Reverse Revelation

In this class we have spent most of our time discussing Darwin and the implications of his actions and publishing on society. Whether right or wrong in the the context of the class, it is clear that there is a biased opinion throughout the course of anything that contradicts evolution. However, this class is not the only place where that holds true. The same thing can be said of our modern society. This has inspired me to do something similar to Darwin's actions of discovering evolution based on observation. Just as Darwin sat and observed the world and came to that revelation of evolution, I plan to talk about what revelation I have come to from sitting in our class and from observing the world around me.

To start out simply, I'd like to discuss the things that are necessary for evolution to take place. But first let's start with a definition of evolution from Merriam-Webster;

"the historical development of a biological group (as a race or species) : phylogeny b : a theory that the various types of animals and plants have their origin in other preexisting types and that the distinguishable differences are due to modifications in successive generations; also : the process described by this theory."

This leaves me asking the question 'what is needed for evolution', or to go one step back, 'what is needed for a species to survive'? The main three essentials are food, sleep and sex. Food to nourish us and to power our bodies with energy, sleep to rest and to allow our bodies to recover and repair, and last sex for the purpose of perpetuating the species. In order to survive, all we need is to prefect these skills, so why are we the curious organisms that we see today? If we follow the rules of evolution, I would say rabbits are the winners: they are able to breed fast, eat food and sleep efficiently to allow for the perpetuation of the species, which, according to evolution, is all that is the purpose of any creature.

This moves on to our next topic of discussion: what humans have that is not necessary in evolution. The first of these is certain emotions or feelings. Granted, having a sense of fear is definitely something that could have helped us to acquire food in the past, but what about embarrassment, specifically blushing. There is no reason for this emotion; it has no place in helping us in any of the three categories of food, sex and sleep, which begs the question of why do we feel it and why does the blood rush to our face what advantage does this give us? This alone provides a huge gap in what Darwin had to say, and leads me to a revelation.

Humans don't exists for the purpose of perpetuation of the species. Clearly there is something more to our existence. This is tribute to the fact that humans have an intelligence unmatched by anything else on the planet, but we also have something much much more important; the desire to improve self and society. Most humans have the desire to better themselves and to improve things and the quality of life around them. No other known life-forms show these same characteristics on scale that we do. That alone makes us unique to anything else on this planet, and much of the purpose of evolution.

In conclusion, our current existence surpasses anything that evolution intended for us to be in all areas, from thought to physical ability. We have built buildings, bridges, and monuments unlike anything else known in the universe. We have learned to fly and to break our physical limits of being grounded to the point where exploring other worlds beyond our own. Nothing can stop us; we are indeed are something more than a pile of chemicals and cells. We are the human race, whose reach knows no bounds, and if what evolution says is wholly true I feel I'd be in cave somewhere right now defecating myself.

Citation:

National Academy of the Sciences. "Frequently Asked Questions about Evolution and the Nature of Science." in Darwin 3^rd ed . Phillip Apple man, ed. New York: W.W.Norton, 2001.

Darwin, Charles. "Selections from Darwin's Work." pp 67-254 in Darwin.3^rd ed. Phillip Appleman, ed. New York: W.WNorton, 2001

Paley, William. "Natural Theology." in Darwin. 3^rd ed. Phillip Appleman, ed. New York: W.WNorton, 2001

"evolution." Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. 2009.
Merriam-Webster Online. 30 November 2009

"Blushing 'biggest gap in evolutionary theory'". telegraph.co.uk. 11/30/09 .

"Evolution: An Unscientific Faith." Web. 30 Nov 2009. .