(no subject)

[moojja.livejournal.com]

This is something that was mentioned in the miniseries: "They better start having babies." Adama also said half-seriously that it might become an order in the future.

Given the size of the population that is left, will that become an option in the BG universe. How will it affect the status of women or men? So far it seems that gender equality is pretty much the norm in BG. But a gestation period still takes nine month, a dark view is that women will be forced to have the children after children, and be taken off the frontline and the decision making process. Another possibility is that since men isn’t as necessary, since sperm can be collected in tubs, while a womb is difficult to reproduce. That women be taken off the frontline, and is behind the decision making process only.
Either way, I can’t see Starbuck being happy about it. She is the right age, but her personality suggest that she doesn’t want children. All this assumes, in terms of reproduction they are at the same level of technology as us. Otherwise, it is all a moot point.

45,000 is not too bad in order to start a new population. Early N. America was populated with people who had less genetic diversity. I imagine genetic pool is pretty wide b/c the people who survived was due to chance only. So the possibly might never come up.

Comments

[djfanboy.livejournal.com]

45,000 is not too bad in order to start a new population.

A population on the run, without consistent supplies or fuel. That number, I imagine, will dwindle as the series progresses. What's the cutoff population count before a species becomes unsustainable?

[meyerlemon.livejournal.com]

I'm always wondering about this (I like to play "what if you got stuck on a desert island" in my head- I'm weird), and I don't have a specific number, but I'm pretty sure that 45k is WAY more than you need, and probably doesn't even count as a population bottleneck.

I can't remember names, sadly, but I keep thinking of a group of Jews in... Israel? (I know that would make sense, but somehow I feel that that's not right.) Who went through a bottleneck so severe (something like a hundred people), and are so opposed to marrying outside the group, that the majority of marriages are now between first cousins.

As long as you have a genetically healthy population to begin with, you can get by with a fairly small group, I think.

[djfanboy.livejournal.com]

...and it remains to be seen exactly how small a group they'll be at the end of the series.

I know! Let's pick up this thread again after the series ends! :) Compare our notes then-and-now!

...somebody remind me at that time?

[meret.livejournal.com]

45k is WAY more than you need

Absolutely! They wouldn't need to worry about inbreeding at I don't think. Based on advances in DNA in the last 10 years or so, the current theory is that the human (I'm talking about homo-sapiens, not earlier ancesters.), poppulation got down to 10,000 or less at one point in pre-historic times. We are all far more closely related than the average chimpanzee is to another for example.

I found an article about it here.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/cavemen/chronology/contentpage6.shtml

[moojja.livejournal.com]

That fits in nicely with the show's premise, that Earth is just a colony, like the rest of the 12. In that sense, the rest of the 12 colonies combined actually have more genetic diversity than Earth.

[jink98.livejournal.com]

45,000 is definitely enough to sustain a population. As for an actual cut-off number, it varies by species. It depends on the species gestation period, age to maturation, male-to-female ratio in surviving population...Regardless, the humans should be fine with 45,000. Wildlife biologists are doing their best to sustain a population of wild Florida panthers that (I *think*) got down to around 100 members. As I remember it, they believed that was pretty much as low as that population could go before dying off.

For humans, I'm thinking they'd probably need around 1,000 minimum to sustain the race.

Heh. Sorry for the lengthy discourse...I'm a bio geek who LOVEd ecology, especially population dynamics *g*.

[teaphile.livejournal.com]

The other question that comes up: is will they have to outlaw monogamy? Again, that only matters if their population is right on the edge of sustainable.

[meyerlemon.livejournal.com]

You wouldn't have to outlaw monogamy, though- you'd just need to, um, play Musical Sperm.


Wow! I just totally weirded myself out.

[moojja.livejournal.com]

LOL, but you are right. They might need to keep a closer watch on who is related to who. But monogamy should be fine.

[teaphile.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I'd had the same thought. Hmm...there's fic in here somewhere.

[meyerlemon.livejournal.com]

Sperm!fic!

*looks horrifed*

[teaphile.livejournal.com]

You're talking to the person who wrote conjunction slash (http://www.livejournal.com/users/teaphile/91426.html). And/Or, baby, all the way.

[meyerlemon.livejournal.com]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!

That's kind of awesome.

[meret.livejournal.com]

Ooooo! the fanfic possibilities! The females in the military are far too necessary IMO to take off the front lines, and I can't see pregnant pilots flying. They definitely need to save those pilot genes though, and have the military people make kids with those traits. They could use surrogates in the civillian poppulation. Maybe offer extra food rations and other perks for those women willing to do it, or women who wouldn't be able to concieve on their own might volunteer.

[thepouncer.livejournal.com]

I agree that the pilot skills trump gestational abilities - how are they going to train new pilots? Hell, where are they going to get new Vipers when old ones go boom?