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Comment by kpnbg | Hacker News Reader

Hey, you're right. Although another huge difference is that lions didn't evolve to be intelligent enough to learn to farm, invent mathematics, leave the planet etc. We are hunters, and what is going on now is a logical progression of what hunters who got smarter and more powerful would do. It sounds silly but I think that if any other hunter animal evolved like us, it would lead to very similar results.

I am not a fan of the mass farming, but there are thousands of variables that lead to our current treatment of cattle and so on.

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How many people do you know have left the planet, or could solve a mathematical theorem, eh?

The difference is that before, we hunted enough to eat, but not so much that the species died, whereas now we are willing to exterminate a species if it means we can get rid of other versions of us ('Every buffalo dead, is a dead indian').

Seems like we've got more callous and stupid the more this 'intelligence' was displayed.

> How many people do you know have left the planet

Not yet but she's planning[?] to leave "soon"

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alyssa_Carson

Mars One is noted as being very short on funding, lacking critical concepts about hardware, life support, electrical power supply, and has been criticized as glossing over logistics, medical concerns, and protection against space radiation.

> How many people do you know have left the planet, or could solve a mathematical theorem, eh?

Infinitely times as many as there are lions which can do these things – namely, more than zero people vs. zero lions.

Eh.

The name of the people that had leaved the planet is not exactly a secret.

> we hunted enough to eat, but not so much that the species died

Yep, the myth of the good savage. Mammooth, Moas, European Wolly Rhino, Megalania giant varanus, Meiolania turtle, Sabre tooth tiger, Cave bear or Australian Diprotodon could tell us a different hystory.

> The name of the people that had leaved the planet is not exactly a secret.

Yes, but all that proves is that some subset of humanity is capable of doing it. Not humanity as a whole.

> Yep, the myth of the good savage.

Actually a lot of the verbal culture of many tribes show that they understand how they are dependent on the animals for their food source, and you can find active efforts not to overhunt in many cultures. It seems to me the main thing that has increased isn't necessarily intelligence, but greed.

> Yes, but all that proves is that some subset of humanity is capable of doing it. Not humanity as a whole.

What's the point of this argument? Yes, humanity as a whole has become very specialised. With the consensus of the community and enough will power a subset of humanity can achieve almost anything we can conceive. Is this any different than toting dolphin pods that pass on their hunting tricks? Or captive gorillas that can communicate? Potential is not limited to the lowest common denominator.

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