NationStates Jolt Archive

In your opinion what is humanity's purpose on this planet? Why are we here? This is sort of a scientific question as well as a theological one. Another question is; are we alone. As the most inteligent species on earth, and with several new planets being discovered yearly, are we truly alone? Or is there something else out there?

We don't have a purpose, we simply are. And there is almost definately other intelligent life in the universe somewhere(cos there's bugger all down here on earth).

To piss you off and make you start threads on NSG. :p

Does there have to be a reason for everything?

Plastic.

The Earth wants plastic and we are part of Earth's process for creating it. When Earth has the amount of plastic it desires, we will probably be phased out. *nod*

In the beginning, God created the earth, and he looked upon it in His cosmic loneliness.

And God said, "Let Us make living creatures out of mud, so the mud can see what We have done." And God created every living creature that now moveth, and one was man. Mud as man alone could speak. God leaned close as mud as man sat up, looked around, and spoke. Man blinked. "What is the purpose of all this?" he asked politely.

"Everything must have a purpose?" asked God.

"Certainly," said man.

"Then I leave it to you to think of one for all this," said God.

And He went away.

We don't have a purpose, we simply are. And there is almost definately other intelligent life in the universe somewhere(cos there's bugger all down here on earth).

I hope to live long enough to see one of these said "other intelligent life" appear on earth. It is really a drag to only be able to have intelligent conversations with other humans.

Does there have to be a reason for everything?

Of course not; it was just a question to get your opinions.

In the beginning, God created the earth, and he looked upon it in His cosmic loneliness.

And God said, "Let Us make living creatures out of mud, so the mud can see what We have done." And God created every living creature that now moveth, and one was man. Mud as man alone could speak. God leaned close as mud as man sat up, looked around, and spoke. Man blinked. "What is the purpose of all this?" he asked politely.

"Everything must have a purpose?" asked God.

"Certainly," said man.

"Then I leave it to you to think of one for all this," said God.

And He went away.

Funny. :p I don't think God will ever come back; he is probably sitting in heaven regretting ever giving the mud life.

No reason, no purpose. The devlopment of species does not serve a purpose, or a methology, or a direction. There is no goal or end point.

We evolved as chance and evolutionary pressures dictated. We are what we are.

I hope to live long enough to see one of these said "other intelligent life" appear on earth. It is really a drag to only be able to have intelligent conversations with other humans.

You might want to get to work on some longevity projects then.

Funny. :p I don't think God will ever come back; he is probably sitting in heaven regretting ever giving the mud life.

It's Kurt Vonnegut. Doesn't anyone read anymore?

We have no purpose. We require no purpose. We exist. That is enough. Any additional pursuit we devote ourselves to, any additional delusion of worth or grandeur we give ourselves has no true bearing on reality. Even from a scientific standpoint we are just the latest and currently "most evolved" in a long line of extinct creatures.

We are transient, we are limited, we are mortal.

If that sounds cynical to you, please reread what I have posted. It is not the standpoint of a nihilist, merely one who believes that humanity has no underlying or external destiny. I still believe that we give ourselves a destiny by pursuing what we wish to pursue in our every day lives, and this gives us a personal meaning to life, one that is arguably more important than any underlying meaning we might have. But to suggest that all of humanity has a purpose or a destiny is, in my opinion, wrong.

I agree with what you have said, and I don't think you are cynical. In fact this is what I have always thought. Most of my family don't believe in evolution, and they believe that humanity is gods devine creation and therefore must have a purpose. I don't think so.

In your opinion what is humanity's purpose on this planet? Why are we here? This is sort of a scientific question as well as a theological one. Another question is; are we alone. As the most inteligent species on earth, and with several new planets being discovered yearly, are we truly alone? Or is there something else out there?

We have no purpose. We require no purpose. We exist. That is enough. Any additional pursuit we devote ourselves to, any additional delusion of worth or grandeur we give ourselves has no true bearing on reality. Even from a scientific standpoint we are just the latest and currently "most evolved" in a long line of extinct creatures.

We are transient, we are limited, we are mortal.

