The Complexity of Eye Color Genetics

Eye color is determined by the presence and amount of the pigment protein melanin, which is influenced by multiple genes rather than a simple binary system. The interaction between different alleles can lead to various eye colors, with brown being dominant and blue being recessive. For example, green eyes occur when one allele produces some melanin while the other does not, resulting in an intermediate expression. This complexity highlights the reductionist view of genetics that oversimplifies traits into binary outcomes without recognizing the underlying genetic interactions.