I am what you would call a hard atheist. I totally reject the possibility that there is a god, creator, or any supernatural existence. For many people, this subject isn't so important that they need to grade themselves on how firmly they feel about it, but I do not see it any other way. Others see weaknesses or lack of necessity in "choosing a side" while knowing that there is still an infinite amount of new things to be learned about the world. My response to them is, "Why play it so cool?" My lack of belief is a natural state; there is nothing until there is. Belief, given that it is different for everyone, is an interpretation of reality. There is only one true state of reality, but with our thinking minds comes the speculation of what exists beyond the apparent. My point is that no matter how you perceive reality, it does not change, the only variable is your mind. Thus, for the truth, we must look outside of our minds; into a world without the emotions we use to shape our views.
If you look at beliefs throughout history, you will see that people didn't believe in aspects of culture that exist today. The ancient Egyptians weren't Christians, Buddhists, Muslims or Jews. They believed in Ra, Isis, Anubis, and Osiris. The Nordic tribes had Odin, Thor, Hel and Loki. The ancient Greeks had Zeus, Hades, Athena and Apollo. Every culture today dismisses the validity of these old beliefs and the cultures of the future will have their own take on what we believe today. There remains absolutely no reason why any belief at all has any bearing on the truth, which is constant, and this is why I do not myself believe. I am standing at the hard edge of the question that really only has two valid answers and I can only be proved wrong. From a self-deception standpoint, it is far more honest to accept evidence to your contrary than to hunt for confirmations.
Remaining still is the question of a god, beyond religion or culture; a being or creator that is responsible for setting our world in motion. This god may or may not interfere with our everyday lives, it just depends on what you are inclined to believe. My studies on human behavior have lead me to the conclusion that we have yet to escape the neurological traits of our more animalistic ancestors. Many studies about behavioral economics and our analytical minds shine light on our primitive grasp on real logic. I've explained in another article how dopamine can make you more gullible. If the balance of chemicals in our brains can make us more or less vulnerable to deception, there exists a very valid explanation for any belief. If you can fake-throw a ball and have a dog chase it, you can weave a fictional story so a human will believe it. Emotions, traits of our basic instinctual minds, will continue to influence our views of the world far into the future. With hard atheism, I am taking a stand to avoid my instincts when I don't really need them and embrace my unique logic-bearing brain functions.
So many works of fiction canonize our emotions as what makes us truly human. We build logical robots who cannot understand us. Alien races pick us apart to see what makes us tick. The human spirit is what helps us triumph where we cannot see any other animal succeeding. Actually, humans are built for endurance, which is a physical trait that sets us apart from most of nature. Most defense and hunting mechanisms in the animal kingdom rely on short bursts of energy to either capture food or distance prey from predator. Humans, along with the animals we domesticated 65,000 years ago to help us hunt, simply outlast their prey. There is nothing special about our "heart" or our emotions; its how we hunt. We are relentless sons of bitches. Now that civilization has allowed us to relax, we've given new justifications for our traits. Unfortunately, they are also weaknesses in our ability to grasp the reality around us. Instincts are for sports and relationships; logic paves new roads in our society.
What good is reality if it is as bland as I'm claiming it to be? Well, that's up to you to figure out. Many believers have their thumb right on the truth without even knowing it. They wonder why atheists "choose" to not believe when there is a god who loves them, who is waiting to embrace them. If only they could make that last logical step to realize that the reason they believe is because they want that comfort. They need to feel like someone is looking out for them in a logical world that turns a cold shoulder. The more we realize about our world, the more we long for an anchor. The atheist path finds comfort in more human sources. If we can step back into those emotions to feel them for each other and not ourselves, the world will be a better place.
Story time! In early 2004, I was driving a beautiful 2002 Honda Accord Coupe (to explain the "beautiful" part of it, you should understand that I had it customized. Not that rice rocket body kit and decal shit, but actual body work and paint finishing). I loved this car, but I could not resist the pull of "better, faster, cooler" when the latest model of Acura TLs were announced. Indeed, the Acura was much faster and had tons of cool gadgets that no other car before it had. I put my baby up for sale and placed my name on the waiting list for the manual transmission TL. The problem was that nobody would buy my Accord. Being its owner, of course I overvalued its sleek paint job and unique rims, so nobody wanted to match my price. People would come to see it, but my idea of beauty was different from theirs and they walked away without a word.
At the time, as a function of my living in the suburbs of Los Angeles, I worked in the porn industry. My boss, whose girlfriend was a model, approached me to see if I would like my car to co-star in a little bikini car wash photo shoot. I didn't hesitate to display my approval. Out came the hose, the suds, the tits, the camera and the baby oil. "The baby oil," you ask? Yes, this girl was covered in it. And for your information, baby oil does not wash off a paint job with car soap. Though my car would go down forever in the Bragging Rights Hall of Fame, it was left with a slimy residue where the model pressed her slick bosom against the carbon fiber body of my joy ride. My boss, feeling a bit of guilt for greasing up my car, offered to pay for a detailed cleaning since he was going to do the same for his Mercedes. Once again, I accepted.
9:00 am, the day after the detail: My car was resting in the garage, too clean to even drive. I had already secured an appointment with the Acura dealership to purchase the new TL later that evening, but my car had not sold and I didn't have enough money for the down payment. I had stopped updating the listing for my car weeks before, resolved to the idea that I might have to bite the bullet and trade it in for a huge loss. My phone rang, waking me up. I pretended to be coherent as the voice on the other end asked if my car was for sale. It most definitely was. The man explained that he was far inland and would take 2 hours to get to me, but he liked what he saw on the ad and was really hyped about the opportunity to buy.
When he arrived, I opened the garage door to reveal my baby in its pristine beauty. The paint job had never looked so clear, the interior was newborn and even the engine had gotten a steam wash. We took it for a spin and I explained the source of every bump in the ride. The man nodded his head and told me that he knew was he was getting into with a custom job, he was just thrilled to be able to get a car with such great body work. The next stop was the bank. We happened to enter the branch at the right time to be seated with the assistant manager. As we explained our situation, she lamented that the check would take several days to clear, but I had just a couple hours before I was due at the Acura dealership. Coincidence stepped in again when the buyer produced a check made out from the Armed Forces credit union. The assistant manager, citing experience with the union, then informed us that she would use her authority to approve the funds immediately. And just like that, I had a down payment.
I waved goodbye to my baby and had my mother take me to the dealership, where I ended up driving away with my new love: a 2004 Acura TL 6-speed. And I lived happily ever after... until 6 months later when I sold everything and moved to NYC.
Now, this true story is filled with coincidence after coincidence, but it wouldn't be worth telling if it had played out any differently. That's what makes the difference between history and nothingness. It wasn't like the events in my story were the only things that happened in that time span that had an effect on the outcome and we can't even be sure that everything I mentioned really mattered either. If you wanted to, you could give a reason for it all to happen the way it did: I'm a good person, I'm lucky, god gave me a gift, I worked really hard. If information is a pill, then justification is a tall glass of water that you wash it down with. Likewise, it is our selective view of history that makes things appear more coincidental than they actually are.
Sometimes, you can't help but justify the reason for something. In fact, it is a natural tendency for us to concoct stories and meanings around the things we observe. What this does is tie many unrelated facts together into a single idea that is easy to store and remember. Consider: John's house burned down. John was arrested for arson. These two facts are itching for a link. John's arson arrest could be completely unrelated, but we wouldn't be satisfied knowing that. It is not enough to know the two pieces of information; we are likely to relate one to another and assume John lit his own house on fire before we are told otherwise.