If that sounds cynical to you, please reread what I have posted. It is not the standpoint of a nihilist, merely one who believes that humanity has no underlying or external destiny. I still believe that we give ourselves a destiny by pursuing what we wish to pursue in our every day lives, and this gives us a personal meaning to life, one that is arguably more important than any underlying meaning we might have. But to suggest that all of humanity has a purpose or a destiny is, in my opinion, wrong.

I agree with what you have said, and I don't think you are cynical. In fact this is what I have always thought. Most of my family don't believe in evolution, and they believe that humanity is gods devine creation and therefore must have a purpose. I don't think so.

an egotistical, nonsensical, and quite unsupported view, I fear.

You might want to get to work on some longevity projects then.

Yep, if I were an intelligent life form from another planet, I would stay as far away from earth as possible. Getting shot by some paronoid redneck is not very appealing.

To fill the universe with our intelligence and to discover and control the mechanisms of reality itself. With that superhuman power we will eventually engineer not only new descendant universes tailored to developing new forms of intelligent life but also to provide for our own escape from this one when the time comes. Mankind has been given a gift, not only to be a product of natural forces but to understand and control them, and with that power transcend the form that nature has given us and truly control our destiny as individuals and as a species.

I feel personally that we, along with any other intelligent civilizations in existence, are the product of some civilization far higher than ours in another universe entirely that created the laws of this universe for whatever purposes they saw fit. It is our duty to fill this universe with our intelligence in order to continue that process.

Personally, I feel our universe is part of a timeless project of cosmic evolution that is intended to perhaps one day bring about a truly eternal intelligence. Perhaps that is what we think of when we speak of God.

To fill the universe with our intelligence and to discover and control the mechanisms of reality itself. With that superhuman power we will eventually engineer not only new descendant universes tailored to developing new forms of intelligent life but also to provide for our own escape from this one when the time comes. Mankind has been given a gift, not only to be a product of natural forces but to understand and control them, and with that power transcend the form that nature has given us and truly control our destiny as individuals and as a species.

I feel personally that we, along with any other intelligent civilizations in existence, are the product of some civilization far higher than ours in another universe entirely that created the laws of this universe for whatever purposes they saw fit. It is our duty to fill this universe with our intelligence in order to continue that process.

Personally, I feel our universe is part of a timeless project of cosmic evolution that is intended to perhaps one day bring about a truly eternal intelligence. Perhaps that is what we think of when we speak of God.


Wow. This is the most interesting view I have read so far.

Yep, if I were an intelligent life form from another planet, I would stay as far away from earth as possible. Getting shot by some paronoid redneck is not very appealing.

the problem with the idea of aliens is that society has been "star trekized". It's the idea that aliens are out there, they look sorta like us, except maybe different ears, or different colored skin.

Or maybe something as radical as horns.

The fact is that if there is intelligent life out there, it's highly questionably whether they are:

1) within the range of any type of communication
2) recognizable to us as intelligent.

The purpose of humanity is to fill an evolutionary niche, which usually translates into hunting and devouring other species, and being devoured in turn. In short, we control the domestic animal population and help regenerate the oxygen-producing plant population after we die.

All this bullshit about 'intelligence' and 'reason' is just that, bullshit. If humanity is so much more intelligent, why does it act exactly the same way as the 'lower' animals do, just in a more high-tech manner?

To use up all the damn oil before it leaks out and pollutes the oceans. Duh.

And eat all the food, kill all the animals, destroy the ozone, breathe all the oxygen and then we ourselves will die. And the earth will become a lifeless shell. Nothing like its former self again. VERY pessimistic.

I'm sorry, I'm being a little dull today. You're talking about the creationists, right?

Creationists, the "I don't believe in evolution" folks the "if you find a watch in the forest..." people.

Call it what you will

Believing that humanity has no true purpose doesn't seem very anthrocentric to me.

No, it isn't. THe inverse is. Believing there is a purpose requires there to be a direction. Having a direction means someone set us up in the direction. It means we're important enough to matter on some larger cosmic level.

To use up all the damn oil before it leaks out and pollutes the oceans. Duh.

In your opinion what is humanity's purpose on this planet? Why are we here? This is sort of a scientific question as well as a theological one. Another question is; are we alone. As the most inteligent species on earth, and with several new planets being discovered yearly, are we truly alone? Or is there something else out there?

