9 of 35

Evolving

Write now Article Tools

I think everyone of us (other than real religious fundamentalists) would have heard of, and maybe agreed even, on the idea that we humans, after undergoing millions of years of evolution, have finally stopped evolving. Indeed, Man's technological advances have overtaken Nature's evolutionary advances to render evolution obsolete. As such, Nature seems to be the unforgiving, wiser of the two.

Nature is de-evolving us. We are going backwards. All this as a result of our increasing reliance on computers and technology.

Yet in midst of this argument, loudly I shall declare, 'Quit complaining that we are "de-evolving'! That is such a corruption of the concept!"

Yes, I believe that whoever subscribes to the "de-evolution" argument has quite the warped understanding of science. An urban legend, if I could call it by any sense, it would be. Okay, maybe we are all couch potatoes and have problems climbing trees and have issues with corporal punishment. We are weaker, de-evolving, you say?

Evolution is a nasty thing to explain. Some parts of it are still unclear, just as much of science is fuzzy. In his 2005 book "Think for Yourself", Steve Hinder remembers a medical school dean announcing to the class, "Half of everything we are going to teach you is wrong. We just don't know which half." Myself never having a certified understanding of biology, (holding only O-Level qualifications in Chemistry and Physics, while currently continuing A-Level Physics). I will not claim to be presenting the facts as it is, but I advise you to take everything as opinion. I shall attempt to explain scientific concepts factually to the best of my knowledge, of course, but if any factual error be pointed out to me, I shall stand corrected. Evolution is a difficult concept to explain sufficiently.

Bear in mind that in this essay, Nature is just that. Whenever I may refer to Nature, it is from my limited human viewpoint. Indeed, this is where the debate starts from really. Is Nature, or evolution, to be viewed from the eyes of Man?

One thing to first make clear, is that evolution is not about advancement towards a more advanced entityhood. Evolution, rather, is just about purely random mutations. It is a furtherment of the concept - natural selection, that determines who gets to survive. Even so, natural selection is never about "being better". I would guess this misconception came from the cliche "survival of the fittest". Natural selection is actually about this thing known as adaption. Whoever

• 1
• 2
• 3
• next page >>

Add your voice

Know something about Is the human race evolving or devolving??
We want to hear your view. Write now!