Will humans evolve further?

Discussion in 'Science & Society' started by grazzhoppa, Aug 4, 2002.

  1. grazzhoppa yawwn Valued Senior Member

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    1,277
    Hi everyone!

    I have a limtied understanding of evolution and I would like to see what others think. -With all the advances in medicine and surgery to fix genetic problems will humans continue to evolve? Does evolution even apply to how human society is? I find it very hard to answer these questions because relatively humans have been on Earth for a short time and evolution takes millions of years.
     
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  3. Bebelina kospla.com Valued Senior Member

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    Yes, we will, unless we kill ourselves first.

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  5. Awaranowski Registered Senior Member

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    Does evolution mean we increase in complexity or that we become more suitable to our environments?

    I believe, and I'm not sure if it's possible, that we are not evolving, but devolving. Technology has made it possible for people with bad genes to live and pass their genes on down the road. Have you noticed that only stupid people are breeding? Anyone of average intelligence knows the world is already overpopulated. Why are you indulging yourself?! Idiot. If you go back in time, I think you'll find that you're really not more advanced than someone from 2,000 years ago. Because chances are, if you were dumb at that time, you were dead. Sure, you can say, "I can use a computer and a cell phone!" Well yes, you probably can, but you're still dumb.

    Take an average person and put them in a time-machine and send them to 0 A.D. Strip them naked, and they'll die instantly. Probably by walking off a cliff or pissing off a wild animal.
     
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  7. Tyler Registered Senior Member

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    Bebelina, what would be so bad about all human life ending?
     
  8. kmguru Staff Member

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    Life will evolve...whether the new specis will claim humans as their ancesters is another matter. It is possible in another 100,000 to 500,000 years...but somehow, I think unlikely...
     
  9. ndrs The Anti-Cthulhu Registered Senior Member

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    I wouldn't worry about it too much. Soon the food supply might start running out, then life should get much more fun. Unless we develop synthetic proteins we can inject in our veins instead of food. (they already exist in life support machines don't they?)
     
  10. Xev Registered Senior Member

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    All human life ending, perhaps?

    Humans are cute little critters. I don't wanna see them exterminate themselves.

    Grazzhoppa:

    Welcome to Sciforums. Interesting question.

    In answer, I think that if we survive the next 100-200 years, we will not only evolve further, but we will start guiding our evolution through genetic modification.
     
  11. static76 The Man, The Myth, The Legend Registered Senior Member

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    I always thought us Americans were the next step in evolution.

    We're still waiting for the rest of the World to catch up to us on the evoultionary scale...

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  12. ssivakami Registered Senior Member

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    Good question. As long as health-care is not made widely available ... both quality and quantity wise, natural selection will continue to play a part.

    Whats scary is .... while these people get fitter and fitter(genetically), we become less and less fit. And its likely that some widespread epidemic will kill all the rest but leave them intact.

    But for those of us who do have access to reasonably good health-care, the new replicators may not be genes, but memes.

    - Sivakami.
     
  13. fadingCaptain are you a robot? Valued Senior Member

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    We will evolve, but by different means than past evolution. It is true that we have stunted, if not eliminated, natural selection of our own species. We will instead evolve through our technology. We will continue to enhance ourselves until we will probably not be recognizable as humans in current standards in a couple hundred years. That's what I think at least.
     
  14. kmguru Staff Member

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    Should not there be a difference between evolution and enhancement?

    We sure are getting enhanced everyday....but that should not be called evolution....just look at Hollywood....

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  15. fadingCaptain are you a robot? Valued Senior Member

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    You are right. We will not 'evolve' (random genetic variation guided by natural selection) but will be enhanced. I was using evolution in too loose of terms.
     
  16. Avatar smoking revolver Valued Senior Member

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    Bebelina- you took words out of my mouth.
    Actually I have said the same phrase to some of my friends.

    About ebchanting and evoluion.
    Enchanting is a short term process, where we see the result in one generation.
    Evolution is a long term process , where the result comes visible after 100 000s of years
     
  17. kmguru Staff Member

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    Someday...if the Universe is willing....we will experience what it can be for us say 500,000 years hence...from a visit from those specis to our planet.....

    That would be cool....knowing that they were like us...way back when...

    But can we communicate with them? (like monkeys communicate with us?)
     
  18. Avatar smoking revolver Valued Senior Member

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    do we actually have something to say to each other?
     
  19. kmguru Staff Member

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    Like what?

    Just imagine, we found a way to punch through space and land in a planet of monkey people who have an agricultural society. Yes they can speak with rudimentary stuff, no abstract concepts, space, time, math, computers etc.

    What are you going to tell them? And would they believe or think, you are there to still their food?
     
  20. Avatar smoking revolver Valued Senior Member

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    19,083
    they would take me as a god

    exactly as supposedly our ancestors did

    Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.
    Arthur C. Clarke


    but unfortunately

    The saddest aspect of life right now is that science gathers knowledge faster than society gathers wisdom.
    Isaac Asimov
     
    Last edited: Aug 5, 2002
  21. kmguru Staff Member

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    11,757
    He is my all time favorite author next to Clarke boy.

    I recently reread 3001 and I got more out of it than several years ago when I read it first.
     
  22. grazzhoppa yawwn Valued Senior Member

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    So the consensus is that humans are past natural selection and are now "enhancing" themselves through technology?
     
  23. Avatar smoking revolver Valued Senior Member

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    19,083
    we can't say that, because macro-evolution is a very long process- we can not dirrectly observe it.
    It is happening, but slowly (we becoming taller, loosing our teeth, apendix)

    technological enchantment s smth with what we can guide our own evolution where we want it to and the effects will be visible in one or 5 generations- but it would not certainly take 100 000s of years
     

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