GOD

Further elaboration on part 1...

The biggest aspect I am trying to get across that simple postive genetic mutation acting independently of the environment leading to positive selection seems too basic - What I believe is that environmental stress created by the person (depression / cortisol etc) orientates expression / activates / changes that can be passed genetically onto offspring. Possibly they could be thought of as mutations, but these are directional mutations and not random. Directional evolution brought about by communicating environmental stressors onto the DNA rather than simple randomness.

Anyway... consider the following...

Cortisol – “Signal transduction can eventuate in almost any imaginable cellular activity, including activation of specific genes”

Depression and neuroplasticity of the mind....

http://psychcentral.com/news/2008/07...-dna/2678.html

Transposons are sequences in the DNA code that can replicate themselves. They "jump" from one place to another on the chromosomes. These mutations can affect the functions of other genes. Stretches of DNA right in front of or behind a gene can turn it on, turn it off, or affect the way it functions.

http://www.newsdaily.com/stories/tre...genes-jumping/

"Some transposable elements contain heat-shock like promoters and their rate of transposition increases if the cell is subjected to environmental stress, thus increasing the mutation rate under these conditions, which might be beneficial to the cell."