Comments on: Has evolution halted? Only TIME will tell

By: Greg

Greg — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 21:46:20 +0000

I agree that we have stopped evolving purely by means of traditional natural/sexual selection, however, I think that the human being as a species will continue to change, radically, based on other factors such as gene therapy and the simple fact that modern transportation enables far more racial mixing now than previously in human history.

By: Tom Marcinko

Tom Marcinko — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 21:47:19 +0000

Professor Jones is really going to have egg on his face come the Singularity.

By: Laurel Lyon

Laurel Lyon — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 20:57:39 +0000

So people who are less suited to the changing environment are going to die out or not find anyone to mate with?

By: Fredosphere

Fredosphere — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 18:31:04 +0000

So, let me get this straight: the environment has changed radically (has *been* changed radically, by us) and that’s going to slow evolution down? I think it will accelerate it, both in the sense of going faster, and also (especially) in the sense of changing its vector. Add me to the list of Dvorskyites.

By: Laurel Lyon

Laurel Lyon — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 17:18:01 +0000

Yup, we stopped evolving by and large a few millenia ago, when early man started shaping his environment to fit him instead of adapting to it. Since then we’ve only evolved in social terms, e.g., from tribalism to oligarchy. I’m not sure it’s working too well.