Subject:
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Re: Future of Humanity (was: lotsa stuff)
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.off-topic.debate
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Date:
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Mon, 22 Oct 2001 15:58:34 GMT
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Viewed:
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830 times
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In lugnet.off-topic.debate, Larry Pieniazek writes:
> In lugnet.off-topic.debate, Ross Crawford writes:
> > > In part it depends on your definition of "we". Humanity has "stopped
> > > evolution" recently,
> >
> > When? No-one told me...
>
> Too early to tell for sure but we as a species have in part stopped evolving
> because we have shut down most of the selection factors (disease, famine,
> the birth defect effect on reproduction)
I'm not quite sure I agree that those are the reasons we've put evolution on
pause. After all, if a species is able to overcome certain challenges
(disease, famine, etc), aren't they *not* selection factors?
The birth defect thing and genetic engineering thing are what I think stops
the evolution process more-- if we had the ability to give ourselves a 6th
finger, would we? If we could give ourselves protective leathery skin, would
we? I think we're more likely as a species to choose only that which appears
attractive to us-- we all 'want' to be "perfect humans" rather than
"something better".
> As for the survival of the race, we have to get over the next 100 and out
> into the rest of the system (99+++% of the resource, energy and cubic exists
> off earth). If we do that we're a lock. It matters not that there are not
> hospitable environments out there. We make our own. It matters not that we
> may not have FTL. We'll build arcs in hollowed out asteroids and send
> generationships.
Here I agree-- I don't think we're realistically looking for already
habitable planets. I think those would be so ridiculously rare that we might
as well not bother. We'd be far better suited to either look for worlds we
can terraform or at least worlds we can populate in artificial environments.
> Me, I'm an optimist, I have faith in our basic goodness and our amazing
> cleverness. But then I'm American.
I think I'll side with the pessimistic team a bit more-- 100 years to
colonize other planets in the solar system? Nah. The moon, maybe, but I
dunno about other planets. 1000 years for other solar systems? Nah. But
other planets/moons in this solar system maybe. But maybe that's just my
pessimism talking. Oh, I'm also an American :)
DaveE
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Message is in Reply To:
 | | Re: Future of Humanity (was: lotsa stuff)
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| (...) Too early to tell for sure but we as a species have in part stopped evolving because we have shut down most of the selection factors (disease, famine, the birth defect effect on reproduction) As for the survival of the race, we have to get (...) (23 years ago, 22-Oct-01, to lugnet.off-topic.debate)
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