Purpose? Eat, shit, fuck and sleep. Mostly.

And there's most likely something out there.

3) and even if we can recognize them as intelligent, if either side has the faculties required to adequately communicate between the two species.

seriously. After 10 years of study I have enough trouble with french. I am unsure how I'd deal with a silicone based plant life that communicates through pheramones.

We have no set purpose. Option 4 (Burn, pillage, destroy, etc.) is what we do, of course, but it isn't our purpose; that would imply planning, forethought and destiny, rather than greed and unthinking stupidity.

an egotistical, nonsensical, and quite unsupported view, I fear.

I'm sorry, I'm being a little dull today. You're talking about the creationists, right?

Believing that humanity has no true purpose doesn't seem very anthrocentric to me.

the problem with the idea of aliens is that society has been "star trekized". It's the idea that aliens are out there, they look sorta like us, except maybe different ears, or different colored skin.

Or maybe something as radical as horns.

The fact is that if there is intelligent life out there, it's highly questionably whether they are:

1) within the range of any type of communication
2) recognizable to us as intelligent.

I don't believe that other intelligent life forms will look anything similar to a human. Why should they, they developed in a different enviroment thus they must evolve and adapt differently. Earth may not be at all unique but its species that inhabit it are. Since we developed under different circumstances, other intelligent life will not look like us in the least.

the problem with the idea of aliens is that society has been "star trekized". It's the idea that aliens are out there, they look sorta like us, except maybe different ears, or different colored skin.

Or maybe something as radical as horns.

The fact is that if there is intelligent life out there, it's highly questionably whether they are:

1) within the range of any type of communication
2) recognizable to us as intelligent.
I've been saying this for years. ;)

Unless you're one of those crackpots that believes humans are extraterrestrial in origin. In which case they could have been a differently evolved form of Vulcans or Eldar or what have you.

the problem with the idea of aliens is that society has been "star trekized". It's the idea that aliens are out there, they look sorta like us, except maybe different ears, or different colored skin.

Or maybe something as radical as horns.

The fact is that if there is intelligent life out there, it's highly questionably whether they are:

1) within the range of any type of communication
2) recognizable to us as intelligent.

3) and even if we can recognize them as intelligent, if either side has the faculties required to adequately communicate between the two species.

The purpose of humanity is to ask stupid questions as if they were profound.

3) and even if we can recognize them as intelligent, if either side has the faculties required to adequately communicate between the two species.

Some scientists believe that there may be other intelligent life out there, but it most likely is not much more advanced than we ourselves are. They think this because of the some universal timeline after the Big Bang or something. It is a plausible idea. But I have no trouble lending thought to the idea that out there, there may be a significantly more advanced species.

The purpose of humanity is to fill an evolutionary niche, which usually translates into hunting and devouring other species, and being devoured in turn. In short, we control the domestic animal population and help regenerate the oxygen-producing plant population after we die.

All this bullshit about 'intelligence' and 'reason' is just that, bullshit. If humanity is so much more intelligent, why does it act exactly the same way as the 'lower' animals do, just in a more high-tech manner?

because we are, at the end of the day, animals. However with intellect and higher reasoning we are capable of overcoming that.

If I dangle a cat toy, my cat will often bat at it, and bite for it. I do not think he choses to, or makes the concious effort to. It moves, it jingles, it focuses in on some primal kitty instinct, he goes for it. That is all.

Humanity can, presumably from time to time, resist those animalistic impulses. This is why I am sitting in an office and not running throught he commons naked attempting to have sex with the first woman I see.

The purpose of humanity is to fill an evolutionary niche, which usually translates into hunting and devouring other species, and being devoured in turn. In short, we control the domestic animal population and help regenerate the oxygen-producing plant population after we die.

All this bullshit about 'intelligence' and 'reason' is just that, bullshit. If humanity is so much more intelligent, why does it act exactly the same way as the 'lower' animals do, just in a more high-tech manner?

