Here's Complaining

[aesmael]

    I was watching Stargate a couple of nights ago. There was an individual found cryogenically frozen on a distant world who turned out to be in a 'higher state of evolution', somewhere between humans and those oh-so-delightfully ascendable Ancients. I suppose there is not much point being irritated that evolution is teleogical in a universe where people can transcend their physical forms to exist as beings of pure spirit, and yet I am. Evolution in the real world does not have some goal or purpose 'it' is working toward (the quote marks are there because evolution is not even a thing to have goals or purpose, it is a process), evolution is a blind process that works by favouring whatever, well, works at the time. Not even whatever works best necessarily, so long as it works well enough.

    But it gets worse. While the individual is under surveillance they observe that he is still progressing evolutionarily and will soon reach the point of being able to ascend - and they determine this by measuring what fraction of his brain's neurons are firing at any time! I think there was even mention of a 'DNA Simulator' which could predict the course of evolution. That's a lot of mumbo-jumbo just to give someone fancy powers.

    For the record, this attitude to evolution bugs me just as much when I see it in anime.

Comments

[udonman.livejournal.com]

Well remeber dear its hollyweird not exactly mit or any university worth there salt. But its this view and showing this crap that gets people confused about evoultion. Creatinism the one that says theres a purpose as you stated evoultion is only a process not a transcential being trying to finish a job it started.

[aesmael.livejournal.com]

You are quite right of course. And I worried I was being too harsh since after all I take plenty of liberties with reality myself, however evolution is an area where misrepresentation is doing real harm. Plus they really seemed not to get it

Which brings me back to you are quite right hon.