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arthur mitsias

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Has technology accelerated human evolution?

my question is based on my observations of events that have happened in my own lifetime,we went from conventional warfare to atomic bombs ,we went from party line telephones to blue tooth, we went from the encyclopedia to ipads,we went from maps to gps,we went from libraries to kindle,we went from Sunday dinner to Mc Donalds,we went from radio to 50"flat screen 3d television,skype,electric cars,and we put a man on the moon.All of this in one life time.what use to take millions of years to happen,. is now happening in generations.I watch little kids walking towards doors they dont stop because they know its going to open,young children using computers to write and draw.I guess my question is,am I right in thinking that human evolution is accelerating.

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  • David Matta

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    Jul 22 2012: Humans can measure the evolution of everything except their own. In a moving car, the driver does not perceive the passenger moving, nor himself, whereas everything outside "seems" moving. We know that nothing is moving outside except the car we are in.
    Therefore, to correct the statement above, "Humans measure the evolution of everything based on their own."
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      natasha nikulina 50+

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      Jul 22 2012: Agreed, but the question arises : how can we measure the ' process ' being the part of the process ? What is the frame of reference ? I think we can't measure anything, because WE ARE THE PROCESS of change, we can experience change ; 'evolution' is just a term we use to create a 'map' of reality,it is the point of judgement if you like, not measurement.
      I could be wrong here , of course :)

      • Patrick Hughes

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        Jul 23 2012: It still has an empirical component, regardless of how abstract the reasons that cause the process are, correct? There are certainly metrics you could use to measure such a thing, and indeed it would be a complex equation if you wanted it to be fully descriptive enough to get an accurate measurement of how it is changing. That is all assuming a fixed time rate though. Given now that we are also increasing the amount we can accomplish in each day (in terms of all components of life: learning, social interaction, productivity, etc), measuring a change by a fixed time scale seems silly, so perhaps the issue of time makes your position that we can't really measure such a change correct. It's less than we can't measure it though, and more that such a measurement would have no meaningful significance, because 24 hours in 2050 will be nothing like 24 hours today, just as 24 hours in 1800 are nothing like 24 hours today.

        I think the specifics of evolutionary measurement are less important than coming to grips with the fact that the world is becoming a much more dynamic place to live, where major changes can happen in a short period of time. The idea of anything being constant and timeless is quickly disappearing. I like what you said below "the very process of becoming aware is speeding up". Being aware of what's going on around you, the changing and expanding framework of reality you're living in, and the influences you exert and are effected by seems to be an effective way to take control of your own personal evolution, and thus, your participation in the evolution of all life.
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          natasha nikulina 50+

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          Jul 23 2012: Patrick ,

          I agree, the scale of observation creates the phenomenon. If ' evolution' means increasing in complexity, without judgemental sentiment ( it's neither good nor bad , higher/lower in development ), yes it seems to be obvious. Don't you think, that entropy and complexity is the same thing ? In attempt to organise entropy we make our life, relationships ... tools more and more complex, don't we ? It's a chicken egg issue. So, the 'Almighty' arrow of time is in place and conducts the show :) What is ' awareness' that is speeding up, alongside with everything else ? I guess , it's the desire to get out of the loop. How ? I don't know, but I've come up with simple ( not easy to implement, though ! ) solution: try to live in accordance with a golden rule. Old age wisdom : don't do to others... love your neighbour...dethrone yourself from the center of your world and you'll transcend yourself... Even the intent to practice it , brings clarity in thoughts and somehow reorganises life. Am I preaching ? : ) Sorry, I didn't mean to , i am not religious even, just a bit of experience .

          Thanks for responding !

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