Beyond explaining things, we use this method to help us store concepts. School teachers help students remember the colors of the rainbow by arranging the first letter of each color into a name: Roy G Biv (This may be dated as I understand there was some controversy regarding the last 2 colors). We take seven pieces of information and combine them into one. By extension, this is what a narrative does to history; it arranges many relative facts into a streamlined story with a coherent plot or outcome. The problem is, with the benefit of knowing the ending when the narrative is written, the author can arbitrarily leave out "irrelevant" facts to shape the story to fit the moral. History is thus condensed to fit a narrative for the sake of a lesson, not necessarily for accurate representation.
Belief is a hugely emotional aspect of our cognition. Skepticism, or the application of rationality, can be seen as a lack of emotion. Interestingly, skepticism can be modulated with the levels of dopamine in one's brain. Dopamine increases the brain's desire to be rewarded, spurring us to follow leads that promise positive results. With more dopamine, the likelihood of belief in a fantastic story (possibly because we WANT for it to be real) is high. Treatment for Parkinson's disease, which involves a precursor to dopamine, L-DOPA, has resulted in new found gambling addictions, religious convictions and cult memberships. On the opposite end of the spectrum, the lack of dopamine can result in ADD (which I have) and reduced emotional response. Our emotions implore us to give the data in our brains status through the emotions we feel when we recall them.
Without the physiological imperative to give things meaning, events by themselves are meaningless. It is only through the scope of hindsight that we attribute causation and correlation. Of course, without a handy theme to fit events into, it would be too much to ask if our brains to hold thousands of compartmentalized pieces of information without a judgment on their meaning or purpose. You can't recite a novel word-for-word, but you can summarize it in a single sentence or two. Unless you're an idiot savant, you can't replicate the New York City skyline by memory, save for the few famous buildings that stand out amongst the many nondescript structures. Remember that without those more demure buildings, the skyline would not be what it is. If the skyline was remarkable for only its famous pieces, replications would only have a few buildings against a flat ground.
Knowing that conviction is not necessarily tied to truth, but to chemistry, helps us bring the world into clearer view. Though it is impossible to treat information out of the context we give it, we must understand that with our brains' cataloging process, we lose details and re-imagine them every time we recall. Those new nuances are transcribed back into memory, becoming a part of the next narrative, replete with its own new flavor. Think of a picture you've taken on your brand new digital camera. Fresh from your memory card, the image is too large to email or to put online, you have to re-size it and save it at lower quality to convey it in a form that others can handle. But what happens when you try to blow that new image up to its original size? The quality that once existed in its first form is now gone and it doesn't look quite right. And so, the more you recall, the more the memory changes. (You can try this experiment by repeatedly saving the same image over and over at jpg quality 60, then look at the result: a splotchy mess of a memory.) Still, these are the same memories that we base our current convictions on. Is this such a good idea?
The moral is: nothing happens for any reason, but we would be lost if we didn't give it one. There is no plan and there is no path, only conveniently corroborating events, overtaking the clutter of reality that does not fit the theme of the story it is being used to convey.
At the time, as a function of my living in the suburbs of Los Angeles, I worked in the porn industry. My boss, whose girlfriend was a model, approached me to see if I would like my car to co-star in a little bikini car wash photo shoot. I didn't hesitate to display my approval. Out came the hose, the suds, the tits, the camera and the baby oil. "The baby oil," you ask? Yes, this girl was covered in it. And for your information, baby oil does not wash off a paint job with car soap. Though my car would go down forever in the Bragging Rights Hall of Fame, it was left with a slimy residue where the model pressed her slick bosom against the carbon fiber body of my joy ride. My boss, feeling a bit of guilt for greasing up my car, offered to pay for a detailed cleaning since he was going to do the same for his Mercedes. Once again, I accepted.
9:00 am, the day after the detail: My car was resting in the garage, too clean to even drive. I had already secured an appointment with the Acura dealership to purchase the new TL later that evening, but my car had not sold and I didn't have enough money for the down payment. I had stopped updating the listing for my car weeks before, resolved to the idea that I might have to bite the bullet and trade it in for a huge loss. My phone rang, waking me up. I pretended to be coherent as the voice on the other end asked if my car was for sale. It most definitely was. The man explained that he was far inland and would take 2 hours to get to me, but he liked what he saw on the ad and was really hyped about the opportunity to buy.
When he arrived, I opened the garage door to reveal my baby in its pristine beauty. The paint job had never looked so clear, the interior was newborn and even the engine had gotten a steam wash. We took it for a spin and I explained the source of every bump in the ride. The man nodded his head and told me that he knew was he was getting into with a custom job, he was just thrilled to be able to get a car with such great body work. The next stop was the bank. We happened to enter the branch at the right time to be seated with the assistant manager. As we explained our situation, she lamented that the check would take several days to clear, but I had just a couple hours before I was due at the Acura dealership. Coincidence stepped in again when the buyer produced a check made out from the Armed Forces credit union. The assistant manager, citing experience with the union, then informed us that she would use her authority to approve the funds immediately. And just like that, I had a down payment.
I waved goodbye to my baby and had my mother take me to the dealership, where I ended up driving away with my new love: a 2004 Acura TL 6-speed. And I lived happily ever after... until 6 months later when I sold everything and moved to NYC.
Now, this true story is filled with coincidence after coincidence, but it wouldn't be worth telling if it had played out any differently. That's what makes the difference between history and nothingness. It wasn't like the events in my story were the only things that happened in that time span that had an effect on the outcome and we can't even be sure that everything I mentioned really mattered either. If you wanted to, you could give a reason for it all to happen the way it did: I'm a good person, I'm lucky, god gave me a gift, I worked really hard. If information is a pill, then justification is a tall glass of water that you wash it down with. Likewise, it is our selective view of history that makes things appear more coincidental than they actually are.
Sometimes, you can't help but justify the reason for something. In fact, it is a natural tendency for us to concoct stories and meanings around the things we observe. What this does is tie many unrelated facts together into a single idea that is easy to store and remember. Consider: John's house burned down. John was arrested for arson. These two facts are itching for a link. John's arson arrest could be completely unrelated, but we wouldn't be satisfied knowing that. It is not enough to know the two pieces of information; we are likely to relate one to another and assume John lit his own house on fire before we are told otherwise.
Beyond explaining things, we use this method to help us store concepts. School teachers help students remember the colors of the rainbow by arranging the first letter of each color into a name: Roy G Biv (This may be dated as I understand there was some controversy regarding the last 2 colors). We take seven pieces of information and combine them into one. By extension, this is what a narrative does to history; it arranges many relative facts into a streamlined story with a coherent plot or outcome. The problem is, with the benefit of knowing the ending when the narrative is written, the author can arbitrarily leave out "irrelevant" facts to shape the story to fit the moral. History is thus condensed to fit a narrative for the sake of a lesson, not necessarily for accurate representation.
