Argument- Mendelian Genetics

On page 26, Shenk talks about the gene-environment complex, specifically with height. As he mentioned earlier, our culture is “indoctrinated with Mendelian genetics” (21). That is, we tend to perceive external factors (especially less complex ones) to be simply a result of strictly Mendelian fate. Shenk counters this argument by stating that height is determined by “interacting vigorously with the outside world to produce an improved, unique, result” (27). In Greulich’s experiment, Japanese kids were raised in California and Japan, but since California offered better nourishment, it allowed for an “astonishing five inches taller on average” (27). Shenk then supports this paradigm shift, saying that Mexicans are also inaccurately generalized to be small when they should be “tall and slender,” but can’t because of “poor diet” (28).

What possible flaws do you see in Shenk’s, or his research’s, arguments? Can you relate this phenomenon to any other current event, in which malnourishment seems to hold more weight than genetics? Do different ethnicities really share the same potential to be the same size, or is there evolutionary evidence/reasoning that supports the opposite may be true?