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As we've obviously evolved, what was there first.?

Big Mac

My Custom User Title
Oct 19, 2006
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hmm i have been thinking about this recently. I dont believe in god, but i also struggle to see how evolution works.

If we decided to live in water, so that our heads were above the water level so we would survive, would we actually evolve through the generations, or does evolution only work in non "civilised" societies where competition is great and there is need for survival. We as humans have "civilisation". There is no real survival of the fittest, to a certain extent.

These are my thoughts, whether i wrote them down in a way that makes sense i have no idea.
 

Kat

I'm a love Albatross.
Aug 18, 2006
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hmm i have been thinking about this recently. I dont believe in god, but i also struggle to see how evolution works.

If we decided to live in water, so that our heads were above the water level so we would survive, would we actually evolve through the generations, or does evolution only work in non "civilised" societies where competition is great and there is need for survival. We as humans have "civilisation". There is no real survival of the fittest, to a certain extent.

These are my thoughts, whether i wrote them down in a way that makes sense i have no idea.
This is a very basic idea!
But, Its similar to darwins finches, most favourable charcteristics.

So humans trying to live in water with the most webbed fingers and toes say, would swim longer and survive in water better, and would live long enough to breed, at least some said offspiring would also have webbed fingers and toes and the ones with the best characteristics would survive and breed.

Through generations the most favourable characteristics would continue to be carried along through inherited characteristics (I'm not typing all that out :p) and eventually origional unfavourable characteristics (normal didgets) would be wiped out. And as the offspring with best characterisitcs are breeding that characteristic would become stronger and end up adapted for swimming (flippers/completely webbed fingers/toes).

(Like how you get black roses by breeding the most blue-red roses to get purple and then breeding the darkest purple roses untill you get black)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darwin's_finches

(That was horrifically explained, sorry!)

Katxx

Added onto my previous one:

Yeah you're probably right that animals are more likely to adapt, but we would adapt if we had to.

When we were prehistoric the 'human' with the straighest spine would be a more adapt hunter and so the 'humans' with the straightest spines lived longer because of more food? Thus why we now have straight spines and are called Homoerectus (standing up straight).


I'm going to stop babbling now...
 

Skeet

Platinum Member
hmm i have been thinking about this recently. I dont believe in god, but i also struggle to see how evolution works.

If we decided to live in water, so that our heads were above the water level so we would survive, would we actually evolve through the generations, or does evolution only work in non "civilised" societies where competition is great and there is need for survival. We as humans have "civilisation". There is no real survival of the fittest, to a certain extent.

These are my thoughts, whether i wrote them down in a way that makes sense i have no idea.
We only have (for the most part), Civilisation, now.
In the Animal Kingdom, they do not have civilisation.

We have no natural predators any more.

If we had existed as sea dwelling mammals, who lived with our heads above water, we would require efficient methods with which to move, tails etc in order to feed and escape predation.

When the waters subsided (in the non Noah sense), what happens to us then?
Either we evolve to be able to move on the land, or we perish.

Evolution and survival of the fittest, is for the most part, proven.

EDIT: Now reading the lust worthy Kat's post, I see what you are getting at.

If Humans did decide (fcuk knows why) to live in the water, we are not adapted for it and would again become prey to those that are adapted to live in the water and are stronger than us, Sharks, Killer Whales, Giant Squid and so on. Also, our bodies are not designed to be submerged for great periods of time as it cannot breathe, the increased effect of the Sun's rays in salt water, would damage our skin and so on.

As for breeding, the percussive nature of human sexual activity would be impractical in water. Ask a woman who has had vigorous sex in a swimming pool, hydraulic action has it's downfalls:eek:
 

Big Mac

My Custom User Title
Oct 19, 2006
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York
We only have (for the most part), Civilisation, now.
In the Animal Kingdom, they do not have civilisation.

We have no natural predators any more.

If we had existed as sea dwelling mammals, who lived with our heads above water, we would require efficient methods with which to move, tails etc in order to feed and escape predation.

When the waters subsided (in the non Noah sense), what happens to us then?
Either we evolve to be able to move on the land, or we perish.

Evolution and survival of the fittest, is for the most part, proven.
hence the civilisation was in quotation marks - as in have we not evolved anymore because we have become civilised, and the non civilised was meant to represent the idea of having predators etc etc.
 

Skeet

Platinum Member
hence the civilisation was in quotation marks - as in have we not evolved anymore because we have become civilised, and the non civilised was meant to represent the idea of having predators etc etc.

Yes mate, I EDITED at the bottom mate, sussed what your on about a bit late:D

We haven't evolved noticeably (though we are generally taller, than in previous centuries) of late, but it is because our environment is semi stable (for now) not because we are civilised.