How human spiece "evoluated" to that point that their conscience appeared?(question for evolutionists)

Question

How human spiece "evoluated" to that point that their conscience appeared?(question for evolutionists)

Answer 1

Even if conscience was defined it would be hard to say considering that would be a function of the brain which is not well preserved. We could always speculate but...it's pretty much impossible to say.

and wow, dude above me obviously doesn't know anything about evolution. "better"? Evolution has nothing to do with morality.

We evolve due to adaptations to our environment, we would not evolve in the same way because we have different environmental stressors to deal with...this is why people have different skin color.

Answer 2

There is NO WAY for any of us to ever find out.

ALL theories are speculation, from Big Bang, primordial soup and a spark to monkeys to man or having God create everything.

I STILL haven't heard how everything of the entire universe got to be in one spot to go bang or how the fuse was lit and what was "out there" surrounding space that space is expanding in to.!

There just isn't going to be an answer that any of us will ever know.

Answer 3

You also might want to ask them that if evolution is true and we are continually evolving towards the better, then wouldn't it seem plausable that we would require less laws as we as a species would have learned to respect our fellow human beings.  

Also, if evolution were true, then why is it that people living in western nations are more privilaged (enjoy more feedoms) then middle eastern or Asian nations?  Isn't that essentially saying that one group has evolved at a different rate than another group?  Isn't evolution supposed to happen as a whole?

Answer 4

Guys spelling is just a thing, get over it. I have seen people on YA with big degrees not get it right. Evolution means change no forward, no backward, just change. Natural Selection says that nature(Natural) will kill off(Select) unfit and allows the fit to survive and reproduce.  Evolution doesn't happen as a whole, it happens according to area or environment.  Last, true freedom wouldn't have taxes or social classes. Anyway. to answer the question, humans like other animals are social. Social groups have to act alike or it puts the group in danger. Your conscience is the ability to recognize that you have gone against the group and have put it in danger. That why you feel bad, your brain is telling you not to do it again. It goes so far back in time that it boggles the mind.  The earliest sign of religion goes back maybe 100,000 years. A large rock in the shape of a snake in a cave.  If you say no way about a snake, scroll down to the sign of this group:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tribe_of_Da...

Answer 5

A conscience isn't a biological element.  It is quite obviously societal.  We are, as children, molded by our parent culture to have certain values/morals/ethics, and these, in turn, inform our "conscience".  

So, in an attempt to answer your very poorly spelled query, I would direct you to look at the evolution of culture, not the species per se.  Perhaps neuroscience would also help you understand more of how we react to certain embedded values.

Answer 6

Is the question about "conscience" or "consciousness"? They may be related, but they are different concepts.

If you define conscience broadly as the innate ability to articulate concepts of right and wrong and the drive to act on them, it's probably an inevitable feature of any species of highly intelligent social beings. Natural selection favored the development of conscience because it enabled the maintenance of strong social bonds, and the ability to form such bonds was a crucial factor in early humanity's survival. I agree, however, that the specific content of different systems of morality was and is largely determined by culture.

Consciousness is a much trickier concept, as there is no consensus on what "consciousness" actually means. But if it is defined simply as awareness of both self and environment and the relationships between them, I suspect that the basic components of consciousness exist even in the simplest life forms - and possibly, as some philosophers now argue, even in "inanimate" matter. The evolution of more complex forms of consciousness in human beings and other higher animals may be the byproduct of higher intelligence - the evolutionary benefits of which should be obvious.

All this is speculation and probably unprovable, of course. But the reason we have reason to believe such speculative ideas might be valid is because there is already such an overwhelming base of evidence for the Darwinian theory of evolution.

Answer 7

We are only able to see into the minds of humans because they have language.  I wouldn't assume that apes or really many other animals don't have a conscience if it is defined as a mind where they are aware of themselves and their environment.  Humans seem to have something in their minds that translates thoughts into language and it is important to how our minds work.  We probably put too much importance into seeing that human quality in other animals when trying to imagine what is in their minds.

Answer 8

I am neither an "evolutionist" NOR a "creationist" - or any other kind of an "ist", for that matter.

I, personally, opt for some other, as yet undiscovered, alternative explanation for the beginnings of the universe, and our human presence in it, that no one has figured out yet.  Your responder further up the list named "Tom" has really hit it on the head when he talks about how inadequate and full of holes the currently available beliefs and theories really are.

Tom, I have wondered about ALL the same questions you have raised.

This much I HAVE learned in decades of spiritual studies:

The purpose of life is to grow and learn as spirits.  Each incarnated "life" we live is like a school year.  When school lets out for the summer (we die) we return to our natural plane of existance - basically the frequency range most compatible with our individual personality and level of conscious awareness - which is not necessarily the same for everyone.  

