Thoughts On Evolution: Physical evolution in its infancy?

"Evolution did not end with us growing opposable thumbs. You do know that, right? There's another 90 percent of our brains that we have to illuminate."

- Bill Hicks

It was easy for me to say that Intelligence and Love, from an evolutionary standpoint, are fairly young and have a lot of possibilities of growth. But then what about the physical world? Has it reached its peak?

We look at our bodies - efficient in mobility, clever thumbs and a large well protected brain. When we imagine alien life forms, they often possess a similar structure; we say God created us in his own image; does this mean that the physical side of evolution has completed its run? Or is it foolish to ever assume evolution can cease?

When I try imagine what could be next, I first think of our flaws. We still get sick and are vulnerable to many dangers. But to combat these we seem to prefer to use intelligence, designing medicines and technologies to assist us. We could evolve to be stronger or faster, develop more acute senses, but again it seems like technology is covering these roles as well.

Do we have to make predictions of sci-fi proportions to find a possible path? Maybe telepathy or telekinesis are on the cards. What secrets are there to be unlocked in that spare 90% of our brains? Maybe we must realise our true physical connectivity with the world and universe. But as cool as that would be, would it ever really be reached? Technology lets us control our entertainment systems from the couch. We can communicate with whoever we want, whenever we want through mobile phones and the internet. Who needs telepathy? Maybe Wall-E is the indicator of our future physical evolution – we become fat, lazy and gluttonous.

Or maybe I am simply wrong to separate the achievements of the mind or soul from those of the body. I recently watched a video on YouTube that attempts to illustrate ten dimensions of space. And that is what struck me – that they are all dimensions of space. Maybe intelligence and love are simply the next step of physical evolution. The brain is the hub where ideas and emotions are felt, but in the end it is just made up of atoms like everything else.

- Eden (while listening to Embryonic – The Flaming Lips)

Thoughts on Evolution: Intelligence in its infancy
Thoughts on Evolution: Love in its infancy

Pride

“The night of the fight, you may feel a slight sting. That's pride fucking with you. Fuck pride. Pride only hurts, it never helps.” - Marsellus Wallace

The first thought that comes to mind when thinking about pride is enjoying something that I have created (writing a blog for example). After I have finished, I am pleased with my output - I often read it over with a smile on my face taking "pride" in the fact that I was simply able to collate a bunch of ideas that were in my head. If I were a painter, I would surely feel pride after finishing a work of art. This type of pride is felt by all people, and the resulting emotion is happiness; so far so good.

There is however another phenomenon I associate with pride, and that is Nationalism. This is not to be confused with Patriotism, and up until the point of writing this article I thought of these as one in the same. But from my new-found wiki-knowledge, nationalism is basically being a part of a cultural or ethnic identity within a state - whereas patriotism is the love of one’s country/homeland. There is much more to these ideas, and to save repetition I won't summarise the Wikipedia articles - this blog isn't an Encyclopedia.

On a strictly high-level view of nationalism, having pride in a collective cultural identity is very important. However, when taken to another level, nationalism is the devil. Take this quote from George H.W. Bush, "No, I don't know that atheists should be considered as citizens, nor should they be considered patriots. This is one nation under God." How is uber-nationalism of this sort beneficial to anyone? And this sort of nonsense isn't restricted to right-wing American nuts, it spans across the globe into the minds of many power-hungry world leaders. See: (Kim Jong-il, Robert Mugabe, and Adolf Hitler). In these cases, pride of nation (or pride of ethnic background), has seen the deaths of many people - pride gone too far.

Then there's patriotism. Like nationalism - prima facie it is a good thing. To be truly patriotic, you must want the best for the country that you live in - ethics, law, and devotion to the common good. However, when you become so patriotic that you view your own country (and possibly your race) as superior to another, that's when patriotism sucks. For me, I don't really care about being Australian. Don't get me wrong, I love this country, and growing up and living here is probably the reason that I love it, but that doesn't mean that I think being Australian is any better than being Chinese. If I were Chinese, I would love China etc. etc..

Pride also gets tossed around when talking about sexual preference (no pun intended). Gay rights have come a long way since the 1960s, and "Pride" is a big reason why. I know a few people that would automatically think of gay pride when the word pride is mentioned. This is a good thing.

There is one facet of life where I find myself taking immense pride, and that is sport. No other thing I can think of gets my blood running and emotions flying more than an intense game of sport; the physical contest, the extreme athletic ability on display, the pressure! OK, I won't go on about sport, but what I was getting at was how taking pride in a sporting team that you support, a team you play on, or an individual performance such as a triathlon is pretty special. And when you think about it, pride in sport usually stems from nationalism/patriotism anyway - I know that I can't stand England winning, well, anything.

Coming back to the quote from Marsellus Wallace. When he says that pride only hurts, it never helps - that made me stop and think for a moment. What would the world be like without pride?

- Russell

Ten Minutes Ago...

I was originally going to write a different article, but at the last minute I have decided to tell you this.

A few years ago, I experienced severe depression several times a day. It was really serious, but I got through it and learned so many things that will help me for the rest of my life. I became aware of Buddhism and found that it holds so many keys to happiness.

Today, my girlfriend was having a bad day. Some unfortunate things happened and she has been very upset. It's nothing serious, but it's just that she's having a few things go wrong in her life lately.

Pretty much everything I said to help her was something I've learned or taught myself since finding Buddhism.

After I had finished telling her all that I could to help, she was feeling better. She said, "it's almost like you went through all that stuff so you could help me right now."

I cried, because it's true. My pain, and the strength I eventually found, ended up helping myself and the girl I love.

