Re: Is evolution accelerating?

dkomo <dkomo871@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in
news:kI-dnWewRrxoI0venZ2dnUVZ_sidnZ2d@xxxxxxxxxxx:

> Consider these evolutionary steps:
>
> 1. From the formation of the earth to to the first multicelluar
> organisms took perhaps 4 billion years.
>
> 2. From tiny organisms to the first mammals took 400 million years.
>
> 3. From the first mammals to the first primitive monkeys took 150
> million years.
>
> 4. From monkeys to hominid species such as chimpanzees took something
> like 30 million years.
>
> 5. From hominids to walking erect took 16 million years.
>
> 6. From walking erect to humans painting on cave walls took 4 million
> years.
>
> 7. From cave paintings to the first permanent settlements took some
> 10,000 years.
>
> 8. From settlements to the invention of writing in Sumeria took about
> 4,000 years.
>
> At this point biological evolution was surpassed by cultural
> evolution. Humans could now store, recall and widely share their
> thoughts and insights. And now it was:
>
> 9. 4,000 years to the Roman Empire.
>
> 10. 1,800 years to the Industrial Age.
>
> 11. 169 years to the moon.
>
> 12. 20 years to the Information Age where we now find ourselves.
>
> And
>
> 13. ?????????
>
> --adapted from _Radical Evolution_, Joel Garreau, p. 58
>
>
> In exponential growth
>
> dN/dt = k * N
>
> where the change in a quantity N is proportional to the current value
> of N, and
>
> N = N0 * e^(kt)
>
> is the solution to this differential equation and is the equation of
> an exponential curve.
>
> If, roughly speaking, N represents the complexity of an organism, then
> do the above steps show evidence of an exponential growth curve for
> human evolution? And can evolution be considered "progressive" in
> this case?
>
>
> --dkomo@xxxxxxxx
>

You have, as you indirectly point out, mixed apples and rutabagas.
Cultural evolution proceeds MUCH faster than biological evolution, so
your last three steps cannot be compared to the preceding ones.

As far as biological evolution accelerating- ask Mr. Limulus:

http://www.horseshoecrab.org/evo/evo.html

Chris

.

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