How did life arise on Earth? What separates humans from apes? Will machines one day invent themselves?

Answer 1

1) Chemical evolution, ie in extreme conditions of a cooling Earth or the geological center, there's so much energy bouncing around that complex molecules are able to form despite them being unfavorable normally. Complex molecules can have complex functions like Catalysis, Information carrying, and reproducing themselves (an example of a molecule like this is RNA). This is called abiogenesis.

2) The ability for abstract thought. To think about how one thinks is the only observable difference between man and animal (another way of phrasing this is a human is able to ask "why?" whereas animals are not). This is called metacognition and is different from association which animals are capable of.

3) "They" have already made robots that can make other robots, robots that can adjust their gait when altered (implying self-awareness), and robots that can recognize themselves in a mirror and distinguish that from another robot that looks identical.
This is called...well it's pretty cool I think.

Answer 2

What do you want to believe? If you believe the Bible and a creation by an eternal God you will have to answer to an all powerful God who will eventually sit in judgment on you. If you are immoral and don't like that thought you have to believe in evolution, that you, the jackass, and the frog all came from the same place, some mud on a distant shore. The evolutionary thinking is that the ape and man descended from a common ancestor.
The last question to me is a maybe, AI and neural networks have come a long way, how close they will come to being creative is still unknown.

Answer 3

Most fossil intermediates in vertebrate evolution have indeed been found. A clear line of fossils now traces the transition between whales and hoofed mammals, between reptiles and mammals, between dinosaurs and birds, between apes and humans. The fossil evidence of evolution between major forms is compelling.

The development of the cerebral cortex is the main evolutionary change that separates us from our closest cousins. This is a recent development in evolutionary development, say within the last 100,000 years. This is where our rational thoughts emerge and gives rise to our logic. The more primitive limbic system of our brains still resides within us, wherein resides our deep emotional thoughts, anger, religious and other highly emotional states.

Anyway, i digress, the computers have a long way to go before they become self-aware....altho i believe its a strong probability that this day will come.. Perhaps our memories and thoughts can one day be transferred to computers or machines, at which point we'll be immortal. The way we've advanced our technology, i wouldn't be surprise that machines will reach the point of self-awareness in another 100 years.

Answer 4

1) God created life - read the Bible.
2) Distance and bars at zoos - 2 different life forms.
3) Unsure.

Answer 5

1 - God created everything!
2 - Being created in the image of God
3 - Mechanical things are not living beings with a will of their own

Answer 6

Good chemicals and good luck. A for % of DNA and the resulting higher IQ. Yes.

Answer 7

Something called the EVOLUTION.
A thing called FREE WILL
Don't know

Answer 8

you think to much.