Mankind...Have we evolved beyond dependence on Nature?

[Freakshow]

By immortal, I was referring to the further existence of the species. ^ ^

Here are 2 quotes that appeal to me ;

- “I think the next century will be the century of complexity.” Stephen Hawking
- “We stand on the verge of being able to change the human race” Wired Magazine, January ‘98

[tatsukai1990]

as a species, mankind is at a point where there is no turning back.
is that a good thing? maybe, with all the advances in medicine, we are healthier and we live longer. do we even want to live to our 80s, 90s, 100s though? i know that i am afraid of being that old. i don't want to shit in my pants, and be fed through IV. i definitely don't want to be one of those old people you see in nursing homes, senile, their body is healthy, but their minds are gone.
science is moving fast, it slowly is breaking us away from nature. paul, you stated very good examples of this. GMOs are good example of this. we no longer rely on nature, but we bend it to our will.
in 20 years or so, im sure we will be able to pick the color of our childs eyes, his hair color, and even gender. nature will have nothing to do with it, and that might not be a good thing

[kuroihikari]

Technology should be used to supplement what Nature provides us, not replace it. Taking the road in which we fully rely on technology is a grandiose and big mistake.

Take medicine for example. There are a lot of diseases in which we have relied on pharmaceuticals to cure, but actually the underlying cause may be something as common as lack of water. Soda and other modern drinking products are not a suitable replacement for pure water, but on the other hand, pure water is not something that we can get without a dose of technology by itself.

We still, and will always need nature to provide us what we need. We can modify our food for all we want, but if we don't take care of nature with the technology that we have, our food still won't grow.

[[JUiCE]]

Technology should be used to supplement what Nature provides us, not replace it. Taking the road in which we fully rely on technology is a grandiose and big mistake.

Take medicine for example. There are a lot of diseases in which we have relied on pharmaceuticals to cure, but actually the underlying cause may be something as common as lack of water. Soda and other modern drinking products are not a suitable replacement for pure water, but on the other hand, pure water is not something that we can get without a dose of technology by itself.

We still, and will always need nature to provide us what we need. We can modify our food for all we want, but if we don't take care of nature with the technology that we have, our food still won't grow.

in other words, technology shouldn't seem like its taking over, just re enforce nature.

hmm..i agree with ur statement

although i also believe we do not need technology as we make it seem. in a way we've forced ourselves to "need" technology because it tends to make things easier, so in a way, the more technology=easier=lazier=less potential
because if people notice, back in the 1600's and so on, people were most likely 3 times smarter than us, alot more potential, alot less lazy, although certain tasks were harder for them to achieve, they accomplished them, and with little/or no technology.

(this is one of the reasons why im a traditional artist)

[tatsukai1990]

in other words, technology shouldn't seem like its taking over, just re enforce nature.

hmm..i agree with ur statement

although i also believe we do not need technology as we make it seem. in a way we've forced ourselves to "need" technology because it tends to make things easier, so in a way, the more technology=easier=lazier=less potential
because if people notice, back in the 1600's and so on, people were most likely 3 times smarter than us, alot more potential, alot less lazy, although certain tasks were harder for them to achieve, they accomplished them, and with little/or no technology.

(this is one of the reasons why im a traditional artist)

im not to sure if i agree with this. although certain tasks are made easier by technology, it doesn't necessarily lessen the potential of mankind. and back in the 1600, i wouldn't say that people were smarter than we are now, or had more potential, or lazier. there will always be those who work harder than other to achieve things, and those who just laze around living off the work of others. yes, certain tasks were harder for them, but they didn't know any better, and they were looking for ways to simplify and make those tasks easier.

i do agree that we don't need technology to the extent that we need nature, but it is human nature to make things simpler, and to create tools to make our lives easier. the first humans made rock tools, and we as a people now are in the process of making a literal point and click world see here. the rate at which technology is advancing is slowly removing our reliance on nature, and that is a bad thing.