Belief is a hugely emotional aspect of our cognition. Skepticism, or the application of rationality, can be seen as a lack of emotion. Interestingly, skepticism can be modulated with the levels of dopamine in one's brain. Dopamine increases the brain's desire to be rewarded, spurring us to follow leads that promise positive results. With more dopamine, the likelihood of belief in a fantastic story (possibly because we WANT for it to be real) is high. Treatment for Parkinson's disease, which involves a precursor to dopamine, L-DOPA, has resulted in new found gambling addictions, religious convictions and cult memberships. On the opposite end of the spectrum, the lack of dopamine can result in ADD (which I have) and reduced emotional response. Our emotions implore us to give the data in our brains status through the emotions we feel when we recall them.
Without the physiological imperative to give things meaning, events by themselves are meaningless. It is only through the scope of hindsight that we attribute causation and correlation. Of course, without a handy theme to fit events into, it would be too much to ask if our brains to hold thousands of compartmentalized pieces of information without a judgment on their meaning or purpose. You can't recite a novel word-for-word, but you can summarize it in a single sentence or two. Unless you're an idiot savant, you can't replicate the New York City skyline by memory, save for the few famous buildings that stand out amongst the many nondescript structures. Remember that without those more demure buildings, the skyline would not be what it is. If the skyline was remarkable for only its famous pieces, replications would only have a few buildings against a flat ground.
Knowing that conviction is not necessarily tied to truth, but to chemistry, helps us bring the world into clearer view. Though it is impossible to treat information out of the context we give it, we must understand that with our brains' cataloging process, we lose details and re-imagine them every time we recall. Those new nuances are transcribed back into memory, becoming a part of the next narrative, replete with its own new flavor. Think of a picture you've taken on your brand new digital camera. Fresh from your memory card, the image is too large to email or to put online, you have to re-size it and save it at lower quality to convey it in a form that others can handle. But what happens when you try to blow that new image up to its original size? The quality that once existed in its first form is now gone and it doesn't look quite right. And so, the more you recall, the more the memory changes. (You can try this experiment by repeatedly saving the same image over and over at jpg quality 60, then look at the result: a splotchy mess of a memory.) Still, these are the same memories that we base our current convictions on. Is this such a good idea?
This is a fresh memory.
This is a memory after many recalls.
The moral is: nothing happens for any reason, but we would be lost if we didn't give it one. There is no plan and there is no path, only conveniently corroborating events, overtaking the clutter of reality that does not fit the theme of the story it is being used to convey.
I saw this on a sign hanging outside a venue while walking to work today. "Everyone Only" - I enjoyed the simplicity of the message and its inclusive vibe in place of what you'd expect to be another exclusive restriction. I won't over-analyze it, but it certainly makes me want to step inside.
I've long had a dream about starting my own business. In fact, I'm currently saving money to do just that. This business will be a small, humble venue where people will come to discuss, as a community, the topics that they're passionate about. Think about an online discussion forum, but in real life, replete with moderators to keep talks civil and fluid. These types of venues used to exist, but the information age took over and left them in the dust. I do, however, feel that there is still a need for good ol' verbal debate, even if only as a novelty to enhance the debate we already have online. The idea is to provide an escape from broadcast information and turn it into communication. Lots of things can be packaged along with communal discussions to make it more interesting, like art and activism. As someone who has owned and operated a popular online discussion forum for 8 years now, I see this as the next step in the evolution of internet communities: enriching our physical lives.
I think I'll hang the same sign on my venue, if I ever get it going. "Everyone Only" displayed on the door, letting people know that there are no exclusions, all are welcome. I've been hesitant to share my idea with an anonymous public before, but I would like thoughts about it. I suppose I'm not too worried about someone stealing my idea because not many people have the mentality or experience necessary to pull it off the way I know I can. I suppose one benefit of getting my idea out there is the possibility of a benefactor stepping in to help me get it off the ground, but I'm not holding my breath for that.
Five years ago, I moved to New York City with this idea in my head. I fought through depression, unemployment and borderline poverty to stay here, with this dream as the only thing keeping me going. Now I'm finally on a steady track to seeing it happen. Granted, it will take me a couple years to save up enough money to start up, but I'm happy to no longer be flailing helplessly. There's a future and my goal is to include everyone in it.
I've long had a dream about starting my own business. In fact, I'm currently saving money to do just that. This business will be a small, humble venue where people will come to discuss, as a community, the topics that they're passionate about. Think about an online discussion forum, but in real life, replete with moderators to keep talks civil and fluid. These types of venues used to exist, but the information age took over and left them in the dust. I do, however, feel that there is still a need for good ol' verbal debate, even if only as a novelty to enhance the debate we already have online. The idea is to provide an escape from broadcast information and turn it into communication. Lots of things can be packaged along with communal discussions to make it more interesting, like art and activism. As someone who has owned and operated a popular online discussion forum for 8 years now, I see this as the next step in the evolution of internet communities: enriching our physical lives.
I think I'll hang the same sign on my venue, if I ever get it going. "Everyone Only" displayed on the door, letting people know that there are no exclusions, all are welcome. I've been hesitant to share my idea with an anonymous public before, but I would like thoughts about it. I suppose I'm not too worried about someone stealing my idea because not many people have the mentality or experience necessary to pull it off the way I know I can. I suppose one benefit of getting my idea out there is the possibility of a benefactor stepping in to help me get it off the ground, but I'm not holding my breath for that.
Five years ago, I moved to New York City with this idea in my head. I fought through depression, unemployment and borderline poverty to stay here, with this dream as the only thing keeping me going. Now I'm finally on a steady track to seeing it happen. Granted, it will take me a couple years to save up enough money to start up, but I'm happy to no longer be flailing helplessly. There's a future and my goal is to include everyone in it.
Hello reader, I've prepared a little thought experiment for you. I am going to give you a set of 3 numbers that fit a specific rule. Next, you're going to come up with a subsequent 3 numbers that match the same rule. When you do that, I'm going to tell you whether your numbers fit the rule or not and then you're going to guess what the rule was. In order for this experiment to work properly, please don't read any further than the step you're on. Be honest and don't think too hard, it's really not tricky at all.
Step 1: Here are the numbers: 2, 4, 6
Step 2: Now, you get to fill in the next 3 numbers: (Please only use this form once, unless the experiment instructs otherwise.)
Step 3: Based on the response you received, write down what you think the rule is that the numbers are following.
Step 3.1: This is optional. Since you have a record of what you believe to be the rule, I'll allow you to try the form once more if you're not 100% positive. If you do this, record what you think the rule is again. Otherwise, go to step 4.
Step 4: To reveal the rule, click and drag your mouse over this white block to select the text: The rule is: any number in ascending order. Does your note in Step 3 say the same thing?
Step 5: Were you right? The first time? If you were, congratulations! If you weren't, don't despair - there's a reason for this. This experiment was designed to show you a little bit about what is called the confirmation bias. It goes like this: you get an idea in your head and then you start looking for clues that confirm your idea. In this experiment, if you follow the clues that you look for, they'll be confirmed and it will reinforce your idea. Unfortunately, it only leads you further from the truth. It is usually when you doubt your initial hunch that you will be able to see clearly.
The next time you hear someone spouting off all of the reasons why they believe something, send them to this experiment. It is important to remind ourselves that even with all the evidence we can pile up that support our claims, corroboration is merely in the eye of the beholder. Just because your 8, 10 and 12 match the pattern you were looking for does not prove the rule you thought of was correct. And so it goes in all walks of life...
Step 1: Here are the numbers: 2, 4, 6
Step 2: Now, you get to fill in the next 3 numbers: (Please only use this form once, unless the experiment instructs otherwise.)