Because the only thing more intelligence is useful for is figuring out more elaborate ways to kill things. :D

Some scientists believe that there may be other intelligent life out there, but it most likely is not much more advanced than we ourselves are. They think this because of the some universal timeline after the Big Bang or something. It is a plausible idea. But I have no trouble lending thought to the idea that out there, there may be a significantly more advanced species.

some, not most. The reason most scientists don't believe this is they have no method to reach that conclusion. We don't even have any idea what the odds of evolution producing an intelligent species are. We can't even begin to calculate how many intelligent races, if any, there are, let alone how advanced they are.

Because the only thing more intelligence is useful for is figuring out more elaborate ways to kill things. :D

Nuclear weapons, and biological weapons of mass infection are the most profound things humans have created or done. Is that what you are saying?

Nuclear weapons, and biological weapons of mass infection are the most profound things humans have created or done. Is that what you are saying?

depends on your definition of profound, I suppose.

They are arguably among the most globally influential.

I don't believe that other intelligent life forms will look anything similar to a human. Why should they, they developed in a different enviroment thus they must evolve and adapt differently. Earth may not be at all unique but its species that inhabit it are. Since we developed under different circumstances, other intelligent life will not look like us in the least.

For instance, species older than ours may have developed to breathe hydrogen, considering the abundance of hydrogen in the universe; their bodies may be simply energy; or they may require temperatures in the high billions Kelvin to survive and thus would only be able to live in our Sun.....

Another common mistake I've noticed people making is to design non-humanoid aliens after another Earth species. Amphibians, insects, mammals, and birds may be, for all we know, unique to Earth; other planets might have their own complex set of subspecies.

Because the only thing more intelligence is useful for is figuring out more elaborate ways to kill things. :D

True, but one would assume if intelligence was what set humans apart from animals, they'd use it for something other than 'animal' or 'basic survival' purposes (i.e. beating the next pack over, finding food, attaining a pleasurable sensation), simply because they'd be able to do that without intelligence already, so they may as well use the intelligence for something else.

Er, that didn't make any sense, as usual. *sigh*

some, not most. The reason most scientists don't believe this is they have no method to reach that conclusion. We don't even have any idea what the odds of evolution producing an intelligent species are. We can't even begin to calculate how many intelligent races, if any, there are, let alone how advanced they are.

True. But I like to think that there is a more intelligent species out there. One that has outgrown is urge to wage war on anything that offends it. Humans may be the most advanced and dominant species on earth, but I think that when compared to other cosmic civilizations that may or may not be in the universe; you will find that humans are quite primitive. Maybe not in technology, in humanity's morals. You will go to prison for killing someone, and then the state turns around and kills you... what does this achieve? Or, you cant kill someone at home, but go to the battlefront and kill hundreds of people and we will give you a medal.
All I am saying is that maybe other species are not as advanced or maybe even a little more advanced. But I truly hope that other intelligent life is more mature than humanity and has outgrown sensless primitive urges.

Some scientists believe that there may be other intelligent life out there, but it most likely is not much more advanced than we ourselves are. They think this because of the some universal timeline after the Big Bang or something. It is a plausible idea. But I have no trouble lending thought to the idea that out there, there may be a significantly more advanced species.

While that makes sense, there was a recent discovery that I read about in Astronomy Magazen's ...November Issue(?) that astronomers had discovered a planet believed to have formed only 300 million years after the Big Bang, which, if confirmed, is going to force us to redesign our models on planetary formation, or at least take into account new methods we previously didn't think possible.

Given the now clear abundance of planets (albeit largely Jupiteresque planets, though this had to do with our distance from stars and the detection methods we use), then it planets were forming at 300 million years after the Big Bang, and have been forming ever since, it's potentially possible that an intelligent species out there has a couple billion years' head start on us.

Keep in mind that while this is plausible, it is 100% PURE speculation.

none, or whatever it is we cannot fathom it, I feel we're just strings of code in a series of continuous iterations which began since the dawn of time. Generation after generation rise and fall just to pass on their dna, life is just mechanical, its one cog in a gigantic clockwork which has no reason, which is beyond human rationality. This existence is like the beta version of some better universe where there we arent tormented by questions of purpose etc

But we're also steadily learning that "dumb" animals are more intelligent than we previously believed them to be. A professor of mine once told me a fairly amusing anecdote about a friend of his, while we were discussing intelligence as it relates to religion (he was a professor of philosophy who taught a Phil. Religion class every year. So sue me.)