p.s. we especially don't need twitter. we really don't need twitter. that in it self is the downfall of humanity

[[JUiCE]]

im not to sure if i agree with this. although certain tasks are made easier by technology, it doesn't necessarily lessen the potential of mankind. and back in the 1600, i wouldn't say that people were smarter than we are now, or had more potential, or lazier. there will always be those who work harder than other to achieve things, and those who just laze around living off the work of others. yes, certain tasks were harder for them, but they didn't know any better, and they were looking for ways to simplify and make those tasks easier.

i do agree that we don't need technology to the extent that we need nature, but it is human nature to make things simpler, and to create tools to make our lives easier. the first humans made rock tools, and we as a people now are in the process of making a literal point and click world see here. the rate at which technology is advancing is slowly removing our reliance on nature, and that is a bad thing.

p.s. we especially don't need twitter. we really don't need twitter. that in it self is the downfall of humanity

ah, i understand ur point
i dont know if ur in school or not, i just graduated from high school (well not JUST..graduated 2 months ago) so i can still remember the stuff i learned in Government class, and the educational videos and movies we watched (eduacational as in, we learned stuff, sometimes they were regular movies) the way they spoke back then, u could truely notice their intelligence by the way they spoke, sure it was a movie, but my guess is thats how it was back then. todays language is..."LOL" in 2-3 years were going to have a whole dictionary on shortcuts like LOL and OMG..yeah i know i use lol, i blaim my excessive texting
back to my point

yes i know technology is used to make our everyday lives simpler, but we're going to get to the point where robots..well, technology can live for us, eat for us, crap for us, do our duties for us
let me ask u this, Have you ever seen the movie Wall-e?
its a great kids movie, i liked it alot, and plus the fact that it sends out a strong message to us and shows us a visual on how the human race can end up if we continue to depend and let technology simplify our daily lives
(yeah the go to space because of the trashy earth, but so many years in space made them excessively fat and useless because they became lazy due to technology doing everything for them, thats the way i was using the film Wall-e as a reference)

[tatsukai1990]

you gotta realize that the people who you remember with the intelligent way of speaking were the upper class, the well educated of the time. i'm starting my second year of college in the fall by the way. you'll notice when you get to college, that there will be people who speak, and you just think, damn, that guy is really smart. and there will be the idiots who actually use btw or lol in spoken conversation.
and yeah, our dependence on technology isn't good, but its much to late to stop it. scientific progress has taken on a life of its own, and hopefully, we as a society can still learn to keep our roots.

[[JUiCE]]

you gotta realize that the people who you remember with the intelligent way of speaking were the upper class, the well educated of the time. i'm starting my second year of college in the fall by the way. you'll notice when you get to college, that there will be people who speak, and you just think, damn, that guy is really smart. and there will be the idiots who actually use btw or lol in spoken conversation.
and yeah, our dependence on technology isn't good, but its much to late to stop it. scientific progress has taken on a life of its own, and hopefully, we as a society can still learn to keep our roots.

yeah, i was thinking that after my post, about the well educated
haha..yeah it is too late, WAY to late, the only way humanity will keep everything how its supposed to is if we dont give in to the technology and its ways of simplifying our lives..which again, too late. this whole thread is ironic in a way, since the way we are communicating is through a computer(or cellphone) via internet, aka..technology

[kuroihikari]

I know really smart people who write in "lol"s and such. It may be a matter of choice.

In the end, after all, that's what it is: Do you let technology dictate the way you live, or do you dictate the way technology can help you? I believe we as a race are going towards the former, when we should be doing the latter.

[paulbee]

Here are some negative effects of (badly managed) technology.

Pollution of water with Chemicals, plastics.
Pollution of air
Endangerment of lower animal species
Increase of the temperature of the Earth aka Global Warming
The emergence of new difficultt to kill Bacteria and viruses

In my eyes these are not insurmountable problems though. Can any body else think of more negative side effects of Tech.

@tatsukai1990 : I love the Clickable world page. Can't wait to start clicking my world away.