How will genetic engineering affect human evolution into the future?
By screwing it up.Evolution works producing varied offspring in greater numbers than can survive. Then when times are hard, those offspring best adapted tend to have their traits amplyfied.Genetic engineering, by definition, tries to bypass evolution and just give a life form the traits we want it to have. And that's fine as far as it goes, except that we are not gods and cannot know the future.Say for example that we identify a handful of genes that are making us fat and diseased by giving us gluttonous cravings for glazed donuts and mashed potatoes. The church might object because eliminating those genes takes away one of God's temptations to mortal sin, but whatever. We find 'em, we'll remove 'em, and there will be very little debate.Great right? The next generation grows up a bunch of veggie loving California Vegans, and diabetes and athlerochlerosis go the way of the Dodo. Everyone wins.Until there is an ice age or a meteor stike or a really bad global war or pandemic and humanity is forced to return to hunting and gathering in a natural world terribly impoverished by millenia of overexploitation. That we will likely go extinct--unless some pocket of humans never got the engineered genes. Because you see, that's WHY gluttony is such a problem today. God didn't make us weak so he could weed out the sinful. We are this way because all of us who weren't starved to death during the last ice age.So when we start tampering with out genes, pretty much whatever we do will be wrong, given the fullness of time. No watchmaker will ever outthink the mindless guidance of natural selection.
What will be the most important social change that augmented reality will bring?
The biggest social changes that will come from AR are increased cultural uniformity and decreased independent thinking. Today, every person who looks at a painting or a restaurant menu or a news story can form a unique, independent opinion. Once everyone is constantly using augmented reality displays that seamlessly show relevant contextual information, opinions and experiences will become more homogeneous.How are you supposed to interpret a painting if, as soon as you look at it, there’s a popup that tells you the painter’s intended meaning?How do you get the initiative to try a new dish on a restaurant’s menu if a few mediocre reviews are digitally superimposed next to its description? Will the restaurant even bother continuing to offer that dish?How do you form your own opinion on a nuanced topic like gun control or abortion if you’re constantly bombarded with facts and figures and other people’s analyses?AR will subtly nudge people toward similar points of view. It will give them unprecedented access to contextual information, but take away the opportunity to think about things without any predisposed notions.GPS navigation and Google’s search engine are wonderful tools that make it unnecessary to memorize driving directions and facts. Ubiquitous AR will take that to the next step: people will always have the relevant facts and information in front of them, and they’ll rarely have to synthesize an original thought or opinion. As a result, society will lose a lot of the diversity and independent thinking that have pushed the human race forward so much during the last few thousand years.
Are you born with your personality, or is it something you develop?
In my opinion, just as with intelligence, everyone is born with personality. What is developed over time is character. We all possess certain traits inherited by our parents. This is seen when you hear people say things like, "He's (she's) just like his father (or mother)" or "Yup, he's (she's) his (her) father's (mother's) son (daughter)." How we raise our children, especially when it comes to treating others inside/outside the family will determine the type of person he/she will become. What we cannot shape is personality, we all have our own. Sometimes, one's personality will differ from his/her parents, but he/she will have traits that are similar to the parents or his/her ancestors. For instance, my personality is somewhat similar to my father and his father before him, but my character is different from the two. I am not as quiet as my grandfather nor am as temperamental as my dad. What I did inherit from the two is the manner in which I treat people, regardless of race, sex, religion and whatnot. Since, I never really knew my mother, I would not know what I have of hers. What I do know is that I do not have an abusive nature such as she did (she passed away a few years ago). So, once again, we are all born with personality and intelligence (although, of the two, intelligence becomes more advanced with time), character and genetic traits are developed.
What is sociology? [URGENT*]?
Sociology enables us to understand the structure and dynamics of society, and their intricate connections to patterns of human behavior and individual life changes. It examines the ways in which the forms of social structure -- groups, organizations, communities, social categories (such as class, sex, age, or race), and various social institutions (such as kinship, economic, political, or religious) affect human attitudes, actions, and opportunities. The discipline also explores how both individuals and collectivities construct, maintain, and alter social organization in various ways. Sociology asks about the sources and consequences of change in social arrangements and institutions, and about the satisfactions and difficulties of planning, accomplishing, and adapting to such change. Areas studied in examining social dynamics include: culture, values, socialization, cooperation, conflict, power, exchange, inequality, deviance, social control, violence, order and social change.
Does where we live affect our state of mind?
I have lived my entire life in the upper Midwest, and have never even traveled outside of it. Throughout my life I have moved back and forth between a large city in a northern state and a rural area in a neighboring state, where I grew up. I have spent parts of my adult life in each place. I am preparing for that same move once again and it's gotten me thinking about the impact of environment on one's attitude. My questions are as follows: Does it really matter where we live? Will we be essentially the same person no matter what, regardless of regional details? Does it matter whether you're a transplant or a native? Whichever place I live I never really feel at home so I'm wondering, do you think that there is a true place where a person belongs and if they found that place it would have a lasting impact on their happiness and well-being? For example, perhaps I was really meant to live my life in say, Texas or Montana but since I've never been there I just don't know it. Would my mindset be different if I'd found a place that felt like me? I would really appreciate a variety of views on this question. I'll be grateful for any insight you might provide. Thank you.
Do you think a person's childhood reflects who they are as an adult? How/Why?
Ofcourse. A person's childhood experience is what makes them the kind of adult they are now. Say, they were badly treated then when they grow up, they might be withdrawn and lonely due to the fear that it might happen to them again. If his/her parents were divorced, as an adult, he/she might have a negative attitude to marriage and form unhealthy aduly realtionships. On the good side, if they had strong bonding with others, they grow up to be a better person.
If my dad was a Con Artist does that make me one?
I figure you guys would be the best to ask this question. My dad was a Con Artist, I do not need to say what he did, but he left us when I was 4. Me and my brother never had a relationship with him. My mom remarried when I was 6, but he had no influence on me at all he was just ' There' Since I was a kid, my superiors ( Teachers, principals) Referred me to the " King Of Manipulation" and every time I received a tutor, they warned her I would manipulate her ( and I almost always did) True Story, no lie. To get you a picture of the nurture part of this to best answer the question, my mom did her best. She loved us, but did not know how to handle me and my brother. ( The school used to call her and yell at her to take care of me) My step father, like I said, was just there taking up space. He paid the bills, but if we would try and talk to him, he would ignore us and tell us to go away, It has never changed. My brother is essentially the same, but he is more cautious and well mannered, but he lacks empathy. The best way to describe him is a Chameleon. I was always the fast smooth talker that can talk anyone into anything. I'm 22 years old now, and have been a great salesmen since.
What is the role of a school teacher in a student's life?
Teachers play a very important role in student’s life. A teachers is a role model person in student’s life who bring out the best in them and encourage them to strive for greatness. Teachers know that students are the future of the country, So they share the knowledge and helps them to become a better person.I think we need teachers on every step of life. They are not only important for students but also for society. Presence of teachers in any meeting and social activities boost the moral and make the time more valuable. Here are a few thing every teacher needs to do for students:A teacher should be impartial, he/she must treat all the students equally.A teacher or a tutor need to understand their students from different angles, like how much skilled a student is , how much time he take to processes information, how good his memory is or why he does not understand something.He/She has to think of solutions to help the students to overcome their problems.There are different kind of students, some are slow in learning, some are fast learners and some are average students. Generally teachers, do not like to explain a concept again and again to a student. So a they must be patient enough to deal with such students.Every teacher need to have these essentials qualities. They need to be calm, enjoy their job and realise its importance.