Step 3: Based on the response you received, write down what you think the rule is that the numbers are following.
Step 3.1: This is optional. Since you have a record of what you believe to be the rule, I'll allow you to try the form once more if you're not 100% positive. If you do this, record what you think the rule is again. Otherwise, go to step 4.
Step 4: To reveal the rule, click and drag your mouse over this white block to select the text: The rule is: any number in ascending order. Does your note in Step 3 say the same thing?
Step 5: Were you right? The first time? If you were, congratulations! If you weren't, don't despair - there's a reason for this. This experiment was designed to show you a little bit about what is called the confirmation bias. It goes like this: you get an idea in your head and then you start looking for clues that confirm your idea. In this experiment, if you follow the clues that you look for, they'll be confirmed and it will reinforce your idea. Unfortunately, it only leads you further from the truth. It is usually when you doubt your initial hunch that you will be able to see clearly.
The next time you hear someone spouting off all of the reasons why they believe something, send them to this experiment. It is important to remind ourselves that even with all the evidence we can pile up that support our claims, corroboration is merely in the eye of the beholder. Just because your 8, 10 and 12 match the pattern you were looking for does not prove the rule you thought of was correct. And so it goes in all walks of life...
Most people know what the placebo effect is, but few know how powerful it can be. Beyond that, it is all too common for a person to deny their own susceptibility to the placebo effect. Placebos come in many forms; some simple, some bizarre. The form we all know is the sugar pill, which is given to test subjects or to patients who beg for medication despite not really needing it. Have you heard of a placebo button? It is a button that people can press, but it does not do anything. Think: the close door button on most elevators or the cross-walk button. Clicking it makes you think you're in control, but you're really just soothing your own mind and reinforcing a habit.
Scientists (the ones who look for empirical evidence, as opposed to the ones who just call themselves so) agree that homeopathic medicine and other cures deriving from spiritual remedies are only successful because of the placebo effect. You may refute that these methods have been known to cure some serious maladies, but there are two things going against that argument: there is no empirical evidence to support this (or else even doctors would use these methods) and I repeat that you might not be aware of how powerful a placebo can be. Consider the world of arthroscopic knee surgery, which has been turned on its ear within the last 10 years after a published report that stated that the pain relief gained by a routine, invasive procedure was no more valid than a placebo pill. The study noted that patients receiving nothing but two little cuts to make them think that the surgeons actually did something reported the same rate of pain relief as those who got the whole saline wash and cartilage removal procedure that has been standard for decades. This was an embarrassment to arthroscopy surgeons everywhere, but an important step in understand how much power our mind has over our perceived reality.
If you sympathize with knee surgery patients who went under the knife unnecessarily, you should hear about angina pectoris sufferers before the 1950's who had their sternum cracked open and one of their arteries tied off, only for the procedure to be found completely ineffective in 1955. The actual source of the relief? Placebo. Beyond the remedies that we use to get things off of our mind, the amount that we pay for them also matters when it comes to their effectiveness. This is where placebo meets expectations. Like all products, we expect the ones which cost more to be better or last longer. In fact, some products are purposefully overpriced because nobody would trust their effectiveness if they were sold closer to cost. Conversely, higher prices have made reputations for some products, despite their lack of any real advantage over competitors (Monster Cables, anyone?). If you pay 10 cents for an asprin or $2.50 for a miracle pill, which one do you think will be more effective? Which one do you think you'll give the benefit of the doubt to? (If, for the sake of being contrary, you say "the 10 cent asprin," you're only kidding yourself.)
Cognitive dissonance says that the more we invest in something, the more we are likely to appreciate it, even if it disappoints us. If we extrapolate what we know about the placebo effect and apply it to other things, we can get a better picture of how we, as human animals, pad the walls of our minds with justifications and confidence in faith. While it is exhaustive to require empirical evidence for everything we believe to be true, matters of belief and spirituality are better understood with the knowledge of how easily we fool ourselves. This, in spite of how vigilant we are in keeping it real.
Scientists (the ones who look for empirical evidence, as opposed to the ones who just call themselves so) agree that homeopathic medicine and other cures deriving from spiritual remedies are only successful because of the placebo effect. You may refute that these methods have been known to cure some serious maladies, but there are two things going against that argument: there is no empirical evidence to support this (or else even doctors would use these methods) and I repeat that you might not be aware of how powerful a placebo can be. Consider the world of arthroscopic knee surgery, which has been turned on its ear within the last 10 years after a published report that stated that the pain relief gained by a routine, invasive procedure was no more valid than a placebo pill. The study noted that patients receiving nothing but two little cuts to make them think that the surgeons actually did something reported the same rate of pain relief as those who got the whole saline wash and cartilage removal procedure that has been standard for decades. This was an embarrassment to arthroscopy surgeons everywhere, but an important step in understand how much power our mind has over our perceived reality.
If you sympathize with knee surgery patients who went under the knife unnecessarily, you should hear about angina pectoris sufferers before the 1950's who had their sternum cracked open and one of their arteries tied off, only for the procedure to be found completely ineffective in 1955. The actual source of the relief? Placebo. Beyond the remedies that we use to get things off of our mind, the amount that we pay for them also matters when it comes to their effectiveness. This is where placebo meets expectations. Like all products, we expect the ones which cost more to be better or last longer. In fact, some products are purposefully overpriced because nobody would trust their effectiveness if they were sold closer to cost. Conversely, higher prices have made reputations for some products, despite their lack of any real advantage over competitors (Monster Cables, anyone?). If you pay 10 cents for an asprin or $2.50 for a miracle pill, which one do you think will be more effective? Which one do you think you'll give the benefit of the doubt to? (If, for the sake of being contrary, you say "the 10 cent asprin," you're only kidding yourself.)
Cognitive dissonance says that the more we invest in something, the more we are likely to appreciate it, even if it disappoints us. If we extrapolate what we know about the placebo effect and apply it to other things, we can get a better picture of how we, as human animals, pad the walls of our minds with justifications and confidence in faith. While it is exhaustive to require empirical evidence for everything we believe to be true, matters of belief and spirituality are better understood with the knowledge of how easily we fool ourselves. This, in spite of how vigilant we are in keeping it real.
For those of you who have been following this series, I hope you've enjoyed learning about many of the interesting nuances of the biology involved in sexuality. This will be the final entry, and I'm sure you'll find it to be the most interesting. I had a lot of pleasure reading up and compiling these lists and I am amused at their popularity. Who knew sex could be so... viral?
1. Male homosexuality may be caused by the same gene that makes women more fertile1. We know that homosexuality exists in nature, but it usually manifests itself as a distinctly different kind of behavior than what we're used to. For many animals such as monkeys, giraffes, dolphins and manatees, male-on-male sex is more of a social bonding and tension diffusing device2. When there aren't enough females to go around, they make love with each other, not war. Alternatively, the human homosexuality that we all know is exclusive attraction to members of the same sex. Because of this difference, scientists are looking beyond behavior and into genetics for its root. An Italian study has found that female relatives of gay men produce more offspring than those of straight men. Simply put: the mothers, aunts and grandmothers of gay men tend to be more fertile. How does this end up affecting their children? It is likely that the same gene in the X chromosome that is responsible for a female's fecundity is being activated in their male offspring, thus making them attracted to males in the same way their mothers are. Alas, this is only a study that observes a correlation, but not causation. It certainly is worth delving into with future studies.
