http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Story?id=4725121&page=2
Imagine a world without men: Lauren Bacall but no Bogie, Hillary Clinton but no Bill, no Starsky or Hutch.
This isn't just an unlikely sci-fi scenario. This could be reality, according to Bryan Sykes, an eminent professor of genetics at Oxford University and author of "Adam's Curse: A Future Without Men."
"The Y chromosome is deteriorating and will, in my belief, disappear," Sykes told me. A world-renowned authority on genetic material, Sykes is called upon to investigate DNA evidence from crime scenes. His team of researchers is currently compiling a DNA family tree for our species.
Y Chromosome 'Fatally Flawed'
The Y chromosome is passed from father to son, it's what makes babies into boys. Basically the human template is a female: the Y chromosome kicks in a few weeks after conception and makes a boy. "Men are genetically modified women," explained Sykes. But unlike other chromosomes, the Y chromosome can't repair itself and will, says Sykes, disappear altogether in about 125,000 years.
"Every generation one percent of men will have a mutation which reduces their fertility by 10 percent," explained Sykes. Unlike most chromosomes, the Y does not travel through the generation in pairs, so can never repair itself from a mirror. Flaws are never repaired. "So if that goes on for generation after generation," Sykes argued, "eventually there are no functioning Y chromosomes left."So no more men … sparsely populated sports bars, Ferrari would lose the lion's share of its business, and Hooters would probably go out of business.
It's a long time, 125,000 years. But we men have a far more immediate problem: sperm counts have fallen by an incredible 20 percent in the past 50 years. Stress? Alcohol? Environmental pollution? Who knows, but it's deeply concerning for those of us with a vested interest in the survival of the male.
Sykes has received hate mail. "To seem to be saying that men will become extinct, which is what I am saying," he mused. "I've had all kinds of messages from male groups saying, 'how can you betray your gender?'"But would the absence of men make the world a better place? There would be far fewer wars without men on the planet, and the U.S. prison population would drop a colossal 97 percent. Road deaths in the U.S. would fall 70 percent. The Olympics would be half as long, which some people might view as a good thing.
Female-Only ReproductionBut surely, flawed Y chromosome or not, bad behavior or not, we are needed for procreation. Women can't have babies without us … right? I'm afraid, pretty soon they won't need our sperm, our chromosomes, our anything.
Until now, female-only reproduction has been limited to the plant and animal kingdom. So-called parthenogenesis, observed in the Cape Honey Bee, the Kimono Dragon and the hammerhead shark. In humans: confined to 1950s B movies. But Sykes says the technology for women to procreate without us is just around the corner.
"Within the next few years you will get two women having a child who is the biological child of both of them," Sykes said. "And entirely normal in every respect, but always female."
They've already done it with mice. Two mothers: the genetic material from one used to fertilize the egg of the other.Two Mommies
The picture that Professor Sykes is painting is of a nuclear family without a man in sight. We went in search of what could be the template for the survival of our species. Laura and Natalie are a lovely couple who live in South London with their 13-month-old daughter Sanne. They agreed to let our all-male crew take a peek into their lives. Natalie actually gave birth to Sanne. The sperm came from an anonymous donor. She's raised by two moms.
"That the child will be well balanced with just two moms: Well, that's been proven back in the 40s," explained Natalie, who is also a child psychologist. "It's the care giving and the relationship between the care-giver and the infant that is the important part."
Laura, who right now is the bread winner, thinks any family will work as long as the child is, "getting the attention, the affection, the discipline." Looking at her very contented daughter, Laura told me, "She's obviously confident. She's very stable and secure. So I think so far we're doing okay."
Laura attended both the dads' and the moms' prenatal classes. I asked Natalie if having Laura as the partner was better than having a man? "I had actually a couple of mothers saying, 'Well, at least Laura's a woman she will understand better.'" Natalie told me. "And I said, 'no.' … She was exactly the same as the dads!"
Could Laura mount a defense? "I would like to think that I separate from the dads in that I'm not hooked on the ball games and things like that," she explained. And I must say, she was knee-deep in diaper changing and feeding time while we were hanging out.
So judging by this family, two moms aren't necessarily better, but can be just as good. But surely they must need a burly man for some things? I offered to put up some shelves, or change some light bulbs. "Actually, Laura is very, very handy," Natalie told me, trying not to hurt my feelings.
"My father's a mechanic, so there's nothing about a car that disturbs me," explained Laura. "I've also … I renovated a house. So, I'm really not concerned about that either."