Ten minutes ago, I found even more meaning to my life.

- Lee

Why W*F with Marc Maron is Awesome

"Lock the Gates!"

I have never been one for podcasts before. Whenever I have spare time and an iPod around I am all about picking whichever album tickles my mood and fancy at the time. Why would I care to listen to people talk? There is nothing better than listening to music.

But then Lee, informed me that Marc Maron had a new podcast out, insisting that I listen to it because it is amazing. I have been a big Maron fan ever since I saw him do a show here in Sydney about two years ago. He is by far the funniest comedian I have seen live (admittedly I haven’t seen that many live comedians, but still…). We even got to meet him after the show where he talked a little about the hardships of alternative comedy while trying to sell a few CDs. The combination of the show, with his raw display of emotional baggage, and his slightly dejected self talking to us afterwards was very impressionable on me as I was only just truly discovering real comedy at the time. I was definitely a Marc Maron fan from that point on (Although I still didn’t buy any CDs…)

So this began a new era for me. I got into my car to drive to work. I scrolled past Música and selected podcasts – W*F episode 1…

The Rants:

The podcast runs for about an hour, but I could listen to Marc talk all day. His voice carries such emotion and his timing is perfect. At the beginning of each podcast he takes some time to tell a story. Now on the first show of anything you want to make a good impression, right? Well Marc decided to open his podcast – the first segment of his first episode no less - with a story about how boycotting a large, overbearing retail store, Wholefoods, in the States may not be enough of a protest. He actually encouraged that people steal from Wholefoods.

That’s what I love about Marc – not that he tells it like it is, but that he tells it like it is to him. He has strong views from politics to pop culture. He recounts detailed life experiences with loved ones and stalkers alike, family and work issues and of course the timeless question/statement of “What *** Fuck!?” He puts his opinions and emotions out there, almost objectively, whether they be happy, angry, jealous or anything. All this is laced with snippets of his memorable comedic set or improvised side notes.

Guests and Comedic Conscience:

The guests on each show are always interesting. A gathering of comedians talking about comedy. Most of them I am unfamiliar with until Marc’s personal interview style allows them to be free and reveal themselves. And because these are real comedians struggling through the fairly unglamorous lifestyle of alternative comedy, they tell it like it is. And when they feel uncomfortable about going on too much about it, Marc assures them that that is what the fans want. And that is exactly what I want!

As a comedy fan I love hearing Marc describe a meeting with television station E!, or Jeff Ross breaking down the fading art of the roast, Todd Barry describing a comedy festival in the UK, David Cross talking about living in the same house as Marc and Louis C.K. back in the day, and a run in with a backwards audience member while on the road in shitty little towns. They discuss the evolution of comedy from simple observational humour, the influence of Lenny Bruce, and Bill Hicks to the quirky magic that Mr Show managed to do ten years ago, and how this affects the comedians of today.

And then there are the non comedic guests. Writer Sam Lipsyte for example, who Marc showered with praise for his amazing writing talents. Marc questioned why it is so hard to find someone so in touch with his art. I didn’t fully understand why until Sam read a passage from his upcoming book. For maybe 60 seconds it sounded like he was guiding the english language into a new dimension of uncharted territory. I was immediately convinced that I had to go buy one of his books.

And before discovering a writer I would otherwise have never heard of, the podcast offered up other recommendations, including Battlestar Galactica from Patton Oswalt, a discussion of Inglorious Basterds and the TV series Madmen. It is almost like having another friend who shares similar tastes suggesting and discussing quality art/entertainment.

Matthew:

In most of his shows there is a segment called A Few with Matthew. I don’t know who Matthew is, but he and Marc have the most unique of rapports. Sometimes Matthew is the straight man and Marc the funny man, then they switch it up in an instant. At one moment Matthew is preying on Marc’s neediness and then Marc will start belittling Matthew’s superiority complex. I can only say you have to hear it from the start, and understand how the relationship evolves to truly know its awesomeness.

***

I can’t get enough of this podcast and there is so much more to it than I can describe. I have only heard the first 13 episodes at the time of writing this. But probably the greatest thing is to see the evolution of Marc’s outlook on life, from the first time I saw him live (where I left slightly concerned for his well being) to the way he has let the podcast be an outlet for his frustrations and a tool to deal with the W*F moments of his life and make them entertaining and inspirational for the listeners.

- Eden (while listening to Axis: Bold as Love – The Jimi Hendrix Experience)

We Wonder

"Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never were. But without it we go nowhere." - Carl Sagan

Do you ever have a moment when you're by yourself, or with your own thoughts and you think something amazing? Pretty broad statement I know, but I'll get to the bottom of it. For example, on occasion I've been sitting down and looking at my hands, opening and closing them for some reason and at this moment - this action is amazing the shit outta me. Has anyone defined this state of mind? Is it in a psychological journal somewhere, or is it just something we do and no one has ever thought too hard about it?

What prompted me to write this was the old powers of ten. I was having coffee by myself at work when I looking into the coffee cup and thought to myself how incredible the motion of this liquid is. Yes, you're only going to find coffee here on Earth (in likelihood), but the fact that it is a liquid is not unique to Earth. The same laws of nature govern the entire Universe, but what other universes might there be, what if there is a universe which doesn't have gravity... this universe could be part of me. This isn't an 'original' idea but the thought an imagery that accompanies it each time is wonderful.

Every person has strange and wonderful thoughts, whether they be cosmic or just simply being awestruck by the beauty of a flower for a moment. You cannot create nor replicate these moments. These moments in themselves are wonders - how does our brain, evolved from the hydrogen of a dead star begin to wonder about wondering? And so we wonder.

- Dogman