Perhaps there is a scientific basis to the shidduch crisis: the end of the male gender. But you know what, who needs men anyway? They just might not be around in about a million years anyway. So the countdown is on.
First, let me explain. Although this is a Purim article, it’s not completely a hoax. As we all know, each and every one of us is born with 46 chromosomes, which contain all of our genetic material that makes us who we are. Two of these chromosomes are designated for our gender. For females, there are two X chromosomes. In men, there is one X and one Y chromosome.
So what’s the big deal you ask? Well, there is evidence that the Y chromosome has shrunk over the past millennium. And guys, that is not a good thing. This means that you’re having a harder time in evolutionary adaptation than us girls (not like we needed scientific evidence to prove that one). I guess Darwin was right about survival of the fittest and natural selection after all. It seems as if Mother Nature has naturally selected us, women, to continue propagating the species. In fact, scientists are now predicting that if this phenomenon continues, the male gender will cease to exist!
While X and Y chromosomes used to share about 800 genes in common, presently the Y chromosome only contains 19 of its original genes, plus the sex determining gene. This is easily observed by the sizes of the chromosomes, the Y chromosome is just a fraction of the X chromosome’s size. The theory is that eventually, just as the original 781 genes on the Y chromosome have disappeared, so too will the remaining genes on the Y, causing the chromosome to disappear altogether. This would probably take at least a million years to happen, but it’s always important to think ahead.
An example of a species that is thriving in the absence of males is the Laredo striped whiptail lizards that live in the Rio Grande Valley area of Texas and Mexico. These females reproduce through parthenogenesis (basically cloning themselves), in theory, it’s possible that it’s just a matter of time (in an evolutionary sense) that humans would be able to reproduce in this way as well.
One day, it probably will be possible for a world to be sustained without males. But even if I haven’t convinced you thus far, there is still proof to why females are genetically superior. Take color blindness. How many females do you know with this condition? Probably not very many, if any. Yep, and that’s because of our double X chromosome. Certain diseases are X-linked, meaning that the gene for the disease is found on the X chromosome. Because girls have two X chromosomes, if one of them has an allele that encodes for the disease, the other X chromosome may be free of that diseased-causing allele, so the girl won’t have the condition. However, in males, if there is a gene encoding for a certain condition on the X chromosome, they don’t have another X chromosome with additional genes to make up for the faulty gene, causing the male to express the faulty gene.
So the moral of the story is this: boys, take advantage of your last million years you have on this earth. And just admit that girls are better.