His friend had a fairly large golden retriever, whose leash, for when they went walking, was kept on a hanger near the door. One day the dog walks into the living room of his friends house, which happens to be where the entrance is, knocks the leash off of the hook on the door (which he does quite often, and is nothing spectacular) and walks with it in his mouth over to my professor's friend, who is sitting in a fairly comfortable armchair reading.

He looks at the dog, takes the leash from him, and walks with the dog to the door. Just as they're arriving at the door, an amble distance away from where they were, the dog bounds back to the armchair, jumps up on it, and promptly goes to sleep.

Interpret that how you will.

My brother has two very large great danes, one older one younger. They constantly compete for toys. On more than one occassion, if the younger has something the older wants, the older one, being wiser, will go to the door and start barking. The younger one, following his lead, will ALSO go to the door and start barking, merely because the ohter one did.

At which point the older one walks back and reclaims the toy.

While that makes sense, there was a recent discovery that I read about in Astronomy Magazen's ...November Issue(?) that astronomers had discovered a planet believed to have formed only 300 million years after the Big Bang, which, if confirmed, is going to force us to redesign our models on planetary formation, or at least take into account new methods we previously didn't think possible.

Given the now clear abundance of planets (albeit largely Jupiteresque planets, though this had to do with our distance from stars and the detection methods we use), then it planets were forming at 300 million years after the Big Bang, and have been forming ever since, it's potentially possible that an intelligent species out there has a couple billion years' head start on us.

Keep in mind that while this is plausible, it is 100% PURE speculation.


Yes, but I have also read somewhere and seen on various television specials dealing with this question, that if a species were to develope before humans and become drasticly more advanced than it would inevitably destroy itself. The same with humans, soon, we will become so advanced that we are at risk of destroying ourselves; in fact we are already advanced enough. What this is, is the tendency for advanced species to cause their own demise.

because we are, at the end of the day, animals. However with intellect and higher reasoning we are capable of overcoming that.

If I dangle a cat toy, my cat will often bat at it, and bite for it. I do not think he choses to, or makes the concious effort to. It moves, it jingles, it focuses in on some primal kitty instinct, he goes for it. That is all.

Humanity can, presumably from time to time, resist those animalistic impulses. This is why I am sitting in an office and not running throught he commons naked attempting to have sex with the first woman I see.

But we're also steadily learning that "dumb" animals are more intelligent than we previously believed them to be. A professor of mine once told me a fairly amusing anecdote about a friend of his, while we were discussing intelligence as it relates to religion (he was a professor of philosophy who taught a Phil. Religion class every year. So sue me.)

His friend had a fairly large golden retriever, whose leash, for when they went walking, was kept on a hanger near the door. One day the dog walks into the living room of his friends house, which happens to be where the entrance is, knocks the leash off of the hook on the door (which he does quite often, and is nothing spectacular) and walks with it in his mouth over to my professor's friend, who is sitting in a fairly comfortable armchair reading.

He looks at the dog, takes the leash from him, and walks with the dog to the door. Just as they're arriving at the door, an amble distance away from where they were, the dog bounds back to the armchair, jumps up on it, and promptly goes to sleep.

Interpret that how you will.

The purpose of humanity is to ask stupid questions as if they were profound.
I think that wins a sig.

If I dangle a cat toy, my cat will often bat at it, and bite for it. I do not think he choses to, or makes the concious effort to. It moves, it jingles, it focuses in on some primal kitty instinct, he goes for it. That is all.
Actually, my cat frequently refuses to play with me. Either because she's tired, or bored, or knows that it isn't a threat. (Or simply doesn't want to play.) All of those involve or imply some kind of learning process similar to what goes on in human heads, although not as highly evolved.

While that makes sense, there was a recent discovery that I read about in Astronomy Magazen's ...November Issue(?) that astronomers had discovered a planet believed to have formed only 300 million years after the Big Bang, which, if confirmed, is going to force us to redesign our models on planetary formation, or at least take into account new methods we previously didn't think possible.

