I’m getting older these days. For those of my readers who aren’t there yet, many of my peers complain about every imaginable pain or physical disruption. I try not to complain.
From my point of view, having read nearly every Stephen Jay Gould book on human evolution, most evolutionary forces don’t act on populations after reproduction age. The exception seems to be where the tribe benefits from the knowledge of the elders there can be positive selection for old age. Also men can reproduce with younger women which can pass on positive survival traits for aging in men. It doesn’t explain the greater lifespan of women.
That being the case, my attitude is that everything that I have working is a fortunate blessing. It is amazing that anything works. Since memory seems to work best for issues that are long past, it is hard to connect that to the Gould material.
I asked Gould about this and the question of the minimum population for tribal survival. His answers for both were unsatisfactory to me. Radio interviews are here.
PS This photo has no meaning. I am on a new computer and still can't figure it out.