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ID and the Taxonomic Spirit in Humans

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Taxonomy is a truly fascinating subject. It used to bore me, but precisely because I was too close to it. Insects have six legs, spiders have eight, can we go play video games now? It never occurred to me how amazing these patterns that surround us actually are. They are with us so often, they can easily fade into the background.

Interestingly, as argued in a fascinating book, Naming Nature, putting the world into a natural order is actually an intrinsic part of being human.

In the book The Privileged Planet, Guillermo Gonzalez argues that the Earth is in a special place – it is uniquely able to view the Universe and allow us to make scientific discoveries – that the universe is designed so that we can discover it. Though the author of Naming Nature may not agree, I think her study also shows that the human brain is uniquely designed so that we can discover the biological world.

I encourage you, therefore, to go and involve yourself and your children in the natural world. Taxonomy is part of what we are built to do, and getting out into the world and understanding the plants and animals around you is a great place to exercise the taxonomic spirit that is built within humanity.

Comments
I busted up laughing when I read that! Thanks, I fixed it. Clearly, more sleep is required :)johnnyb
September 4, 2011
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Insects have six legs, spiders have three
Those are weird tripod spiders!SCheesman
September 4, 2011
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