Maybe our only hope as men is that women decide to keep us alive for their own amusement. For the pop music, perhaps, or maybe the dancing. We can be good at that.
Well. So much for that! At least we had a good run!
Seriously - we're headed to artificial wombs as well, so when those are created women aren't really gonna be necessary either. It's getting so that either gender can produce by themselves with the aid of technology.
...kinda takes all the fun out of it. XD
Deep down inside, I got this feeling that it was bound to happen eventually.
I wonder if anyone who had a hand in crafting this article bothered to say that the Y chromosome can repair itself.
Even so, consider the possibilities if this actually happened. Toward the end, just think of the benefits men can accrue under endangered minority status.
Besides...who's gonna kill the spiders?
Edit:
"Every generation one percent of men will have a mutation which reduces their fertility by 10 percent," explained Sykes. Unlike most chromosomes, the Y does not travel through the generation in pairs, so can never repair itself from a mirror. Flaws are never repaired. "So if that goes on for generation after generation," Sykes argued, "eventually there are no functioning Y chromosomes left."
This is a geneticist? If 1 percent of men have 10 percent less fertility in a given generation, they'll be fathering 1-percent-times-10-percent fewer of the children of the next generation by definition. That means those without the "less-fertile" mutation will father a 1-percent-times-10-percent greater proportion of the next generation's children. Generation after generation, the ratio of men with the fertility problem will stay the same. It's the same logic that tells you that you can't pass along your infertility to your kids.
Even so, consider the possibilities if this actually happened.
Or just buy "Y: The Last Man", a comic/graphic novel to be adapted into a major motion picture in the next years.
It has pirates and ninjas and space men and robots and clones and monkies and cowgirls. Oh my...
I'm still waiting for the last volume to come out. >_>
Just think about it. Imagine an entire planet which synchronizes for a period at the same time of the month on a planetary scale.
War every month like clockwork.
Won't that happen if hilary gets elected?
So Hell Comes To Frogtown is going to become real?
Somebody freeze Rowdy Roddy Piper and preserve his sperm, we're gonna need it when the amphibian people invade.
Even so, consider the possibilities if this actually happened.
Or just buy "Y: The Last Man", a comic/graphic novel to be adapted into a major motion picture in the next years.
It has pirates and ninjas and space men and robots and clones and monkies and cowgirls. Oh my...
The film will star Shia LeBouf, won't it?
This troubles me 0% more than 0%. Honestly, whatever. In over 200 thousand years, nobody will really give a care, and the last men alive will have almost infinite women to show them a good time in bed. XD (Unless those med decide to rebel and be gay or something. Do I smell a debate?)
I honestly don't think the human race is going to survive that long anyway, we'll have blown ourselves up in that time.
I honestly don't think the human race is going to survive that long anyway, we'll have blown ourselves up in that time.
I agree with that notion. As for the whole Y chromosome disappearing and not being able to repair itself... well, if you can recreate the X chromosome, (as seen with the lab rats), why the hell can't you recreate the Y out of thin air? Am I missing something?
I also agree with Ultra... I'm reading it the same way by definition.1 x 1 = 1. It all stays the same in the long run. And what the hell does sperm count have to do with fertility? They're two totally different situations. You can have a male with a really crappy sperm count but still be able to impregnate someone; then you have a dude who has a normal or high sperm count, and yet he's infertile. Makes no sense to me.
I honestly don't think the human race is going to survive that long anyway, we'll have blown ourselves up in that time.
I agree with that notion. As for the whole Y chromosome disappearing and not being able to repair itself... well, if you can recreate the X chromosome, (as seen with the lab rats), why the hell can't you recreate the Y out of thin air? Am I missing something?
I also agree with Ultra... I'm reading it the same way by definition.1 x 1 = 1. It all stays the same in the long run. And what the hell does sperm count have to do with fertility? They're two totally different situations. You can have a male with a really crappy sperm count but still be able to impregnate someone; then you have a dude who has a normal or high sperm count, and yet he's infertile. Makes no sense to me.
We're obviously not nuanced enough to understand the intricacies behind such delicate silence. We're just idiots I tell ya! No wonder our chromosomes are gonna disappear; they're getting lost!
So in the future, all females will turn into Amazons, infamous for their "Men Sucks" rules?
So in the future, all females will turn into Amazons, infamous for their "Men Sucks" rules?
...erm, might wanna rephrase those rules. >_>;
*reads* Bwahaha, SO not my intention!