I would contend that we unfortunately are doing a pretty good job of killing one another in our own species right now. I doubt there has been a single day in the last 100 years on which at least a handful of human beings were not killed by some other human beings. We, as a species, however, are quite good at this whole survival thing, and I bet even if global nuclear war, or some absolute disaster, ever broke out, that we would probably endure it.

Thanks again for the wishes on finals. Got one in the morning so I should probably get some sleep.

You’re right, if there was another species on earth with the capacity to reason, there probably would be a lot of chaos (ironically). But the pendulum can swing both ways. Otherwise we’d all have killed each other within our own species already.

I hope your finals GO well.

This is dangerous, because I’m going to make “armchair propositions”, which only have a basis in science so far as that I am making suggestions based on the comparatively limited understanding of the subject that I have. I am in essence hypothesizing about what the answer to your question might be.

With that disclaimer in mind…

I would posit that the ability to reason is probably not the most evolutionarily easy to develop. For example, I would bet that the template of a reptile or a fish or a dinosaur or bird is likely not very conducive to developing a brain of sufficient size to reason. Mammals are by far the most intelligent, er, grouping (it’s kind of arbitrary, because mammals, reptiles, fish, birds etc. are not on the same level of the hierarchy in the taxonomy, but it works for us I guess) of animals. So I would argue that it’s likely that it took a certain physiological framework to come along for intelligence to develop to such a level that our ability to reason could develop.

Also, on a side note, although there is no evidence that there ever has been another species with the ability to reason like us, can you imagine if there was? We kill members of our own species, often in shocking and horrific massacres, because they have different color skin than us, or sometimes, unfortunately, because we just don’t like them. Just imagine what would happen if there was a totally different species with reasoning capability on this planet.

Undoubtedly it takes forever to get through that site. I myself certainly haven’t been through it all, but it is sort of considered the best source on the internet to explain evolution. The fact is that it is an extremely complicated issue, and I think that’s why it’s often so hard to explain, because it really takes an entire website like that one do it justice.

I do hope your finals went well.

I understand that many species have the ability to learn. I have a dog. She has learned different commands. I say “Sit!” she knows to sit. I say “Down!” She knows to lay down. I say “Off!” She knows to get off. If she does something she knows she is not allowed to do, like jump on someone (she weighs a hundred pounds), I scold her and command her to a position of submission.
But the commands must always be to be black and white. There can never be gray areas.

If my dog pounces randomly at her bone and starts to jump around playfully (remember, she weighs a hundred pounds), her claw may happen to dig into my bare toe which hurts like a banshee! Or her pouncing may cause the record to skip. I cannot scold her for that. She’s innocent. She’s just being a dog. I can’t forbid her from being a dog. I can’t explain to her “Fido, you can play with your bone, but not when I have a record on because you’ll cause it to skip.” She isn’t capable of discerning when it is okay to pounce on her bone. She can’t understand why her jumping around can cause injury to my foot, she’s not even aware. She’s just playing. All I can do is take her outside to run around and play.
She definitely (like many species) has the ability to learn. But she does not have an ability to reason. Humans are unique in that regard.

When you say that being “smart” is not always best for survival…does that apply to EVERY specious except humans?

Is it not strange that there is not even just ONE other species that has the ability to reason? Not just learn, but actually reason–to exercise discernment, to think abstractly and to argue intelligently just as you and I are doing here. I would sound ridiculous having this conversation
with my dog.

Is reason so absolutely destructive for ALL species except for humans? How sure are you about that? Especially considering that every species, including humans, apparently came from the same “chemical scum,” and through the generations developed similar traits and abilities common among numerous different species. Why is reason reserved only for the human species? Don’t you question that?