General Discussion

exboyfil

(18,370 posts)

4. The amount of time a civilization remains

Fri Feb 19, 2016, 05:12 PM

Feb 2016

at a technological state for detection. One of the variables in the Drake Equation.

I personally think technological life is extremely rare. Rare such that one technological civilization in our entire galaxy is not unreasonable. Evolution does not necessarily push towards tool use, and even tool use does not guarantee an advancement towards higher forms of technology.

Mistake is not the right word. We are what we are. Perhaps our machines will give our species a form of immortality (or at least a civilization measured in billions of years). Perhaps not.

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Are we humans an evolutionary mistake? [View all] Cyrano Feb 2016 OP

Evolution can never be a "mistake"... TreasonousBastard Feb 2016 #1

Life forms evolve in response to the challenges of existence during their ladjf Feb 2016 #35

My thoughts too! IMO the main destructive aspect of humans is competition rather than cooperation. RKP5637 Feb 2016 #54

I totally agree with your thinking. ladjf Feb 2016 #55

"America is fortunate to have citizens of his stature who are willing to lead us." When I RKP5637 Feb 2016 #60

I looked up several of your previous posts and was delighted to ladjf Feb 2016 #62

Thanks, that is very nice of you to say that, and I think the same of you! n/t RKP5637 Feb 2016 #65

Evolution is a mistake. Rex Feb 2016 #2

Interesting hypothesis regarding formation of life exboyfil Feb 2016 #12

Thanks that is a very interesting read. Rex Feb 2016 #33

Life is due to random coincidences. Death is due to the organism's inability ladjf Feb 2016 #36

It was a joke. Rex Feb 2016 #39

NASA is sending up a new telescope that is 100 times more powerful than Hubble. ladjf Feb 2016 #40

I cannot wait! Hubble brought us groundbreaking imagery of the night sky. Rex Feb 2016 #42

This is a great OP. It has caused a good number of people ladjf Feb 2016 #57

One of the reasons I still hang out here, DU has great discussions. Rex Feb 2016 #64

There are many profound thoughts in this thread Cyrano Feb 2016 #66

Ah. Ffs irony is all over this nadinbrzezinski Feb 2016 #3

The amount of time a civilization remains exboyfil Feb 2016 #4

And it's about to become even rarer pscot Feb 2016 #10

Definitely exboyfil Feb 2016 #13

David Byrne nailed it a long time ago. hifiguy Feb 2016 #20

I think it may be more common. DamnYankeeInHouston Feb 2016 #18

Of course you can't draw conclusions form one set of data exboyfil Feb 2016 #21

We know nothing. Either way would not surprise me. DamnYankeeInHouston Feb 2016 #30

Humans simply can't imagine Crunchy Frog Feb 2016 #51

I'd say that nothing evolution is responsible for is a mistake. randome Feb 2016 #5

Mutations are random exboyfil Feb 2016 #16

imo human species is an evolutionary mistake that will go the way of all parasites that get out of Vincardog Feb 2016 #6

No, just repukes. KamaAina Feb 2016 #7

That's a meaningless question. Evolution is not a guided process. Yo_Mama Feb 2016 #8

There can only be mistakes when there's a purpose Xipe Totec Feb 2016 #9

Nah. hifiguy Feb 2016 #11

J B S Haldane, when asked about the major characteristic of the creator, said: longship Feb 2016 #17

God loves bacteria exboyfil Feb 2016 #22

Well played my friend. longship Feb 2016 #24

I have tenacious Republicans Cyrano Feb 2016 #32

And while they were at it, they created the most important innovation ladjf Feb 2016 #37

I think he actually said "an inordinate fondness for The Beatles." NobodyHere Feb 2016 #29

No! "Send more Chuck Berry!" longship Feb 2016 #31

K&R n/t Dalai_1 Feb 2016 #14

Yes. ananda Feb 2016 #15

"mistake" is not what evolution does 0rganism Feb 2016 #19

Yes and when you look at birds exboyfil Feb 2016 #23

More like a case of too much success, a evolutionary breakthrough. bemildred Feb 2016 #25

Depending on your definition of mistake... gcomeau Feb 2016 #26

No mistakes in evolution. Basic LA Feb 2016 #27

Well, you know there is that "great flood" myth.... 7wo7rees Feb 2016 #28

I suspect that we are actually 2naSalit Feb 2016 #34

We are destroying the only known biosphere in the universe tabasco Feb 2016 #38

got that right. lindysalsagal Feb 2016 #44

+1 mountain grammy Feb 2016 #53

Does evolution have a right answer? Nuclear Unicorn Feb 2016 #41

Evolutionarily speaking... discntnt_irny_srcsm Feb 2016 #49

Yeah, but math sucks so -- -- WIN! Nuclear Unicorn Feb 2016 #63

All of the things you listed as positives are only good in our imaginations The2ndWheel Feb 2016 #43

Not a mistake, just a variation ... hatrack Feb 2016 #45

K&R... spanone Feb 2016 #46

Lesswrong.com AngryAmish Feb 2016 #47

No such thing, as evolution is non-teleological. Crunchy Frog Feb 2016 #48

I think it comes down to humans developing imagination Marrah_G Feb 2016 #50

Big, fat, beer-guzzling manatee with disappearing sponge-like brains... kentuck Feb 2016 #52

The hip ball does not fit in the socket of the pelvis librechik Feb 2016 #56

no. actually, from a natural selection pov, we are quite successful restorefreedom Feb 2016 #58

Go the way of the dinosaurs? Of course we will. lumberjack_jeff Feb 2016 #59

Our technology has outpaced our biological evolution... JCMach1 Feb 2016 #61