy shrews".
She then explains that pygym shrews just became extinct owing to their life span and the time elapsed since everything on the planet (with the odd exception of Yorick and his monkey) with a Y chromosome dropped dead due to yet unknown reasons.
She then lists other animals which would be falling off the evolutionary radar in short order.
The chapter proceeds to veer into whatever mid-adventure the writers have planned for the trio at this point in the story, but what stuck with me was the death of pygmy shrews.
I woke up this morning....still thinking about extinction and marvelling at the complexity of this story ~ beyond the obvious political, psychological and social aspects that the writers are grappling with.
So what if all the rats die, or birds, or cats and dogs? Who needs sheep, pigs, cows and chickens?
Humans can survive on a vegetarian diet? Right?
But what of the insects that pollinate food plants, let alone anything else?
Nature will adapt. Nature always does. But humans have evolved with plants and it's host of supporting organisms in a symbiotic relationship and whatever the enviromnent is down the road ~it certainly isn't going to be easy...even if they do manage to clone humans.
Fascinating and thought provoking stuff.
Yorick and 355 pause mid-conversation as the good doctor blurts out: "pygmy shrews".
She then explains that pygym shrews just became extinct owing to their life span and the time elapsed since everything on the planet (with the odd exception of Yorick and his monkey) with a Y chromosome dropped dead due to yet unknown reasons.
She then lists other animals which would be falling off the evolutionary radar in short order.
The chapter proceeds to veer into whatever mid-adventure the writers have planned for the trio at this point in the story, but what stuck with me was the death of pygmy shrews.
I woke up this morning....still thinking about extinction and marvelling at the complexity of this story ~ beyond the obvious political, psychological and social aspects that the writers are grappling with.
So what if all the rats die, or birds, or cats and dogs? Who needs sheep, pigs, cows and chickens?
Humans can survive on a vegetarian diet? Right?
But what of the insects that pollinate food plants, let alone anything else?
Nature will adapt. Nature always does. But humans have evolved with plants and it's host of supporting organisms in a symbiotic relationship and whatever the enviromnent is down the road ~it certainly isn't going to be easy...even if they do manage to clone humans.
Fascinating and thought provoking stuff.
calm