Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
why didn't every other mammal go through a similar process (which is your question)?
Yes, in essence, that could be my question.
In "average man terms", why did humans evolve to a point where we have the mental ability to develop the current technological world we live in (amongst numerous other amazing things) while all other animals still are ... well ... animals. Then, there also begs the classic cheesy question. Why can we show a free range of emotions (laugh, cry, blah, blah, blah) when no other animal can? This just does not seem to fit the evolutionary model to me, unless we are to assume that there was some "super jump" (for lack of better words) between humans and our closest ancestor. But then again, I am admittedly ignorant to most of that model, so I am prettymuch speaking that last sentence out of my arse.
In the realm of abstract thought, we are without peer.
But who says that abstract thought is a measure of intelligence? Human Beings do, but saying that overlooks the fact that even though all the other animals don't, they still do a fine job surviving. In fact, almost all of them have survived for a lot longer than Human beings have.
Human abstract thought is nothing more than a unique trait. But once again there are millions of animals that have unique traits. Who says that in nature abstract thought should be more valued than the speed of a Cheetah or the echo locution of a bat?
But who says that abstract thought is a measure of intelligence?
Fair enough. I will end my use of giving the term intelligence a human-created conotation.
Looking past that, do you have an explanation for why we as humans evolved unique inventive traits to a point where we could create something that flies to the moon, while the unique trait of monkeys involves superior agility to swing from branch to branch? To me, that disparingly huge gap does not make sense - hense the original question.
In "average man terms", why did humans evolve to a point where we have the mental ability to develop the current technological world we live in (amongst numerous other amazing things) while all other animals still are ... well ... animals. Then, there also begs the classic cheesy question. Why can we show a free range of emotions (laugh, cry, blah, blah, blah) when no other animal can? This just does not seem to fit the evolutionary model to me, unless we are to assume that there was some "super jump" (for lack of better words) between humans and our closest ancestor. But then again, I am admittedly ignorant to most of that model, so I am prettymuch speaking that last sentence out of my arse.
You can't criticize a chimpanzee as being unintelligent because he can't do calculus? That's insane. Chimpanzees do very well within the environment they're in. They don't need calculus or computers or technology in order to survive. Human Beings do. Chimpanzees are fine just they way they are.
Such comments just go to show that you really have no understanding of how evolution works. You've got it completely wrong!!
You can't criticize a chimpanzee as being unintelligent because he can't do calculus? That's insane. Chimpanzees do very well within the environment they're in. They don't need calculus or computers or technology in order to survive. Human Beings do. Chimpanzees are fine just they way they are.
Such comments just go to show that you really have no understanding of how evolution works. You've got it completely wrong!!
We don't need calculus or computers to survive. In a natural environment, we would have survival skills just as any other animal - unique to us. But you are not getting my question. Why did humans move on past the "skill set of survival" into much more complex things - such as calculus or computers ... while no other creature did?
Fair enough. I will end my use of giving the term intelligence a human-created conotation.
Looking past that, do you have an explanation for why we as humans evolved unique inventive traits to a point where we could create something that flies to the moon, while the unique trait of monkeys involves superior agility to swing from branch to branch? To me, that disparingly huge gap does not make sense - hense the original question.
Evolution has no ultimate goal, organisms either adapt to their environments or they die. Chimpanzees did not develop human abstract thinking because they do not need it in order to survive. Humans Beings do. We're not strong, we're not fast, we're not tough, we can't fly like birds, we can't swim like fish, we can't see like eagles or in the night like cats, we don't have the sense of smell like dogs, in short Humans are weak and pathetic, we need our abstract brains in order to survive.
Evolution has no ultimate goal, organisms either adapt to their environments or they die. Chimpanzees did not develop human abstract thinking because they do not need it in order to survive. Humans Beings do. We're not strong, we're not fast, we're not tough, we can't fly like birds, we can't swim like fish, we can't see like eagles or in the night like cats, we don't have the sense of smell like dogs, in short Humans are weak and pathetic, we need our abstract brains in order to survive.
So there is only an absurd amount of difference between our ability to create and an animal's ability to create ... because we needed it to survive.
And there is no other animal nearly as weak as us in the entire world, or else they too would have developed a similar ability to think and rationalize, correct?
We don't need calculus or computers to survive. In a natural environment, we would have survival skills just as any other animal - unique to us. But you are not getting my question. Why did humans move on past the "skill set of survival" into much more complex things - such as calculus or computers ... while no other creature did?
No, Human beings had just enough to survive for a while. And it wasn't suiting us all that good. Some 60-70 thousand years ago, homo sapiens were on the verge of extinction. It was around that time that abstract thought began to develop. Abstract thought saved us from extinction, without it we'd be extinct.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