2. Marital problems? There's a gene for that3. A hormone in our brain called vasopressin can determine if we are venturous lovers or loyal companions, depending on where it is detected. Our genes are responsible for that very modulation: the location of the vasopressin detectors. A Swedish study looked for one of those genes responsible for this in hundreds of men and came to a telling conclusion: "Men with two copies of the allele (named RS3 334) had twice the risk of experiencing marital dysfunction... compared to men carrying one or no copies." The study went on to say that women married to these men also felt less satisfied with their relationships. This shouldn't bum you out though, if there is one thing that a skeptical reader will say, it is that humans are very capable of defying their own nature. Nobody is a slave to their genes.
3. That 4 hour erection that Viagra ads warn you about is necrosis4. You may remember my description of blue balls in the Male Edition. This is pretty much the same thing, but on a more extreme level. If you missed it the first time, it goes like this: blood necessary to produce an erection gets trapped in the pelvic region by constricted vessels. This reduces circulation to the heart and lungs, thus depriving blood in the penis of oxygen. If this lasts long enough, the blood can clot, leading to gangrene. At that point, you can kiss your willy goodbye. As a bonus fact, there is erectile tissue in your nose. It typically regulates the flow of air within your nostrils. That is why Viagra users often report nasal congestion as a side effect.
4. Females have a prostate. Big deal, right? Well, this little fact is at the center of many other interesting notes about a female's enjoyment in sex. For instance, the female prostate is positioned around the urethra, but comes in all shapes and sizes5. The famous G-spot is a location on the anterior wall of the vagina, right about where the prostate is on some women. Incidentally, G-spot stimulation is the most common way of achieving female ejaculation. And what is that fluid that women squirt out when they do ejaculate? It shares many common elements with male semen and Cowper's gland secretions, products of the glands around the prostate6. Women who squirt also experience fewer urinary tract infections as a function of the anti-microbial properties of their ejaculate. It's all coming together.
5. Frequent oral sex with the same partner may increase the chance of a woman getting pregnant by them through intercourse7. Stop glaring at me, I didn't make this up. There is a very reasonable way to explain this. To a woman's body, sperm are foreign invaders. While elements of semen help protect the sperm from the female's immune system, repeated exposure to a single male's sperm can help the immune system learn not to attack the friendly little swimmers. In this way, oral ingestion of sperm (as well as other likely methods of love injections) paves the road for successful conception. Beyond helping conception, oral exposure to semen has been shown to help reduce the risk of a woman's blood pressure rising too high during pregnancy8. You've never encountered a better excuse to ask for a blowjob.
6. Three words: homosexual duck necrophilia9. For every human sexual behavior, there is a counterpart to be found in the animal kingdom. The lesson in this point is that no matter how perverted you think humans are, there is always an animal that shows us how well-behaved we can be. Ducks are no exception as they have been observed buggering the corpses of their flock. We're not talking about a quick, demoralizing gesture of dominance; an hour and fifteen minutes says this probably felt quite... I don't know... natural. Of course you'd like to know why this happens, but nobody knows the answer yet.
7. Herpes can cause hypersexuality. I know what you're thinking, but this isn't a good thing. Herpes is more than just warts on your package, it can attack your brain and nervous system, too. This is called herpes simplex encephalitis. HSE can cause damage to your amygdala, which helps you process and memorize emotions. What can happen, in rare cases, is a disorder called Klüver-Bucy syndrome10, which leads to hypersexuality. Hypersexual people often exhibit inappropriately sexual behavior in public, much to the detriment of their own health and safety. Luckily, this condition is not a likely one and it fades over time.
8. Humans are the only mammals who long outlive their fertility11. This fact isn't a stretch to realize; even though apes usually decline in fertility around their 40's, their life expectancy doesn't forecast them to live beyond that either. Conversely, humans live more than twice as long. We can point to technology and medicine as contributing factors to this phenomenon, but this also gives humans an adaptive advantage. What evolutionary benefits do we gain by living far past our prime? You could argue that the presence of grandparents, specifically grandmothers, provides insurance that protects the survival of young. A study in Gambia indicated that children who lose their mothers before the age of two are twice as likely to survive if they have a grandmother to take care of them12.
9. Some animals take birth control13. Oral contraceptives work by using hormones to trick a female's body into believing it is pregnant so that ovulation doesn't occur. There just so happens to be a variety of plum that is rich in phytoprogestogens, which mimic female hormones. Who eats those plums? Monkeys. The result is that the plums slow the reproduction of the animals that eat them, preventing overpopulation and thus over-grazing. Red clover also has the same effect on the animals that graze on it. It was discovered during a sheep-breeding crisis in Australia. Who knew that it was just the local plant life protecting itself from being overwhelmed?
10. If you were on The Pill when you met him, going off The Pill can lead to relationship problems14. Introducing all of the manipulative hormones into your body through The Pill is bound to throw a few things off. These changes are not limited to a woman's olfactory preferences. As explained in the Couples Edition, a female's sense of smell can lead her to a compatible mate, as well as away from an incompatible one. The Pill changes the situation a bit, altering a woman's tastes. This can cause problems when a woman decides to go off birth control with her partner. The supply of artificial hormones stops and her body returns to its natural functioning state. All of a sudden, preferences have changed and Prince Charming doesn't seem as delightful anymore. Of course, there is more to love than just the scents that subtly attract us, but if there isn't much depth to a relationship while The Pill is in effect, there probably won't be any once it is not.
Previous Editions:
Female Edition
Male Edition
Couples Edition
Sources:
1 A. Camperio-Ciani, F. Iemmola and S. R. Blecher, "Genetic Factors Increase Fecundity in Female Material Relatives of Bisexual Men as in Homosexuals," J Sex Med 6, 2(2008): 449-455
2 Joan Roughgarden, quoted in J. Lehrer, "The Gay Animal Kingdom," Seed Magazine, June 2006
3 Walum, H., Westberg, L., Henningsson, S., Neiderhiser, J. M., Reiss, D., Igl, W., et al. "Genetic variation in the vasopressin receptor 1a gene (AVPR1A) associates with pair-bonding behavior in humans." Prot Natl Acad U S A, 105(37) (2008), 14153-14156.
4 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Priapism
5 D. Sundahl, Female Ejaculation and the G-Spot (2003)
6 F. Wimpissinger, K. Stifter, W. Grin, and W. Stackl, "The Female Prostate Revisited: Perineal Ultrasound and Biochemical Studies of Female Ejaculate," Journal of Sex Medicine 4, no. 5 (2007): 1388-1393.
7 S. A. Robertson, W.V. Ingman, S. O'Leary, D. J. Sharkey, and K. P. Tremellen. "Transforming Growth Factor Beta - A Mediator of Immune Deviation in Seminal Plasma," J Reprod Immunol 57, no. 1-2 (2002): 109-128.
8 R. B. Ness, D. A. Grainger, "Male Reproductive Proteins and Outcomes," Am J Obstet Gynecol, 198, 6 (2008):620el-4; C. A. Koelman, A. B. Coumans, H. W. Nijman, II Doxiadis, G. A. Dekker, and F. H. Claas, "Correlation Between Oral Sex and a Low Incidence of Preeclampsia: A Role for Soluble HLA in Seminal Fluid?" J Reprod Immunol 46, no. 2 (2000): 155-166.