I happen to believe that it is within these "spiritual realms", "planes of existance", "frequency ranges" or whatever one might choose to call them, that we learn our social values.  The more advanced the level (or higher the frequency) the better and more solid set of social values one will bring into physical life with him/her.

If this is truly the case, then physical evolution has nothing whatsoever to do with it.  It would be like imagining that changing trends in architecture should affect the personalities of the people who buy and live in the houses.

However, when we reach a certain point in our "social evolution", we "graduate" and don't incarnate on this level any more.  THAT is probably why you do not see the degree of social evolution you are looking for - it DOES happen, but just not down here on the physical plane.

Answer 9

First you have to define consciousness.

Answer 10

First to answer your piggy-backer, because it really bugs me to see plain old ignorance on the internet or anywhere else:

"You also might want to ask them that if evolution is true and we are continually evolving towards the better..."

This displays a complete misunderstanding of evolution.  Evolution is not "The Ascent of Man" (trumpets, please); it's random changes in an animal or plant that result in it being better suited to its environment.

"Also, if evolution were true, then why is it that people living in western nations are more privilaged (enjoy more feedoms) then middle eastern or Asian nations? Isn't that essentially saying that one group has evolved at a different rate than another group? Isn't evolution supposed to happen as a whole?"

No.  Again, evolution isn't about making better behaved people; it's about making people that can survive better.  Personal freedoms have not got a lot to do with that.  And yes, evolution occurs at different rates among different populations.  That's why there are different species on the Galapagos Islands than elsewhere.  Beyond that, how could evolution occur in a whole group at one time?  That would mean that the same genetic mutation occurred in millions of individuals all at the same time.  It doesn't work that way.

Now, for the original question, insofar as I can figure out what it is.  Put into standard English, I believe it reads, "How did the human species evolve a conscience?"  I'm guessing that you got this from some creationist article which says that evolution cannot account for the existence of a human conscience (which in this context means a sense of right and wrong, a "moral compass" if you will).  Some religious people believe that the conscience, or a desire to do right things and live a moral life, could not exist without God.

First, let's think about what morals are.  Morals are the rules by which social animals stay in society.  Social groups could not exist without rules.  Our conscience is basically what we call internalizing these rules.  Morals tend to be similar across different ethnic groups because the same basic rules are needed for a social group to exist.  Even lions have  a sense of fair play and will share.

Also, moral standards do change over time (though I wouldn't say that they "evolve," which has a precise biological meaning), so people's consciences would accept different behavior now than they would have even 100 years ago, when it was sinful for women to wear pants or for children to speak when not spoken to first.

You could also have meant "When did human consciousness appear?" which, if you ask me, would be a much more interesting question.

Answer 11

"I controls ze spice; I controls ze universe"

--- Dune Cat

I don't know what human "spices" or "evolutated" might have meant. Adding spices to a uniquely human cuisine would require special spices for the spiritual effect, but I guess you meant "species" and "evolved".

It's not about evolution. It's about drinking coffee; that's how you gain consciousness. Once consciousness appears, moving to conscience becomes much easier because of the heightened level of sensitivity. On a more serious note, this is a topic for Freudian theory of personality development applied to prehistory and social evolution theory.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Id%2C_ego%2...

"Social evolution

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_evol...

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Social evolution is a subdiscipline of evolutionary biology that is concerned with social behaviours, i.e. those that have fitness consequences for individuals other than the actor. Social behaviours can be categorized according to the fitness consequences they entail for the actor and recipient. A behaviour that increases the direct fitness of the actor is mutually beneficial if the recipient also benefits, and selfish if the recipient suffers a loss. A behaviour that reduces the fitness of the actor is altruistic if the recipient benefits, and spiteful if the recipient suffers a loss.

This classification was proposed by W. D. Hamilton.[citation needed] It is easy to see how natural selection favours mutually beneficial or selfish behaviours. Hamilton's insight was to show how kin selection could explain altruism and spite."

Collective labor & social organisation

Emergence of law and authority

Internalised authority as superego

Shame-driven to guilt-driven mode of behaviour

Voila! You have conscience at your service.

Answer 12

We are in fact the last in a long line of bipedal apes.  Even apes as distantly related to us as Orangutans are so much more intelligent than I believe you would give them credit for.  Do Orangs have a conscience.   I would certainly think so.  Do old world monkeys?  That is difficult to say.  So barring any convergent evolution (meaning different branches evolving similar things over time), than consciousness evolved in "pre" human apes something over 10 million years ago.