Evolutionary forces don’t always lead to progress: sometimes, a species may revert to an older or simpler method due to a different set of tradeoffs. Recent discoveries in bird evolution highlight this fact. For example, it has been found that the ancestors of modern birds had an unfused palate, whereas the branch that includes ostriches and emus has a fused palate. This suggests that the fused palate evolved later, through back mutations, and that the classic straight-line assumption of evolution was wrong. Read full article here
Oddities
Why Do Modern Pop Songs Have So Many Credited Writers?
The music industry has changed dramatically over the last few decades – with the number of songwriters credited on number one hits more than doubling. This is due to a combination of factors, including money, the computer and a changing definition of what songwriting is. For example, if The Beatles’ classic “I Feel Fine” was released today, it would likely have four writers credited instead of two, due to the influence of producers, samples and interpolations. With the rise of lawsuits, artists now preemptively add songwriter credits to their songs, even if the similarities between their song and the source material are coincidental. It all goes to show that the music industry is becoming more complex and competitive. Read full article here
Merv
March 29, 2023