9 C. W. Moeliker, "The First Case of Homosexual Necrophelia in the Mallard Anas Platyrhynchos (Aves: Anatidae)," DEINSEA 8 (2001): 243-247
10 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kl%C3%BCver-Bucy_Syndrome
11 M. Emery-Thompson quoted in R. Hooper, "Menopause Sets Humans Apart from Chimps," New Scientist, 2007.
12 D. P. Shanley, R. Sear, R. Mace, and T. B. Kirkwood, "Testing Evolutionary Theories of Menopause," Proc Biol Sci 274, 1628 (2007): 2943-2949.
13 J. P. Higham, C. Ross, Y. Warren, M. Heistermann, and A. M. Maclarnon, "Reduced Productive Function in Wild Baboons Related to Natural Consumption of the African Black Plum," Hormones and Behavior 52, no. 3 (2007): 384-390.
14 S. C. Roberts, L. M. Gosling, V. Carter, and M. Petrie, "MHC - Correlated Odour Preferences in Humans and the Use of Oral Contraceptives," Proc Biol Sci, 275, no. 165 (2008): 2715-2722.
1. Male homosexuality may be caused by the same gene that makes women more fertile1. We know that homosexuality exists in nature, but it usually manifests itself as a distinctly different kind of behavior than what we're used to. For many animals such as monkeys, giraffes, dolphins and manatees, male-on-male sex is more of a social bonding and tension diffusing device2. When there aren't enough females to go around, they make love with each other, not war. Alternatively, the human homosexuality that we all know is exclusive attraction to members of the same sex. Because of this difference, scientists are looking beyond behavior and into genetics for its root. An Italian study has found that female relatives of gay men produce more offspring than those of straight men. Simply put: the mothers, aunts and grandmothers of gay men tend to be more fertile. How does this end up affecting their children? It is likely that the same gene in the X chromosome that is responsible for a female's fecundity is being activated in their male offspring, thus making them attracted to males in the same way their mothers are. Alas, this is only a study that observes a correlation, but not causation. It certainly is worth delving into with future studies.
2. Marital problems? There's a gene for that3. A hormone in our brain called vasopressin can determine if we are venturous lovers or loyal companions, depending on where it is detected. Our genes are responsible for that very modulation: the location of the vasopressin detectors. A Swedish study looked for one of those genes responsible for this in hundreds of men and came to a telling conclusion: "Men with two copies of the allele (named RS3 334) had twice the risk of experiencing marital dysfunction... compared to men carrying one or no copies." The study went on to say that women married to these men also felt less satisfied with their relationships. This shouldn't bum you out though, if there is one thing that a skeptical reader will say, it is that humans are very capable of defying their own nature. Nobody is a slave to their genes.
3. That 4 hour erection that Viagra ads warn you about is necrosis4. You may remember my description of blue balls in the Male Edition. This is pretty much the same thing, but on a more extreme level. If you missed it the first time, it goes like this: blood necessary to produce an erection gets trapped in the pelvic region by constricted vessels. This reduces circulation to the heart and lungs, thus depriving blood in the penis of oxygen. If this lasts long enough, the blood can clot, leading to gangrene. At that point, you can kiss your willy goodbye. As a bonus fact, there is erectile tissue in your nose. It typically regulates the flow of air within your nostrils. That is why Viagra users often report nasal congestion as a side effect.
4. Females have a prostate. Big deal, right? Well, this little fact is at the center of many other interesting notes about a female's enjoyment in sex. For instance, the female prostate is positioned around the urethra, but comes in all shapes and sizes5. The famous G-spot is a location on the anterior wall of the vagina, right about where the prostate is on some women. Incidentally, G-spot stimulation is the most common way of achieving female ejaculation. And what is that fluid that women squirt out when they do ejaculate? It shares many common elements with male semen and Cowper's gland secretions, products of the glands around the prostate6. Women who squirt also experience fewer urinary tract infections as a function of the anti-microbial properties of their ejaculate. It's all coming together.
5. Frequent oral sex with the same partner may increase the chance of a woman getting pregnant by them through intercourse7. Stop glaring at me, I didn't make this up. There is a very reasonable way to explain this. To a woman's body, sperm are foreign invaders. While elements of semen help protect the sperm from the female's immune system, repeated exposure to a single male's sperm can help the immune system learn not to attack the friendly little swimmers. In this way, oral ingestion of sperm (as well as other likely methods of love injections) paves the road for successful conception. Beyond helping conception, oral exposure to semen has been shown to help reduce the risk of a woman's blood pressure rising too high during pregnancy8. You've never encountered a better excuse to ask for a blowjob.
6. Three words: homosexual duck necrophilia9. For every human sexual behavior, there is a counterpart to be found in the animal kingdom. The lesson in this point is that no matter how perverted you think humans are, there is always an animal that shows us how well-behaved we can be. Ducks are no exception as they have been observed buggering the corpses of their flock. We're not talking about a quick, demoralizing gesture of dominance; an hour and fifteen minutes says this probably felt quite... I don't know... natural. Of course you'd like to know why this happens, but nobody knows the answer yet.
7. Herpes can cause hypersexuality. I know what you're thinking, but this isn't a good thing. Herpes is more than just warts on your package, it can attack your brain and nervous system, too. This is called herpes simplex encephalitis. HSE can cause damage to your amygdala, which helps you process and memorize emotions. What can happen, in rare cases, is a disorder called Klüver-Bucy syndrome10, which leads to hypersexuality. Hypersexual people often exhibit inappropriately sexual behavior in public, much to the detriment of their own health and safety. Luckily, this condition is not a likely one and it fades over time.
8. Humans are the only mammals who long outlive their fertility11. This fact isn't a stretch to realize; even though apes usually decline in fertility around their 40's, their life expectancy doesn't forecast them to live beyond that either. Conversely, humans live more than twice as long. We can point to technology and medicine as contributing factors to this phenomenon, but this also gives humans an adaptive advantage. What evolutionary benefits do we gain by living far past our prime? You could argue that the presence of grandparents, specifically grandmothers, provides insurance that protects the survival of young. A study in Gambia indicated that children who lose their mothers before the age of two are twice as likely to survive if they have a grandmother to take care of them12.
9. Some animals take birth control13. Oral contraceptives work by using hormones to trick a female's body into believing it is pregnant so that ovulation doesn't occur. There just so happens to be a variety of plum that is rich in phytoprogestogens, which mimic female hormones. Who eats those plums? Monkeys. The result is that the plums slow the reproduction of the animals that eat them, preventing overpopulation and thus over-grazing. Red clover also has the same effect on the animals that graze on it. It was discovered during a sheep-breeding crisis in Australia. Who knew that it was just the local plant life protecting itself from being overwhelmed?
10. If you were on The Pill when you met him, going off The Pill can lead to relationship problems14. Introducing all of the manipulative hormones into your body through The Pill is bound to throw a few things off. These changes are not limited to a woman's olfactory preferences. As explained in the Couples Edition, a female's sense of smell can lead her to a compatible mate, as well as away from an incompatible one. The Pill changes the situation a bit, altering a woman's tastes. This can cause problems when a woman decides to go off birth control with her partner. The supply of artificial hormones stops and her body returns to its natural functioning state. All of a sudden, preferences have changed and Prince Charming doesn't seem as delightful anymore. Of course, there is more to love than just the scents that subtly attract us, but if there isn't much depth to a relationship while The Pill is in effect, there probably won't be any once it is not.
