The Future of Human Evolution

In continuation to the thread "What is the effect of intelligence on
evolution??"
(http://groups.google.com/group/sci.bio.evolution/browse_thread/thread/3ef51a819546c68a),
let us discuss about the future of human evolution.

According to this
article(http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7103668/print/1/displaymode/1098/),
There are few likely scenarios:
1. Humans divide into two different species
2. Humans get replaced by Artificial Intelligence through natural
selection
3. Humans merge with machines to give rise to cyborgs
4. Humans spread to different planets and stars
5. Humans modify themselves genetically and give rise to super-humans

What according to you is the most likely? IMO, humans will advance the
biological engineering to such extent that they will soon be much more
intelligent, powerful and skilled than normal humans. And then to
prevent death, they will soon use the computer technology to encode
themselves into bits-n-bytes. Thus, the property of life and death
which arises due to physical existance of an organism will soon become
an extinct property since organism can then exist as information only.

But, then, I guess natural selection will operate on parameters other
than just survival. Or will evolution one day won't matter at all
because humans (or whatever name which they are called by in future)
would have taken control of evolution? I guess if humans go on killing
evolution, a day will come when this will affect themselves in
unimaginable ways.

Paras Chopra
------------
www.paraschopra.com


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Relevant Pages

  • Re: No easy road to AI
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    (comp.ai.philosophy)
  • Human behaviour: Killer instincts
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    (soc.culture.romanian)
  • Re: New falsifiable proposal/prediction of design
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    (talk.origins)
  • Re: Couple questions for evolution experts
    ... >> process of evolution was occuring, did the human female birth canal ... If it were beneficial for the survival of the species, ... Why is it such a guessing game with humans? ... many atheists agree with those religious persons that evolution and religion are not alternatives. ...
    (talk.origins)
  • Re: New falsifiable proposal/prediction of design
    ... I've said that evolution cannot get from point ... >>between chimp and human, rat and bat, single cell and multi cellular, etc. ... > the primates, humans and "apes", and I'm much better informed about the ...
    (talk.origins)