Biology and Culture: Human Evolutionary Feedback

The article analyzes the transition of humans from passive adaptation to active transformation of their own environment through niche construction. The author points to the existence of a dual inheritance system, in which culture—thanks to horizontal and oblique transmission—modifies the selection pressures acting on genes (e.g., lactase persistence). The introduction of technology and medicine has created so-called environmental buffering, which separates the organism from former threats. The key conclusion is that technology does not abolish natural selection but changes the directions of selection and the fitness function, shifting the center of gravity from survivability to other factors of reproductive success in post-industrial societies.