Given the now clear abundance of planets (albeit largely Jupiteresque planets, though this had to do with our distance from stars and the detection methods we use), then it planets were forming at 300 million years after the Big Bang, and have been forming ever since, it's potentially possible that an intelligent species out there has a couple billion years' head start on us.

Keep in mind that while this is plausible, it is 100% PURE speculation.
This is actually what I based my nation on: my species evolved some 13 billion years before humans first emerged on the scene, so it would have been on a very early planet that might have contained only the first twenty-six elements, such as those about which scientists are currently theorising. But that's beside the point.

God probably got sick of all the other intelligent life in the universe so he created humanity to get rid of it. He figured once we develop the technology to get off this earth we would go looking for other peaceful species for us to slaughter and take their world.

Thats what we are, essentially the great flood of the universe. :cool: :upyours:

Eh, our purpose is what we give ourselves. Wanna be devoted to war? Sure, have fun. Wanna cure a few diseases? Go right ahead. Want to achieve faster than light travel and be the first man to see ET? Go right ahead, no one's gonna stop you.

Eh, our purpose is what we give ourselves. Wanna be devoted to war? Sure, have fun. Wanna cure a few diseases? Go right ahead. Want to achieve faster than light travel and be the first man to see ET? Go right ahead, no one's gonna stop you.

I might stop him, I wanna see ET first.

God probably got sick of all the other intelligent life in the universe so he created humanity to get rid of it. He figured once we develop the technology to get off this earth we would go looking for other peaceful species for us to slaughter and take their world.

Thats what we are, essentially the great flood of the universe. :cool: :upyours:

I highly doubt that humanity will ever develope the technology to travel beyond our own solar system, by the time we develope the technology to even attempt intergalactic travel, the distances involved would have already changed. It is Einsteins theory of an expanding universe, we will gradually get farther and farther away until finnally any intergalactic travel would be rendered impossible.

I might stop him, I wanna see ET first.

I am right behind you Ifreann I want to see ET first too. So after you take him down, I'll take you down. Then I will be the first man to see ET.

Hehehehehe, clever bastard of a dog.:D

My belief is based on all the things I´ve learned and saw.

And the only thing I´ve learned so far is the pattern that everything is trying to grow into new organizations.

Ok, its too generic. The idea is that everything in the universe, all the laws, all the people, try to get together with their equals to create something bigger and more complex.

We cant know how it started. Even the atom has individual parts inside it. But we know the atom is quite small. Some atom´s gathered together and formed a molecule. A molecule grouped together with more molecules and made a protein. A protein gathered with other proteins and made a cell. Cells grouped together and made tissue. Tissue grouped together and formed bigger organisms.

Ok, so far we have all learned that. But it doesnt stop there. Animals group together and form clans and groups. Groups join each other to create populations. We, as humans, join each other and create even bigger things. From village to town to city to states to nations to empires to the entire planet earth.

Everything gathers togethers and try to create something new. A single human cant build a city. Once he gathers with others, he creates a city and becomes part of it.

And what is amazing is that if there is a life form so big we really cant even begin to imagine it, he could look down on earth and think its a single entity, just like we see an atom and think its a single entity. Yet, to this other being, he would look at us humans and think we are nothing but smaller pieces of this atom, and would call us quarks or some other scientific name.

So, the purpose would be to grow. Why? I have no clue. But its the natural laws. Two objects come together because of gravity, and planets in space create star systems. Electrons and protons come together to create a neutral object. Chemical elements trade eletrons so they can reach a state of equilibriun, and by doing that create new kinds of matter.

That means our purpose is to create something bigger too. We have been going at it slowly. We started with families, and now we have nations all over the globe. One day we will go to other planets, and there may be a single nation on earth. From other planets, we could go to other systems, to other galaxies, until we reach a new level of development that takes us even further. So much that one day, in millions, billions of years, we may look at our own selves and consider planets as nothing but a very small part of our own being, just as we look today to the cells of our bodies and dont seem to mind them very much.

Why? Dont know, probabily never will know. Its just a pattern that I´ve noticed both in natural laws and in human and animal behavion, so that I consider to be truthfull.

