Will humans evolve further?
- Thread starter grazzhoppa
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Voodoo Child
Registered Senior Member
Evolution can still occur, even if there is not great selective pressure. I read a study recently where the genetic influence on reproductive rates were calculated. There are certain genes that apparently contribute to the number offspring women have. All other things being equal, the freq of this gene should increase over time. I'm not sure but I think this could have already been observed.
Since we will be able to enhance our physical self, what happens with the mental evolution? Will every culture on the Earth be able to deal with such changes?
Do you think there will be a ban on enhacing ourselves? Or will it be a regulated procedure designed to enhance humans from birth, so the mental effect of it isn't as damaging? That way the "regular" population will either die out and slowly every human will have the same enhancements.
What about poor countries? What about change-resistant cultures? What will happen to the world? Maybe by the time everyone will have accepted enhancing the human species, thousands of years will have passed, or longer....it might take more time than we think.
Do you think there will be a ban on enhacing ourselves? Or will it be a regulated procedure designed to enhance humans from birth, so the mental effect of it isn't as damaging? That way the "regular" population will either die out and slowly every human will have the same enhancements.
What about poor countries? What about change-resistant cultures? What will happen to the world? Maybe by the time everyone will have accepted enhancing the human species, thousands of years will have passed, or longer....it might take more time than we think.
Voodoo Child
Registered Senior Member
That's an interesting idea: there may be the first species divergence where the species is actually conscious of what is happening.
It is interesting how we can fuck the planet with reckless abandon, not care that 1 billion people don't have clean drinking water but get all anal about genetic enhancement.
I think it is very possible that we will get mutations of humans and different varieties eventually, but evolution in the traditional sence is currently at a stand-still.
Most humans life quite a while after they give birth. For humans to actually undergo natural selection we would have to kill people off..... We will have to be stuck mixing genes with the less adequite humans for quite some time to come.
Most humans life quite a while after they give birth. For humans to actually undergo natural selection we would have to kill people off..... We will have to be stuck mixing genes with the less adequite humans for quite some time to come.
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Think about it. Im not saying mutation won't happen and isn't happening, im saying that natrual selection of humans will not occur.
Natural selection is when the death rate of a certain mutation of an organism is higher than its birth rate. Almost every single human on the planet lives and reproduces before they die. Therefore natural selection cannot occur if their genes are passed on.
Think about it. Im not saying mutation won't happen and isn't happening, im saying that natrual selection of humans will not occur.
Natural selection is when the death rate of a certain mutation of an organism is higher than its birth rate. Almost every single human on the planet lives and reproduces before they die. Therefore natural selection cannot occur if their genes are passed on.
Voodoo Child
Registered Senior Member
Not so. What if I'm impotent or sterile? What if I have an attribute that means I can't get laid? I mentioned before the "fuck like bunnies" gene which causes females to have more offspring. This gene's freq should increase over time.
Avatar:
Think about it. Im not saying mutation won't happen and isn't happening, im saying that natrual selection of humans will not occur.
Natural selection is when the death rate of a certain mutation of an organism is higher than its birth rate. Almost every single human on the planet lives and reproduces before they die. Therefore natural selection cannot occur if their genes are passed on.
Think about it. Im not saying mutation won't happen and isn't happening, im saying that natrual selection of humans will not occur.
Natural selection is when the death rate of a certain mutation of an organism is higher than its birth rate. Almost every single human on the planet lives and reproduces before they die. Therefore natural selection cannot occur if their genes are passed on.
Voodoo Child
Registered Senior Member
"it will occur after we will have colonised new planets"
How so? If you are comparing the time it will take us to colonize new planets to evolution, it is a bit different.
Evolution happens all the time, mutation that is. Actual "natural selection" happens only when beings are killed before they reproduce. This doesn't happen with humans much....
Ever hear of the Darwin Awards? They ususally only give those to people who render themselves sterile and have not already passed their genes on (exeptions are made when the story is way too hilarious to pass up).
How so? If you are comparing the time it will take us to colonize new planets to evolution, it is a bit different.
Evolution happens all the time, mutation that is. Actual "natural selection" happens only when beings are killed before they reproduce. This doesn't happen with humans much....
Ever hear of the Darwin Awards? They ususally only give those to people who render themselves sterile and have not already passed their genes on (exeptions are made when the story is way too hilarious to pass up).
Voodoo, I linked this thread in the thread you linked here. 
What about mental evolution? Will our brain capacity evolve?
What about mental evolution? Will our brain capacity evolve?
kmguru
Staff member
Not likely either. That is because, as long as one uses it, it will get better, then once stopped the use, within a generation it will go back to basic survival just like physical capacity or worse.
Apparently during veda days people could remember very large volumes of material word for word. After a few generations, they had to write it down otherwise they would forget. That means, if mental capacity did evolve for higher memory, accurate processing etc, it is gone.
Same way we will get there by inhibiting an enzyme found that deletes non essential data from the brain. But if we go through another ice age or destruction - it will be gone in a few....
Apparently during veda days people could remember very large volumes of material word for word. After a few generations, they had to write it down otherwise they would forget. That means, if mental capacity did evolve for higher memory, accurate processing etc, it is gone.
Same way we will get there by inhibiting an enzyme found that deletes non essential data from the brain. But if we go through another ice age or destruction - it will be gone in a few....
Voodoo Child
Registered Senior Member
It shouldn't do too much. Perhaps if intelligence is a desirable quality in a mate there may be some increase in the freq.
This doesn't mean that we won't get smarter overall, intelligence will increase as we learn better methods of education, develop better developmental aids. Our genes won't change, but we will learn to get the most out of them.
Not the beings, the genes. And relative rates of gene heritablity are important.
"give large sums of money to the physically and mentally superior if they are willing to have 5+ children."
GOD NO! There is no problem with this if we could decide who was mentally supperior. YET, the problem is people are blind when it comes to oppions like this. People might think Bush is smart! How can we tell who is smart? Many people who are in the "upper portions" of society are pompous bastards. Not to mention, intelligence usually has very very very little to do with genes and A LOT to do with upbringing.
"Not the beings, the genes. "
Genes aren't alive, therefore cannot be killed. Yes I did mean beings, because it is the beings who are killed.
GOD NO! There is no problem with this if we could decide who was mentally supperior. YET, the problem is people are blind when it comes to oppions like this. People might think Bush is smart! How can we tell who is smart? Many people who are in the "upper portions" of society are pompous bastards. Not to mention, intelligence usually has very very very little to do with genes and A LOT to do with upbringing.
"Not the beings, the genes. "
Genes aren't alive, therefore cannot be killed. Yes I did mean beings, because it is the beings who are killed.