Previous Editions:
Female Edition
Male Edition
Couples Edition
Sources:
1 A. Camperio-Ciani, F. Iemmola and S. R. Blecher, "Genetic Factors Increase Fecundity in Female Material Relatives of Bisexual Men as in Homosexuals," J Sex Med 6, 2(2008): 449-455
2 Joan Roughgarden, quoted in J. Lehrer, "The Gay Animal Kingdom," Seed Magazine, June 2006
3 Walum, H., Westberg, L., Henningsson, S., Neiderhiser, J. M., Reiss, D., Igl, W., et al. "Genetic variation in the vasopressin receptor 1a gene (AVPR1A) associates with pair-bonding behavior in humans." Prot Natl Acad U S A, 105(37) (2008), 14153-14156.
4 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Priapism
5 D. Sundahl, Female Ejaculation and the G-Spot (2003)
6 F. Wimpissinger, K. Stifter, W. Grin, and W. Stackl, "The Female Prostate Revisited: Perineal Ultrasound and Biochemical Studies of Female Ejaculate," Journal of Sex Medicine 4, no. 5 (2007): 1388-1393.
7 S. A. Robertson, W.V. Ingman, S. O'Leary, D. J. Sharkey, and K. P. Tremellen. "Transforming Growth Factor Beta - A Mediator of Immune Deviation in Seminal Plasma," J Reprod Immunol 57, no. 1-2 (2002): 109-128.
8 R. B. Ness, D. A. Grainger, "Male Reproductive Proteins and Outcomes," Am J Obstet Gynecol, 198, 6 (2008):620el-4; C. A. Koelman, A. B. Coumans, H. W. Nijman, II Doxiadis, G. A. Dekker, and F. H. Claas, "Correlation Between Oral Sex and a Low Incidence of Preeclampsia: A Role for Soluble HLA in Seminal Fluid?" J Reprod Immunol 46, no. 2 (2000): 155-166.
9 C. W. Moeliker, "The First Case of Homosexual Necrophelia in the Mallard Anas Platyrhynchos (Aves: Anatidae)," DEINSEA 8 (2001): 243-247
10 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kl%C3%BCver-Bucy_Syndrome
11 M. Emery-Thompson quoted in R. Hooper, "Menopause Sets Humans Apart from Chimps," New Scientist, 2007.
12 D. P. Shanley, R. Sear, R. Mace, and T. B. Kirkwood, "Testing Evolutionary Theories of Menopause," Proc Biol Sci 274, 1628 (2007): 2943-2949.
13 J. P. Higham, C. Ross, Y. Warren, M. Heistermann, and A. M. Maclarnon, "Reduced Productive Function in Wild Baboons Related to Natural Consumption of the African Black Plum," Hormones and Behavior 52, no. 3 (2007): 384-390.
14 S. C. Roberts, L. M. Gosling, V. Carter, and M. Petrie, "MHC - Correlated Odour Preferences in Humans and the Use of Oral Contraceptives," Proc Biol Sci, 275, no. 165 (2008): 2715-2722.
The big buzz these days is that the Mayan calendar ends in December of 2012. Logically, this means the world is coming to an end. There's even a movie about it, which makes it even more convincing. However, seeing as the calendar on my wall ends in 2 months, I'm not even sure we'll make it to next year! If we do, I have a good plan for when the world actually ends...
The wonderful thing about humanity is that, even in the face of impending doom, we see opportunities. Services that promise to take care of your pets and deliver your mail after the rapture whisks you off to heaven certainly have the right idea. What I'm most looking forward to in 2012 are the End of the World parties. If I'm not single when I get to the party, I'll be single by the time I leave. If I leave.
What can we expect? Debauchery like there's no tomorrow. In fact, if I don't have sex with at least 5 different people by the end of the night, I'll probably feel like the world deserves to end. We're talking leave-your-reputation-at-the-door no-dignity hedonism. The only dilemma at that point is whether to use a condom or not. No hero wants to go down with his jacket on.
My only worry is the possibility of some nutbag who wants to call it an early existence and take a few people with him. Dude, I'm not your friend and I'm not going to join you. At least not before I get my rocks off. If we're really determined to go out on our own terms, you'll find us after the party, sprawled naked on the carpet after huffing nitrous oxide.
RSVP.
The wonderful thing about humanity is that, even in the face of impending doom, we see opportunities. Services that promise to take care of your pets and deliver your mail after the rapture whisks you off to heaven certainly have the right idea. What I'm most looking forward to in 2012 are the End of the World parties. If I'm not single when I get to the party, I'll be single by the time I leave. If I leave.
What can we expect? Debauchery like there's no tomorrow. In fact, if I don't have sex with at least 5 different people by the end of the night, I'll probably feel like the world deserves to end. We're talking leave-your-reputation-at-the-door no-dignity hedonism. The only dilemma at that point is whether to use a condom or not. No hero wants to go down with his jacket on.
My only worry is the possibility of some nutbag who wants to call it an early existence and take a few people with him. Dude, I'm not your friend and I'm not going to join you. At least not before I get my rocks off. If we're really determined to go out on our own terms, you'll find us after the party, sprawled naked on the carpet after huffing nitrous oxide.
RSVP.
A common way for scientists to describe evolution and adaptation is to assign a purpose for the various features and behaviors that animals possess. For example: An anteater's long snout evolved to allow it access to out-of-the-way areas where its food lives. This wording insinuates that the animal evolved along a path, a direction, a plan. We also tend to mention that the goal of nature is survival, as if nature itself has an intelligent purpose. Remember, though, that species go extinct just as they survive; through the adaptations that either succeed or fail to prepare them for their ever-changing environment. It is important for scientists to remember this distinction when describing nature because the example above is not accurate for evolution; it suggests intelligent design.
Evolution, as we know, describes a series of random variations and mutations that take dominance over thousands of generations within every life form. Organisms that multiply very quickly, like viruses and bacteria, seem to evolve much faster because we can observe it right before our eyes. Meanwhile animals whose generations span many years appear to us as running in place. This distortion makes evolution difficult to grasp for many people who simply cannot imagine their future progeny, millions of years from now, with giant heads or tentacle fingers because they cannot see any difference in their ancestors. Part of the problem is our tendency to justify things or events with a reason for their happening; we are not happy just accepting happenstance as a result of random chance. It does not give our lives much meaning or context.
Looking at the adaptations we see today, it is hard to imagine that we are here right now as a result of purely random circumstance. Take syphilis as an example; with the advent of antibiotics, this strain of bacteria would certainly not survive today if it still worked like it used to 400 years ago. Back then, you would develop hideous boils on your face as a mark of your infection. In addition to hampering its carrier's mating agenda, syphilis can easily be treated with modern medicine. So, what does it do? It goes hidden. Today's strains of syphilis have subtle symptoms that are not easily detected. This allows the bacteria to spread amongst unaware sexual partners. Now, the idea that syphilis' adaptation was guided by some intelligence would certainly have a little clout if not for the fact that many other strains of bacteria have faded from existence in the same time span as a direct result of their own "adaptations."
Can organisms without self-awareness or technology evolve in directions that they intend? Is there intelligence or choice involved in the existence of the species that are alive today, or is this all a function of circumstance? Its easy to look back at history and say, "Everything that has happened thus far was necessary for this very moment to occur." This is true and it depends on your belief in whether an invisible guiding hand exists or not to answer the questions. This kind of thinking is unique to humans.