My brother has two very large great danes, one older one younger. They constantly compete for toys. On more than one occassion, if the younger has something the older wants, the older one, being wiser, will go to the door and start barking. The younger one, following his lead, will ALSO go to the door and start barking, merely because the ohter one did.

At which point the older one walks back and reclaims the toy.

Which is a very clear sign of at least some cognitive ability.

because we are, at the end of the day, animals. However with intellect and higher reasoning we are capable of overcoming that.

If I dangle a cat toy, my cat will often bat at it, and bite for it. I do not think he choses to, or makes the concious effort to. It moves, it jingles, it focuses in on some primal kitty instinct, he goes for it. That is all.

Humanity can, presumably from time to time, resist those animalistic impulses. This is why I am sitting in an office and not running throught he commons naked attempting to have sex with the first woman I see.

true and we also have the potential to master that which brought us into existence so one day we might transcend nature

Id like to think we're going to be joining the intergalactic community soon

Yes, but I have also read somewhere and seen on various television specials dealing with this question, that if a species were to develope before humans and become drasticly more advanced than it would inevitably destroy itself. The same with humans, soon, we will become so advanced that we are at risk of destroying ourselves; in fact we are already advanced enough. What this is, is the tendency for advanced species to cause their own demise.

What you're thinking of a technological singularity, I think. And while yes, it would lead to self-destruction, it's not necessarily an inevitable result.

If a species can manage to progress its culture at an agreeable pace with its technological advancement, you will probably be able to develop a species that is mature enough to handle the big toys it's made for itself.

What you're thinking of a technological singularity, I think. And while yes, it would lead to self-destruction, it's not necessarily an inevitable result.

If a species can manage to progress its culture at an agreeable pace with its technological advancement, you will probably be able to develop a species that is mature enough to handle the big toys it's made for itself.

I hope that humans will mature up a little. Look at the cold war for example; the inability for humans to work out problems with our ideological views and the availibility of weapons of mass destruction almost ended life on this earth. Most clearly seen during the Cuban Missile Crisis in which the United States and the Soviet Union were on the brink of nuclear war. But I agree, if a culture is as advanced as the technology available, the parent species may be able to avoid a catastrophe that would lead to its own destruction.

I am right behind you Ifreann I want to see ET first too. So after you take him down, I'll take you down. Then I will be the first man to see ET.

Not if I kill you first!
rawr

This thread is time warping like hell. I'm going to go get some errands done and eat lunch.

Not if I kill you first!
rawr

*Nope, I am but an illusion, you cannot kill an illusion.*
Unless you kill yourself, then I, the illusion of your imagination, am screwed.

Nihilism my friend, nihilism.

Me, and incidentally, all the rest of you as well.

Each individual is his or her own goal, own end. We exist for ourselves, and those to whom we might freely dedicate ourselves.

Which is a very clear sign of at least some cognitive ability.

cognitive ability yes. Higher thinking, no. Which is a very big distinction.

Dogs for instance are capable of some degree of logical action. I want chair. He is in chair. He needs to get out of chair. How do I get him out of chair?

It's some degree of primitive thought process, desires, and methods to achieve desires.

The difference is how well they process higher thinking. Take, for example, the gorrilla who learns sign language. They say this gorilla has learned "language", but this is not true. At best she has learned communication.

She has learned that if she wants a banana, and she does this particular motion with her hands, she gets a banana. Likewise a dog learns, that when told to sit, he sits down.

The gorilla does not understand the word "banana", nor does the dog understand the word "sit". All they understand is cause and effect. Gorilla does this, gorilla gets a banana. Person does this, person wants dog to sit down.

I could train a dog, if I wanted to, to go to a particular area of my apartment and lie down when he wants food. Cause and effect. Do this for that.

We cognitively understand the word "banana", we understand what the word means. We understand what "sit" means. Animals, it is likely, do not. There is no higher function there. It's simply an understanding of cause and effect. I do this, this happens.

What is the purpose of humanity?

For my people, the answer is:

We are equal to, and no more or less important than anything else in existence. But as humans, we have a special responsibility to take care of the earth, and all living/non-living things.

How that plays out complicates things a bit, but that is the basis of our raison d'etre.

What is the purpose of humanity?

