If natural Selection picks the survival of the fitter/fittest. Why do we have hospitals and doctors?

Answer 1

Because we now have the ability to override natural selection. It doesn't necessarily exist in the true form for humans anymore.

Answer 2

This is more of a philosophical question than scientific, but if you must have my opinion (not a factual answer, you must note) then here goes. With the development of intelligence, free will, and the knowledge that we have these things, humans also developed morals. Before Darwin was talking about natural selection and survival of the fittest, men like Hippocrates and Artistotle were already formulating ideals on ethics and bioethics, and they showed how even in ancient times-when the value of human life was very different than it is today-people feel that they must do things to better individuals and therefore the community. This is why doctors and medicine developed in ancient times. So, even though natural selection is indeed a valid theory, it is not something that we can observe in the moment because man has already developed the idea of ethics and morals which dictate that we must aid our fellow man. While our actions (war, fighting, corruption, perjury: the whole nine yards) beg to prove this wrong, at our core humans are generally good, reasonable, and moral. For this reason, we have doctors, hospitals, clinics, and what have you, because humans and their "betterment of the individual/community" instinct allow us to rise above physical laws (that is, laws of nature) in order to protect our natural rights (life, liberty, happiness: lol, Locke had a point, what can I say?).


Seriously though, this question really does not belong in the biology/science section because it is a philosophical question that is in no way factual.

Answer 3

I'm constantly astounded at the ignorance displayed on these boards. Natural Selection is part of the evolutionary process. Evolution consists of genetic mutation, natural selection, and genetic drift. The phrase 'Survival of the fittest' was coined by Herbert Spencer, and has been rejected by every reputable scientist for decades now. 'Survival of the fittest' is NOT evolution. Evolution would suggested 'Survival of the best fit', if it suggests anything at all close this.

Hospitals and Doctors who treat disease, are treating harmful genetic mutations. In it's most basic form, a disease is a genetic mutation. The very fact that Doctors can treat diseases, leads to their continuation in the gene pool. Which is yet another fact that Evolution explains.

Answer 4

Hospitals are not necessarily picking out the weak-ones and helping them survive-if that's how u understand it! Let's suppose I was admitted into a Hospital, the cause being a road-accident. If I survive I can say that Hospitals helped me in the race of Survival of the Fittest. If I had to live, I would have lived even if i wasn't admitted in a Hospital. It's like that. We can call a place for recovery- a Hospital & construct a building & put in a few-experienced people-Doctors-but those who live,live & those who are destined to die, die-even Doctors cant help that!

Answer 5

Because in the case of humans, natural selection weeded out the fittest and most intelligent. Man is the only creature that has developed a brain the size to formulate ideas as we do and the physical dexterity to create objects as we have.

Some animals have been found to know what plants or foods to eat to ease discomfort, and in very rare cases, they have been observed to take care of the ill in their group. (Mostly apes and chimps, but note that even wolves will lick the wounds of their fellow pack members).

Thus, we have hospitals and doctors because we can. Call it natural selection or evolution, but we simply have developed, intellectually and in fine motor skills (thanks to that opposable thumb), far more highly than other animals.

Are you thinking that this interferes with natural selection? Quite possibly so, in some cases. Consider genetic diseases such as hemophilia, tay Sachs, sickle cell anemia, and the many disorders such as diabetes, heart disease, and even some cancers, which have a component of heredity.

If man had not learned as much medical intervention as he had, would this have furthered the concept of survival, genetically, of the fittest? Possibly. But is survival of the fittest a bad thing for man to meddle in? Of course not! Along with our medical and intellectual development, man has also developed morals, empathy, and the will to do good. Nothing wrong with that. All people deserve the opportunity to have good medical care and alleviation of maladies. Knowing that is part of our evolution.

There are many other ways that populations are controlled by nature, such as natural disasters, and the odd new virus or bacteria that pops up occasionally. Consider HIV and ebola. No need for you to fret that man is meddling where he does not belong--he is just doing what comes naturally, using his brain!

Answer 6

Hospitals and doctors are artificial effects in the realm of evolution. Natural selection is a process the occurs because of the interaction between organisms and the environment. Since we think, care, and are intelligent organisms we can sometime thwart the natural process. But even with all the medicine in the world nature will always win out. We even have the power to destroy nature, so we think, but nature will always find a way back, even if we are not here to enjoy it (extinction).

Answer 7

Because people are afraid of death and losing someone. And no matter what.. if natural selection really does pick the survival of the fittest, they will die in the hospital if it is their time anyway.

Answer 8

We are the survival of the fittest. If not why would we be here? Building hospitals and inventing doctors are just little cheats we use to prolong our species' stay on Earth. Most of our cousin lifeforms including our Great millionth grandchildren are going to die horribily in an astoriod collision anyway, unless we move to mars and the 14th planet that we are going to discover in 160 years.

Answer 9

'survival of the fittest' is an oversimplification of the theory of evolution. But besides that, we have hospitals and doctors because we have compassion. Furthermore, evolution and all of science is amoral. There are no moral lessons to be learned from science. This is where our beliefs systems come in. We can always 'rise above it'.

Answer 10

Becuase the fittest or the richest can afford the high costs of medical care.So it still boils down to the survival or the fittest or the one able to hunt better.

Answer 11

To dilute the gene pool by saving the weak & stupid. Someone decided that they were worth keeping around, now they outnumber the fitter/fittest, and we (in the USA) spend gazzillions of dollars trying to legislate their stupidity.