The objective of this study is to understand the role of symbolic beliefs related to water in shaping behaviors of individuals in a way that preserve this resource. Therefore, a survey is carried out among 246 resident of the Anougal valley where the population are still retaining a traditional lifestyle. During this investigation, the collected data relate to ethnographic knowledge about water such as proverbs, tales, stories and myths. Data also concern behaviors able to preserve this resource and characteristics of surveyed populations. Overall, four variables summarize the main beliefs related to water in the valley, three variables estimate the behaviors related to water and seven socio-economic and bio-demographic variables were formulated in order to carry out this study. Results show that the proportion of survey respondents with strong symbolic beliefs is still indeed very high at the valley. However, decline of symbolic beliefs noticed is more striking amongst young people, educated people and also large landowners who cultivate a crop aimed to the market essentially. Moreover, our study is highlighting the positive impact of symbolic beliefs on water preservation behavior among this population.

Among the myths that have shaped our modern world, the myth of ‘race’, which lacks any rational foundation, is surely the most tragic. One need only think of the abuses experienced by many populations throughout history. Therefore, it is important to trace how this concept arose and to examine why it continues to exist today.The word ‘race’ first appeared in Europe during the XIV century. Possibly, it derived from the Latin word radix=root, or from the Arabic razza, or from generatio=generation, descent, or more simply from ratio=reason, which in the scholastic language of the XV century meant, amongst other things, the order of succession according to which a living being was placed on a date line of ascendants and descendants. Initially used in the field of animal breeding (probably originating from the ancient French ‘haraz’, horse breeder, which through common usage then became ‘race’). This term was first used and applied to Man by Bernier (1688) and entered into everyday speech following the philosophical works of Emanuel Kant (1775). Notwithstanding, the term is misleading and without sense, particularly when it tends to confuse the physical characteristics of Man with those of cultures, religions or economies, or rather, when the historical and cultural characteristics of ‘ethnic groups’ are confused with the biological characteristics of the diverse human populations.

Geneticists have studied mutations intensively over the years. They recognise various categories and can anticipate their likely effects. Some mutations involve major reorganisations of the genome. Segments of DNA may be deleted, duplicated, inverted or exchanged between chromosomes. If these involve sufficiently large portions of chromosomes, they will be visible microscopically in mitotic chromosomes. At the other extreme of the size spectrum, mutations may change only one or a few bases. One base may be substituted for another. One or a few bases may drop out of the sequence (be deleted) or drop in (be inserted).

In Chapter 1, retroviruses and LTR retrotransposons were discussed together because they possess long terminal repeats (LTRs): sequences that mediate regulatory functions. These agents generate new copies of themselves using a back-to-front RNA-to-DNA copying step (hence the retro prefix). They insinuate these new DNA copies into the genomes of their host cells. And they share the property of being able to replicate in germ cells, so that new copies are transmitted to future generations. Each new ERV and LTR retrotransposon becomes a marker of a family lineage.

The Corsican red deer (Cervus elaphus corsicanus) is endemic to the Tyrrhenian islands of Corsica and Sardinia. It has been regarded as an introduced species and has allegedly been present on the islands since the beginning of the Neolithic culture some 8,000 years ago. In this review, we present the results of relevant genetic analyses and discuss their implications for the origin of C. e. corsicanus. Different genetic studies hypothesize that the most probable ancestral populations for Sardianian red deer were alternatively, the Near East, North Africa, or mainland Italy. These respective scenarios are evaluated and it is concluded that geneticists have not yet been unable to definitively solve the problem. However, a natural colonization of the Tyrrhenian islands from mainland Italy via the Tuscan archipelago is not only in accordance with palaeontological findings but also with at least some of the genetic data.