For my people, the answer is:

We are equal to, and no more or less important than anything else in existence. But as humans, we have a special responsibility to take care of the earth, and all living/non-living things.

How that plays out complicates things a bit, but that is the basis of our raison d'etre.

I also believe we have a responsibility to the earth and its inhabitants. But frankly, so far we have failed in this responsibility.

I also believe we have a responsibility to the earth and its inhabitants. But frankly, so far we have failed in this responsibility.

Failure suggests we have reached an end, and a reckoning is being made.

But we still exist. It's still possible to succeed.

I also believe we have a responsibility to the earth and its inhabitants. But frankly, so far we have failed in this responsibility.

but responsibility...to whom? Can we be responsible to an inatimate object like a planet? We can be responsible FOR one, certainly, but that's usually in guardianship for someone else. I can take care of someone's plants and water them if they are away, and if the plants die you can say I failed in my responsibility to the plant owners.

But do I have some responsibility to the plants themselves?

but responsibility...to whom? Can we be responsible to an inatimate object like a planet? We can be responsible FOR one, certainly, but that's usually in guardianship for someone else. I can take care of someone's plants and water them if they are away, and if the plants die you can say I failed in my responsibility to the plant owners.

But do I have some responsibility to the plants themselves?

No, you would not have a responsibility to the plants, but to the owners of the plants, because the plants are incapable of thought or feeling. But the owners are. But what I meant was sinse we ourselves are inhabitants of the earth we have a responsibilty to protect our world. And we are failing.

Failure suggests we have reached an end, and a reckoning is being made.

But we still exist. It's still possible to succeed.

Maybe, but do we have time to repair the damage?

We humans own nothing to no one. We can do anything we want.

Human value is overrated anyway.

We humans own nothing to no one. We can do anything we want.

Human value is overrated anyway.

Probably, we are a reletivly new species on earth. But we are by far the most influential. So therefore, we do owe something to the world. We, as the dominant species, should protect the life around us. It would also be to our advantage, since it is the only place we call home at this juncture.

We are equal to, and no more or less important than anything else in existence. But as humans, we have a special responsibility to take care of the earth, and all living/non-living things.


That seems like a bum deal. Having extra responsibility, but not receiving extra benefits is not something that's worth existing for in my opinion.

It sounds like we're everyone else's bitch, in a ways.

That seems like a bum deal. Having extra responsibility, but not receiving extra benefits is not something that's worth existing for in my opinion.

It sounds like we're everyone else's bitch, in a ways.

Sorry you see it that way.

I'm not interested in conversions at this moment anyway.

No, you would not have a responsibility to the plants, but to the owners of the plants, because the plants are incapable of thought or feeling. But the owners are. But what I meant was sinse we ourselves are inhabitants of the earth we have a responsibilty to protect our world. And we are failing.

But again, responsibility to whom? TO the animals? To the planet? To ourselves?

Responsibility requires a relationship. Responsibility vis-a-vis someone else.

I'm not interested in conversions at this moment anyway.

Shame, I was hoping you'd transform into a cockaroach.

But do I have some responsibility to the plants themselves?

Yes.

"All my relations".

We are related in some way to every other thing. Our responsibility is based on reciprocity.

But again, responsibility to whom? TO the animals? To the planet? To ourselves?

Responsibility requires a relationship. Responsibility vis-a-vis someone else.

Okay. We as the dominant species have a responsibility to ourselves, so much so that in turn we have a responsibility to protect the earth, sinse it is our habitat. We cannot allow the destruction of our world.

Shame, I was hoping you'd transform into a cockaroach.

I only do that on Sundays. Mondays are for transformations into micro-organisms that feed on beaver feces.

I only do that on Sundays. Mondays are for transformations into micro-organisms that feed on beaver feces.

You do that too? Sweet!

*Nope, I am but an illusion, you cannot kill an illusion.*
Unless you kill yourself, then I, the illusion of your imagination, am screwed.

http://drmcninja.com/page.php?pageNum=26&issue=2

Maybe, but do we have time to repair the damage?

Not all damage can be undone.

But we're capable of pretty amazing feats, when we put our minds to it.

If we stopped 'putting our minds' to the maximisation of profit alone, and focused instead on minimising our ecological footprints...