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Sat 10 Jul, 2004 08:53 pm
although one can claim that time provides the arrow that orients the direction of evolutionary change and that an evolutionary trend represents progress, there is more than one direction and many lines of progress.as Darwin said" ...natural selection, or the survival of the fittest, does not necessarily include progressive development-it only take advantage of such variations as are beneficial to each creature under its complex relations of life" progress is therefore, at best, not a cause but a description given to an evolutionary outcome.
so consider the history of we human civilization, have we been in a progressive progress?
Our intellect is progressing much more quickly than other animals. However, they have evolved far passed us physically. So it depends how you want to define "progress." If you want to get real technical, we can look at the rates as they led up to a time when our intellect allowed us better protection than physical fitness, and use that as a proof.
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