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Cernunnos · 11-10-2008, 01:27 PM

Before even touching upon why, we may need to establish certain facts.

While I do not have a thorough understanding of the biological sciences, I have enough of a foundation to state that we are carbon-based lifeforms that have evolved over a period of millions of years. We as individuals were not involved in the creation of our current form and, as individuals, did not exist prior to birth. We as individuals do not exist in our current form after death, though other forms of existence are debatable in metaphysics.

So, here we are. We did not choose to be here. I've answered what we are. Where are we, now? On Earth, a planet like billions of others in certain ways, yet extremely unique in other properties, such as the capacity for supporting human beings and other lifeforms.

How are we here? Through a consciousness that enables us to perceive ourselves as individuals - self-consciousness, awareness that we are an individual lifeform. One might ask how we are conscious of ourselves, and that is through interaction with the world as we experience it. We rely on the external world to define ourselves as individuals, without which we would cease to be capable of discerning between this self that we exist as and anything else, a rock or another person, a star or the dirt beneath our feet.

Why are we here? As individuals, I do not believe that this can be answered. As members of a collective species that has evolved over a vast span of years, our self can be seen as nothing more than a continuation of our genetic coding for the purpose of, well, continuing the genetic code. The human species is governed by an innate necessity to propagate and expand the complex code within us.

Our biological purpose is replication, expansion, evolution. Our genes drive us to do this, for reasons that can be attributed to chemical reactions and other effects at the molecular level. Through consciousness, we have developed a mechanism that can vastly assist in the process of expanding the human species. One must only look at the dominance of the human species on Earth to see that this is true. Our minds have evolved and we can utilize them to advance the genetic lineage that makes us who we are.

I believe that one can view self-consciousness as an extension of evolution, a method by which we are capable of interpreting the world through reason instead of mere instinct, and that this is ultimately beneficial to the continuation of the human species. Our genetic code has gifted (or cursed) us with this strange, unique concept to advance itself.

That is a crude explanation of the biological reason for consciousness, but in the explanation lies the purpose and thus the meaning. One might say, this is not enough. I don't wish to be here to advance some genetic code that I had no part in creating. Look at what has spawned from that genetic code, however. Self-consciousness, awareness, reasoning at a level never seen before the human species came about. Is that not incredible?

Each of us is a part of this evolutionary process of advancing the species, whether we care to follow it or not, but the possibilities are truly endless aside from defying the laws of the universe (assuming the theories and laws as we understand them hold). We have the chance to contribute to the playing out of an extremely complex chain of events, perhaps leading to the transcendence of our biological form and, through technology, mastering the very workings of the universe.

In our lifetime? Perhaps not, and in the eyes of many, almost certainly not. Yet science has enabled us to glimpse into the future, and it has the potential to be fascinating, revolutionary. Through technology, we may be able to seize control of our genetic lineage and transform it to serve us as individuals, instead of us serving it as a species.

By contributing to humanity in any form, indeed, by merely propagating through conception, you are contributing to the advancement of our species and allowing us the opportunity to, at some point in the future, potentially escape from our biological restraints. Where that leads is anyone's guess, but I am quite fond of the unknown.

In closing, I am not certain if my train of thought has been sufficiently explained to be understood and followed, but I hope that it has at least served to stimulate your own thoughts.

11-10-2008, 01:27 PM	#27 (permalink)
Cernunnos Insane Location: Orlando, Florida	Before even touching upon why, we may need to establish certain facts. While I do not have a thorough understanding of the biological sciences, I have enough of a foundation to state that we are carbon-based lifeforms that have evolved over a period of millions of years. We as individuals were not involved in the creation of our current form and, as individuals, did not exist prior to birth. We as individuals do not exist in our current form after death, though other forms of existence are debatable in metaphysics. So, here we are. We did not choose to be here. I've answered what we are. Where are we, now? On Earth, a planet like billions of others in certain ways, yet extremely unique in other properties, such as the capacity for supporting human beings and other lifeforms. How are we here? Through a consciousness that enables us to perceive ourselves as individuals - self-consciousness, awareness that we are an individual lifeform. One might ask how we are conscious of ourselves, and that is through interaction with the world as we experience it. We rely on the external world to define ourselves as individuals, without which we would cease to be capable of discerning between this self that we exist as and anything else, a rock or another person, a star or the dirt beneath our feet. Why are we here? As individuals, I do not believe that this can be answered. As members of a collective species that has evolved over a vast span of years, our self can be seen as nothing more than a continuation of our genetic coding for the purpose of, well, continuing the genetic code. The human species is governed by an innate necessity to propagate and expand the complex code within us. Our biological purpose is replication, expansion, evolution. Our genes drive us to do this, for reasons that can be attributed to chemical reactions and other effects at the molecular level. Through consciousness, we have developed a mechanism that can vastly assist in the process of expanding the human species. One must only look at the dominance of the human species on Earth to see that this is true. Our minds have evolved and we can utilize them to advance the genetic lineage that makes us who we are. I believe that one can view self-consciousness as an extension of evolution, a method by which we are capable of interpreting the world through reason instead of mere instinct, and that this is ultimately beneficial to the continuation of the human species. Our genetic code has gifted (or cursed) us with this strange, unique concept to advance itself. That is a crude explanation of the biological reason for consciousness, but in the explanation lies the purpose and thus the meaning. One might say, this is not enough. I don't wish to be here to advance some genetic code that I had no part in creating. Look at what has spawned from that genetic code, however. Self-consciousness, awareness, reasoning at a level never seen before the human species came about. Is that not incredible? Each of us is a part of this evolutionary process of advancing the species, whether we care to follow it or not, but the possibilities are truly endless aside from defying the laws of the universe (assuming the theories and laws as we understand them hold). We have the chance to contribute to the playing out of an extremely complex chain of events, perhaps leading to the transcendence of our biological form and, through technology, mastering the very workings of the universe. In our lifetime? Perhaps not, and in the eyes of many, almost certainly not. Yet science has enabled us to glimpse into the future, and it has the potential to be fascinating, revolutionary. Through technology, we may be able to seize control of our genetic lineage and transform it to serve us as individuals, instead of us serving it as a species. By contributing to humanity in any form, indeed, by merely propagating through conception, you are contributing to the advancement of our species and allowing us the opportunity to, at some point in the future, potentially escape from our biological restraints. Where that leads is anyone's guess, but I am quite fond of the unknown. In closing, I am not certain if my train of thought has been sufficiently explained to be understood and followed, but I hope that it has at least served to stimulate your own thoughts.