Rick Strongitham questioned whether superbugs are an example of natural
selection (Letter, Toronto Star, September 13.) In evolution by natural
selection, the individuals who can cope with the environment survive, while the ones who
cannot die. The ones who survive reproduce, leading to a population of individuals with
the survival characteristics. For superbugs, humans killed the bacteria that were not
resistant to antibiotics. The resistant bacteria survived and reproduced. Humans caused
the unnatural environment by introducing antibiotics into the bacteria's environment.
However, since the conditions in the bacteria's environment select which bacteria survive,
this is an example of evolution by natural selection.
September, 1999
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� Suzanne P. Currie 1999 [email protected]
