Many people believe that superpowers are fictitious and can only be seen on T.V, but genetics has proven otherwise. Sometimes, due to our environment, our genes can enhance our way of life. For example, the people who live in the Himalaya’s have adapted to the high altitude with genes that supercharge their strength and endurance. These heightened abilities are starting to catch the attention of scientists and there beginning to learn how our minds and bodies develop these abilities.
There are certain genes that are able to give us an advantage and even tap into potential we didn’t know we had. Alex Honnold, famous rock climber, had his brain scanned since he seemed to fear nothing. Scientists wanted to see whether this was something to do with how his brain functioned. Scientists presented Honnold with a serious of images that should have triggered activity in his amygdala. What they found was that there was no activity in the amygdala which is a part of the brain that is connected to fear. There is nothing structurally wrong with Honnold’s brain, but it’s possible that he has conditioned himself to force down certain brain activity by focusing on planning each move. This is a “superpower” that we can achieve. This conditioning method is used by psychologists to help patients get over fears.
Hi Mariann, I loved this post! Thinking of certain traits or abilities as superpowers is so awesome in my opinion! I think its an interesting way to look at genes and genetic diversity. I also loved hearing about Alex Honnold's story. Finding no activity in his "fear center" the amygdala made a lot of sense regarding his hobbies!
ReplyDeleteHi Mariann,
ReplyDeleteWow, at first I thought this article would be clickbait because I thought there was no way humans could have superpowers, but after reading about Alex's story he is completely super human. It makes me wonder if having no activity in they amygdala is something that he can genetically pass down to his kids. If so, this would be an amazing evolutionary change that could occur thousands of years from now. Also having a better understanding of Alex's brain helps so much with psychology research for those who need fear conditioning due to trauma. Nice work!
-Katelynn
Pretty cool! I posted something somewhat similar about the genes that influence athletic performance, and it looks to be similar pertaining to the population from the Himalayas. Very interesting to think that they had the genes necessary to thrive in those conditions, I wonder how their incredible genetics would fair in sports. Great post!
ReplyDeleteI found this post very fun to read! The idea that superpowers actually exist, in a sense, and can be proven through genetics is exciting. As genetics testing is becoming more commercially available i wonder how many more super abilities will be discovered.
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