What will be the pinnacle of mans evolution?

Question

If you believe that mankind began as a single cell that sprang to life as the result of a cosmic accident, and that we have slowly progressed into the super intelligent beings that we have become, please tell me where you think we are headed from here.

Will we evolve into a race of giants or something?
Will we become so intelligent that we eventually evolve into gods ourselves?
Will we simply evolve into a single race, single gender species?
Maybe you believe that we are evolving back into apes and we are at the apex of evolution now. Why?

Answer 1

Human beings are no longer evolving biologically.

In order for evolution to proceed you need genetic variation that is acted upon by natural selection. Natural selection dictates that less fit individuals will reproduce less (or not at all) than more fit individuals. Without natural selection THERE IS NO EVOLUTION.

So, if you look at human beings, we have the technology to assure that all humans (or at least a random sampling) reach adult reproductive age, regardless of fitness (those 6 billion people out there must be proof of that). Hence there is no natural selection in human populations, hence there is no evolution in human populations.

Human technologies may evolve, but humans as a species have stopped undergoing biological evolution long ago. And no, it's not going on at a slow rate, and no, evolution does not happen continuously. Think about it, do taller people reproduce more than short people? Do intelligent people reproduce more than stupid people? No. And we're not moving backwards to the ape level either.

Unless something drastic happens you are already looking at the end product of human evolution.

Answer 2

As has already been explained, evolution is not about pinnacles, what you might consider a lower form of life, like a cockroach is actually more complex than you with several very different life cycles, then are parasites that go through incredibly complicated cycles involving taking over higher animals.

There is no apex. I can't imagine what it would mean to become 'gods' to become more than is biologically possible it will be our technology rather than natural selection which helps us. I'd be interested in how you think we could possibly evolve in to a single sex species. Evolution can work many miracles but it can't do things like that.

A race of giants? We might get a bit taller but there are biological reasons why animals can only grow to certain sizes. Evolution does not have a point to it, or an apex - human beings are basically an accident, a tiny twig on a small branch of life.

Its only the religious people who mistakenly belief we have a point. I'd recommend a few good books on evolutionary theory but I'm worried that if you're a creationist you won't be interested in the reality of evolution.

Answer 3

Evolution is not targeted towards a 'pinacle' it is simply a matter of survival. It seems likely that with increased globalisation, the differences between races will dissapear, as more people marry, and breed, outside their local culture.

We will not evolve 'back' into apes - evolution only moves forwards - although it is possible that we will evolve into ape-like creatures.

It is unlikely that we will become a single gender. That would involve too drastic a genetic change to happen in a few, or even very many generations. Technology could soon give us the option of getting rid of one gender or the other... but I think people like sex too much to want that.

My own opinion is that the next step for humanity will be largely artificial. It might involve some sort of merging with technology, or it might involve extensive genetic engineering. Or both. But we don't need to rely on the slow process of evolution any more in order to make us fitter.

Answer 4

I agree with others who point out that it's a mistake to think of evolution as trending 'upwards' towards some "pinnacle" or "apex."

The theory of evolution does not hinge on some ability to predict the future. That's not to say it doesn't make predictions ... it does ... I'm only saying that it cannot predict future evolution. Why? Because evolution is affected by (A) random mutations; and (B) changes in the environment, and since neither A nor B are predictable, the future of evolution cannot be predicted. That's not a failure of the theory, but of incomplete information about the inputs to the process.

Answer 5

Evolution is not naturally teleological (seeking pinnacles). However, we will soon have the technological capacity to take control of our evolution, through genetic engineering. The first step is likely to be genetic engineering to eliminate disease (we already see some of this in in vitro screening with artificial insemination techniques). It is very plausible that in the future this will be extended to include genetic engineering for other health considerations, including longevity, strength, then probably intelligence, etc. Eventually our descendant species could make present day H. sapiens look crudely primitive.

On the other hand, if the fragile veneer of our civilization fails, due to any one of several situations (climate, environmental, overpopulation, economic collapse, evolution of virulent new disease, asteroid impact, etc.), there could be a near extinction of our species, cessation of scientific progress, and then evolution (if not extinction) of our species in unpredictable ways.

Answer 6

thank you yet you will desire to have included my total answer "i've got consistently been atheist yet as quickly as I first heard of evolution whilst i became approximately 13 i concept that IF there became a god then he'd in all probability be clever sufficient to apply evolution as a manner of populating the planet. of course the theist would not like this cos it ability he's no longer particular. this is the only reason some theists 'deny' evolution." existence as that's, is a lot grander than something faith has to grant. ‘Gods’ and magic are the main simplistic excuses ignorant primitives have ever imagined explaining something. shall we in simple terms as nicely recommend Michael Jackson, with or without tips from the community Pixies wearing annoying hats, did it cos there’s the comparable quantity of knowledge... NONE. ~

Answer 7

The thing about evolution is that there is no pinnacle. There's no top to the tree. Every animal is at the moment perfectly adapted to its environment. In a million years time, it will be a different selection of animals, but they'll all be perfectly adapted too. We're not better than the slugs and beetles in our garden, we're just around to do a different job. We won't be any better in a million years time, just different.