Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 16, 2026
08:03
Heuristic Mining of Hierarchical Genotypes and Accessory Genome Loci in Bacterial Populations
Published on: December 7, 2021
2.9K
Western Europe, state formation, and genetic pacification
Peter Frost1, Henry C Harpending2
1Department of Anthropology, Université Laval, Quebec City, Canada.
Summary
The State
Area of Science:
- Sociology
- Criminology
- History
Background:
- State monopoly on violence historically aimed to pacify social relations.
- Early medieval Europe (5th-11th centuries) saw slow pacification due to weak law enforcement and resistance to capital punishment.
Observation:
- An 11th-century consensus between Church and State promoted punishment for societal peace.
- Increased use of the death penalty by courts led to a significant decline in the homicide rate from the 14th to 20th centuries.
Findings:
- The homicide rate dramatically decreased over centuries, with fewer violent crimes and a shift towards crimes of passion or intoxication.
- While harsher punishments and cultural conditioning are cited, environmental selection against violent propensities may also explain reduced violence.
Implications:
- Understanding historical shifts in state power and punishment is crucial for contemporary criminology.
- The long-term impact of state-sanctioned violence on societal violence reduction warrants further interdisciplinary study.
More Related Videos
11:58Linear Amplification Mediated PCR – Localization of Genetic Elements and Characterization of Unknown Flanking DNA
Published on: June 25, 2014
31.0K
10:17Laboratory Protocol for Genetic Gut Content Analyses of Aquatic Macroinvertebrates Using Group-specific rDNA Primers
Published on: October 5, 2017
9.4K
Related Concept Videos
02:39Gene Flow
39.2K
Gene flow is the transfer of genes among populations, resulting from either the dispersal of gametes or from the migration of individuals.
39.2K
02:16Genetics of Speciation
23.4K
Speciation is the evolutionary process resulting in the formation of new, distinct species—groups of reproductively isolated populations.
23.4K
01:18Polygenic Traits
71.1K
When more than one gene is responsible for a given phenotype, the trait is considered polygenic. Human height is a polygenic trait. Studies have uncovered hundreds of loci that influence height, and there are believed to be many more. Due to the high number of genes involved, as well as environmental and nutritional factors, height varies significantly within a given population. The distribution of height forms a bell-shaped curve, with relatively few individuals in the population at the...
71.1K
01:18Polygenic Traits
11.5K
11.5K
01:25What is Population Genetics?
66.2K
A population is composed of members of the same species that simultaneously live and interact in the same area. When individuals in a population breed, they pass down their genes to their offspring. Many of these genes are polymorphic, meaning that they occur in multiple variants. Such variations of a gene are referred to as alleles. The collective set of all the alleles within a population is known as the gene pool.
66.2K
01:09Mutation, Gene Flow, and Genetic Drift
66.5K
In a population that is not at Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, the frequency of alleles changes over time. Therefore, any deviations from the five conditions of Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium can alter the genetic variation of a given population. Conditions that change the genetic variability of a population include mutations, natural selection, non-random mating, gene flow, and genetic drift (small population size).
66.5K