Forwarded: Basic taxonomy

[Richard Jensen]

Useful, harmful, harmless.  There's nothing inherently wrong with such a
classification - for purely utilitarian purposes.  I suspect that every
other living organism is able to establish the same type of
classification (I am sure my cats do).  But that's what sets us apart
from all other living organisms - we have (given the opportunity to do
so) the intellect (or curiosity, or whatever you want to call it), to go
beyond simle utilitarian views of nature.  And, in doing so, we discover
more about nature.  It's part of the grand quest for understanding and
something I am not willing to do away with.

Richard J. Jensen      |   E-MAIL: rjensen at saintmarys.edu
Dept. of Biology       |   TELEPHONE: 219-284-4674
Saint Mary's College   |   FAX: 219-284-4716
Notre Dame, IN  46556  |