Does evolution have a purpose?

Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2008 5:29 pm

Another big question

Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2008 5:51 pm

evolutiont exits because animals and living things must change to a changing world. If a snail that had a lighter shell and move faster it would not get eaten vs. it's slower counterpart, so the faster snail's generation would obviously go ahead of the previous one. This happens with all animals including humans. Compare humans of the 10th century vs. humans of today. It's pretty easy to see humans from today are faster, smarter, stronger, and better than their counterparts from so many years ago. This shows that science, technology, medicine, and education have helped humans evolve into more complex creatures. There are always exceptions, but maybe their a dying breed?

Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2008 6:08 pm

yes, but does the fact that evolution is real gives it a purpose?
if the universe is random, then life is a series of reactions that follow random laws. Or a perpose was self-created as a need of matter?
I think that a random universe self-evolved to a universe with a perpose, but how a random universe,could create its perpose? And if evolution has a perpose and life follow it, then why does that perpose include sufferning?

Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2008 6:14 pm

No one can really answer if the universe has purpose. The real purpose of eveolution here on earth is to live or outcompete your fellow species. It's purpose in my eyes is to outcompete those who could endanger one. But on the other hand, a random universe, being random, can use any purpose. If it's random, than anything can happen, and it just so happens that this random choice was competition, and intereaction with one's environment. It includes suffering to balance pleasure. How would one know pleasure if that was the only thing one knew?

Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2008 6:16 pm

Yes. It's purpose is to keep making species adapt to their new enviorment so it can live on and not become exticnt. Otherwise, we would all be dead or not ehre right now if evolution didn't take palce.

Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2008 6:22 pm

i think though that suffering is a big hint that evolution doesnt have a perpose. if the rules of evolution include suffering, that leads to survival, and can a perpose be to overcome suffering and survive? Why life would be created if the main rule is death? Can the perpose of life be based on death? Wouldn't be more practical to be based on life? Can the only motive to evolve be death?

Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2008 6:47 pm

Survival.

Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2008 11:21 pm

I think that straightforward answer to your question is yes. The purpose of evolution is continuous change, improvment? of life forms. Change needed to survive in changing environment. That change is achieved through constant competition within and in between species. Competition resulting in reproduction of only the best fitted/adopted life forms to given environment or in human case to many environments. Nature not only gives the winners a chance to move their genetic material to the next generation but through the invention of sexes mutates it constantly to create the most possible diversity within population which gives the highest chance of survival. Interesting fact is that even the same parents (the same sets of DNAs) will produce a different and unique individual each and every time they have offspring. Please notice that this sort of explanation does not require intelligent or even conscious input. It happens sort of automatically like the life itself understood as a higher form of a matter bound to happen given a certain set of conditions, It's just a nature's survival technique, that's all. Your "oh so human" question is a little too broad. Are you asking from philosophical or maybe religious point of view? Are you asking if it exists or why it exists? Good starting point to interesting discussion though. Regards.

Posted: Wed Mar 19, 2008 10:35 am

the real question, is why life exists? It's not a religion question, and the fact that we cant answer with scientific proof makes it a bit philoshophical.
I read yesterday in an article that lifeforms and evolution has one almost certain rule(qith some exceptions), that life must walk towards more an more complexity. And that rule seems to be true, i think like a counteraction to the rule of entropia.BUT can such a rule be random? I also think not, BUT if it's NOT randmom, then that means that the universe and life must walk tawards a certain path. Where could that path leads, and why it goes there? If life was formed in a random universe then it seems to have no point to lead to a certain outcome. But random or not, evolution is a proof that matter has a funamental rule, and that is evolution itself.But why matter(dont forget that we started as the simplest particles) organize spontaniusly?Yes all that points to a purpose, and i dont want to see it from a religion point of view,but religion or not all this seems to be happening to a certain direction.And the SECOND question is where?

Posted: Wed Mar 19, 2008 10:01 pm

pur·pose (pûrps)
n.
1. The object toward which one strives or for which something exists; an aim or a goal: "And ever those, who would enjoyment gain/Must find it in the purpose they pursue" Sarah Josepha Hale.
2. A result or effect that is intended or desired; an intention. See Synonyms at intention.
3. Determination; resolution: He was a man of purpose.
4. The matter at hand; the point at issue.

I say no.

Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2008 12:46 am

Me is saying yes. Because it is survival of the fittest. And we adapt to our enviroment to become the fittest.

Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2008 7:26 am

toulji wrote:

evolutiont exits because animals and living things must change to a changing world. If a snail that had a lighter shell and move faster it would not get eaten vs. it's slower counterpart, so the faster snail's generation would obviously go ahead of the previous one. This happens with all animals including humans. Compare humans of the 10th century vs. humans of today. It's pretty easy to see humans from today are faster, smarter, stronger, and better than their counterparts from so many years ago. This shows that science, technology, medicine, and education have helped humans evolve into more complex creatures. There are always exceptions, but maybe their a dying breed?

It's also pretty easy to see that humans are also fatter and lazier. And as smart people who wait until the moment is right to have children, stupid people are popping them out like crazy. You should see the film "Idiocracy", despite it taking it a little too far, it begins with a concieveable idea: Has the human species begun to devolve?

There's also a difference between macro-evolution and micro-evolution. Micro-evolution has evidence to support it (There different colors of frogs, but they're all still frogs). Macro-evolution does not, there is no evidence to support that one species can turn into another.

That being said, all the religious people who say that evolution tries to disprove God in my opinion are mistaken. If God wanted to turn a fish into a donkey through a series of small changes, I'm sure he could. It's not really disproving anything about God, it's merely explaining further what God does (assuming God exists).

Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2008 4:19 pm

Purpose implies intent, so for there to be a purpose there had to be a creator; we're right back at the same age old debate, lol. Laughing

Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2008 5:31 am

I believe that the fact that we are here and talking means that the creator topic isnt fundamendal for evolution. Creator or not Evolution follows a path i think. But the fact that there is a beginning in the universe doesnt leave the creator and purpose issue open? If there was a prior state of the universe or many more prior to that, then wont we reach a point of beginning? And a point of end? a transaction to a next step of universall state? I am mumbling right now, cause when i go back and forth in time and space, i end up asking "What the f@#k is all this? Why are we alive????"

Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2008 9:24 am

neterer wrote:

Another big question

well a possible purpose could be that once we somewhat fully understand evolution, we might be in a position to know how a species would evolve,how fast it would evolve, which species would/could evolve quicker and more efficiently, what were the flaws which made species like dinos extinct....and stuff like that

with reference to man-- how humans are going to be in the future...and how engineering genes might effect the future of a species and awesome stuff like that...yeah,sounds like science fiction...u know...mutuant humans and stuff like that...but proper understanding of evolution can make such stuff possible...u just have to imagine and envision things like that to make it happen...but all this could be possible if we had a proper understanding of evolution and then had an "evolution time-line" or something like that. using the "Evolution time-line" we could precisely predict the change in the species due to enviornmental or artificial change(ie genetic engineering)

so to me the big question is not whats it purpose , but when would it be in a postion to fulfill its purpose?