Is mankind the inevitable result of evolution?

Question

Religious fundamentalists need not reply.

Answer 1

You're looking at this in a very ethnocentric manner.

By assuming that mankind is the end product of evolution, you are implying that all other creatures are merely intermediaries.  Since all extant species are still alive, there is no reason to assume that they are not as fit or that they have stopped evolving.  Bacteria are far less complex than animal organisms, but they are still constantly adapting to their environment (take the example of antiobiotic resistance).

Answer 2

No.  No more so than tigers, oak trees, or ants, all of which are a result of evolution in a particular environment.

Evolution is not linear, and it is not directed.  Much of it is random (genetic drift, mutation).

Answer 3

Young man, you have committed an evolutionary faux pas. Go here and educate yourself. You have already been corrected.

http://www.talkorigins.org

http://www.aboutdarwin.com

Answer 4

I believe that we are.  We, as humans, have mutated in certain ways.  You look at the cave men, we look similar, but not the same.

Answer 5

no.

Answer 6

Yes mankind is the result of evolution.  It starts that we evolved from gorillas, chimps and apes.  The earliest form of the homind would be the Australopithecus  dubbed as "Lucy" found was 40 percent, however baby Ditika that was found 5 years ago has 80 percent of the body preserved.  This was the first known part of evolution.  then Between 2.3 and 2.5 million years ago Homo Habilis and Homo rudolfensis emerged  some of the physical features were the same, but their brains were larger compared to their bodies. Then 1.8 million years ago the Homo erectus showed up.  This group were considered to be early human.  This group traveled out and away from Africa into Asia and Europe. About 500,000 years ago is when the Homo sapien existed.  The key difference between the erectus and sapien was the volume and the shape of the skull.  Homo sapiens had larger brains than the Homo erectus. from 130,000 to 35,000 years ago the Neandertal existed  this is a archaic form of the Homo sapien.  (Its the cave man.) Then we evolved again  being called the Homo sapien sapien. (not a double type)  This is us now.  We will evolve again.  Of course not sure into what yet  but I bet it will be interesting.

Answer 7

Humans evolved because some weak but relatively intelligent apes

moved out of the forest to the savanna, where there were fierce predators

and less food availability. Natural selection had no opportunity to sufficiently

increase our ancestors' physical fitness to survive (because they were

too weak to begin with), but there was an opportunity to increase the

intelligence enough to survive (because they were intelligent enough to

begin with), so that is the natural-selective path that our ancestors went

down. i.e. if there were more available food, or less-threatening predators,

or if the ancestral apes were physically stronger, or if the ancestral apes

were less intelligent, then humans would not have evolved.

Answer 8

Evolution doesn't have an inevitable result.  You're mixing predestination with science again.

Answer 9

If you believe evolution, or if you even look on how short of time we have been around, most likely something else will replace us, so given that we would simply be a blip in the sea of time.

Answer 10

In evolution there is no such thing as inevitable, for the logical reason that nothing is predetermined, and nothing is finished. Your question would be like asking, if we are the end results of all evolution form on Earth, which cannot be answered at this point. For exemple, if we take microscopic bodies, we know that H.I.V is an evolved retro-virus that is unique to every host. but does that mean that he is the most sophisticated pathogen agent... Yet you can know this answer, because you know that as a virus, he can evolved into another form, even more advanced, and can even mixes with another virus to make another.

So far we may be at the end of pyramid, but life shows us, that everything at the end of a pyramid is volatile, and therefore more fragile than the rest... So if we are really the inevitable result of evolution, we may not remain so, for a long time...

Answer 11

Nobody could know the answer to that question, if they claim to they are speculating, which is the same thing as flipping a coin, heads yes, and tails no.

Answer 12

Absolutely not.

Answer 13

There are certain features that are ideal for a particular environment and niche but there are limitations based on original form.  For example, a particular sized beak may be just right for extracting worms from tree bark.  The bird will evolve longer or shorter beaks unless it changes its niche.  Humans are also supremely evolved for our niche.  Does that mean that a human would be evolved on another or similar planet? No.  But it certainly is possible that something similar would evolve especially if the more primitive forms evolved in similar environments and developed similar characteristics to survive in those environments.

Answer 14

If the net result of evolution is the appearance of organisms which are well adapted to their environment, then yes. Pretty much everything alive today is the inevitable result of evolution, by definition of the term.

Answer 15

No, we are an unfortunate accident.

Answer 16

Everything is evolving....including trees and other plants. So, no....mankind is not the "inevitable" result of evolution.  None of us will see evolution happening in our lifetime.

Answer 17

absolutely not.

If not for the 5 major die-offs and esp the one 65 million years ago, we would never have evolved.

Even given that, our ancestors were likely a smallish tribe of primates evolved in very harsh conditions.  The odds are almost nil that we would have evolved if the whole thing were rewound 1,000 times.