The larger fallacy at hand here is our present-to-past view of our world. Being naturally self-serving animals, humans possess intelligence that coddles their sense of importance. We often forget that intelligence is only a function of a large brain, subject to its own design flaws (as explained by the field of behavioral economics). These flaws influence us to create justifications for things that happened in the past as part of a scheme, possibly because our sense of worth has outgrown the reality of our existence. It is easy to look at something that has happened and then come up with evidence for why it did. Isn't it strange, though, that with everything we know about the past, we still cannot predict the future?
Think of predicting the future as preventing it from even happening. If one person knew the secret to stock market success, others would follow and soon the financial environment would normalize around it. If we could predict 9/11 (conspiracy not withstanding) then we would have been able to prevent it. Since it did happen, we look back and piece together all the reasons why, as if they'll help us moving forward. The problem here is that we are using what we know as a gauge for what is possible. That is, until something else comes along and exploits what we don't know; another attack, or the recent shootings at Fort Hood. Then we'll start the justification process all over again, hoping for the best. We are not comfortable considering it's likely that what we don't know far outweighs what we do.
I ask you what is more valuable: a shelf full of books that you've read, or one full of books you haven't?
Evolution, as we know, describes a series of random variations and mutations that take dominance over thousands of generations within every life form. Organisms that multiply very quickly, like viruses and bacteria, seem to evolve much faster because we can observe it right before our eyes. Meanwhile animals whose generations span many years appear to us as running in place. This distortion makes evolution difficult to grasp for many people who simply cannot imagine their future progeny, millions of years from now, with giant heads or tentacle fingers because they cannot see any difference in their ancestors. Part of the problem is our tendency to justify things or events with a reason for their happening; we are not happy just accepting happenstance as a result of random chance. It does not give our lives much meaning or context.
Looking at the adaptations we see today, it is hard to imagine that we are here right now as a result of purely random circumstance. Take syphilis as an example; with the advent of antibiotics, this strain of bacteria would certainly not survive today if it still worked like it used to 400 years ago. Back then, you would develop hideous boils on your face as a mark of your infection. In addition to hampering its carrier's mating agenda, syphilis can easily be treated with modern medicine. So, what does it do? It goes hidden. Today's strains of syphilis have subtle symptoms that are not easily detected. This allows the bacteria to spread amongst unaware sexual partners. Now, the idea that syphilis' adaptation was guided by some intelligence would certainly have a little clout if not for the fact that many other strains of bacteria have faded from existence in the same time span as a direct result of their own "adaptations."
Can organisms without self-awareness or technology evolve in directions that they intend? Is there intelligence or choice involved in the existence of the species that are alive today, or is this all a function of circumstance? Its easy to look back at history and say, "Everything that has happened thus far was necessary for this very moment to occur." This is true and it depends on your belief in whether an invisible guiding hand exists or not to answer the questions. This kind of thinking is unique to humans.
The larger fallacy at hand here is our present-to-past view of our world. Being naturally self-serving animals, humans possess intelligence that coddles their sense of importance. We often forget that intelligence is only a function of a large brain, subject to its own design flaws (as explained by the field of behavioral economics). These flaws influence us to create justifications for things that happened in the past as part of a scheme, possibly because our sense of worth has outgrown the reality of our existence. It is easy to look at something that has happened and then come up with evidence for why it did. Isn't it strange, though, that with everything we know about the past, we still cannot predict the future?
Think of predicting the future as preventing it from even happening. If one person knew the secret to stock market success, others would follow and soon the financial environment would normalize around it. If we could predict 9/11 (conspiracy not withstanding) then we would have been able to prevent it. Since it did happen, we look back and piece together all the reasons why, as if they'll help us moving forward. The problem here is that we are using what we know as a gauge for what is possible. That is, until something else comes along and exploits what we don't know; another attack, or the recent shootings at Fort Hood. Then we'll start the justification process all over again, hoping for the best. We are not comfortable considering it's likely that what we don't know far outweighs what we do.
I ask you what is more valuable: a shelf full of books that you've read, or one full of books you haven't?
It is common knowledge that dolphins, apart from humans, are the smartest animals that we know of. They are the only other self-aware life form and they're cute, to boot. Every time I read about dolphins, I get excited to learn about how close to humans they really are. They possess learning skills similar to us, they use tools and mimicry, understand language and they can even negotiate. It sort of makes me wish I had one as a friend. Because of their intelligence, they can be seen as a link in the evolution of brain capabilities. There is a correlation in the relationship between brain size and body size that dolphins fit into quite well; humans have the largest brains in comparison with the size of their bodies, followed by dolphins and then chimpanzees.
When it comes to the evolution of human brains, they've progressively gotten larger and larger. This makes a lot of sense because the smarter we are, the more capable we are of adapting. Let's assume that dolphins are also following this evolutionary trend. Barring any catastrophes that devastate either humans or dolphins from the planet, the next 30 million years should be very interesting. Imagine a world where there are two different forms of highly intelligent life. Will the dolphins rule the sea the way we rule the land?
Here is a link to a very entertaining article about dolphins: Why dolphins are deep thinkers.
Here are a few excerpts:
When it comes to the evolution of human brains, they've progressively gotten larger and larger. This makes a lot of sense because the smarter we are, the more capable we are of adapting. Let's assume that dolphins are also following this evolutionary trend. Barring any catastrophes that devastate either humans or dolphins from the planet, the next 30 million years should be very interesting. Imagine a world where there are two different forms of highly intelligent life. Will the dolphins rule the sea the way we rule the land?
Here is a link to a very entertaining article about dolphins: Why dolphins are deep thinkers.
Here are a few excerpts:
Kelly has taken this task one step further. When people drop paper into the water she hides it under a rock at the bottom of the pool. The next time a trainer passes, she goes down to the rock and tears off a piece of paper to give to the trainer. After a fish reward, she goes back down, tears off another piece of paper, gets another fish, and so on....
One day, when a gull flew into her pool, she grabbed it, waited for the trainers and then gave it to them. It was a large bird and so the trainers gave her lots of fish. This seemed to give Kelly a new idea. The next time she was fed, instead of eating the last fish, she took it to the bottom of the pool and hid it under the rock where she had been hiding the paper. When no trainers were present, she brought the fish to the surface and used it to lure the gulls, which she would catch to get even more fish. After mastering this lucrative strategy, she taught her calf, who taught other calves, and so gull-baiting has become a hot game among the dolphins....
Scientists have observed a dolphin coaxing a reluctant moray eel out of its crevice by killing a scorpion fish and using its spiny body to poke at the eel. Off the western coast of Australia, bottlenose dolphins place sponges over their snouts, which protects them from the spines of stonefish and stingrays as they forage over shallow seabeds....
At a dolphinarium, a person standing by the pool's window noticed that a dolphin calf was watching him. When he released a puff of smoke from his cigarette, the dolphin immediately swam off to her mother, returned and released a mouthful of milk, causing a similar effect to the cigarette smoke. Another dolphin mimicked the scraping of the pool's observation window by a diver, even copying the sound of the air-demand valve of the scuba gear while releasing a stream of bubbles from his blowhole.Be sure to read the whole thing. It is quite enlightening and might make you wonder about the possibilities. It only frustrates me on one little level: I am very saddened by the knowledge that I wont be alive for the next 30 million years so that I can watch the dolphins evolve into the next intelligent species.
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