So I've spent the last hour reading and commenting on other folks' blogs, and I originally didn't plan on posting anything to mine yet.. until I came across this article.

The line that caught my attention:

"The researchers told a European reproductive health conference that it was likely the problems were caused by DNA damage in sperm."

Here is a good example of how science can often go off the path of sensible understanding and logic. Let us pick apart the article a little bit:

• The article is examining the link (in men) between low fertility rates and age.
• As with similar research into female fertility rates, we've built this concept of a biological clock.
• Conceptually, the biological clock is simply the idea that the biological process in question (fertility in this example) degrades over time.

So the older you are, the less fertile. ok, seems to make sense.

the problem I have with this is the conjecture that is made by the presentation and interpretation of this conceptual biological clock.

here, we are led to believe that our functionality simply degrades with time, I feel led to believe that this is just how our bodies are, that with time, they don't work as well.. like a car or any other mechanical system or machine.

makes sense..

but are there other possibilities?

let's check out that quote again:

"The researchers told a European reproductive health conference that it was likely the problems were caused by DNA damage in sperm."

So the researchers believe the lower fertility rates are a result of higher rates of damaged DNA in sperm for the folks queried.

Our question then becomes - and this would seem to be the more important question resulting from this research, the question the article could propose to its readers - what causes or leads to these higher rates of damaged DNA?

good question.

here's my point:

Rather than give up our freedom and responsibility over our lives (by believing we have a biological clock, beyond our reach of control and influence), how can we identify the places where we actually create this situation? What are we doing to ourselves that is damaging our DNA?

Where does cancer come from? (woah.. that came out of left field.. 10pt if you see how I made the connection)

what can we do differently?

are we not the ones in control over the gradual destruction of our physical, emotional, and spiritual forms?

if we do in fact have some influence in this degradation, what choices can we make differently, and how do we reverse this degradation?