Human evolution…Imran Jan

I was listening to a scientist on a radio show. One of the things he said that got me thinking was that human bodies are still going through the journey of evolution and that our knees are perhaps a good proof of this. We all know that one of the first problems we encounter in our ability to move around are our knees. It is as if they are imperfect and have yet to achieve a better arrangement. Humans went from walking on four limbs to two, freeing up the hands with which we did wonders. But the erected back also created problems for the birth canal, restricting it and causing many deaths during birth. Humans evolved with it and the deaths have decreased significantly.

The idea of evolution being continuous doesn’t receive its fair share of attention. We are always in that phase. There is a next destination of evolution that we have to get to. That goes for our brains too. And while we like to tap ourselves on the back for being intelligent beings, our brains are perhaps undergoing an evolution of its own in its journey to becoming what could arguably be an intelligent brain. But this can’t be it.

The most daunting proof of this is how we are swayed by unintelligent things as opposed to things that make us think or require some kind of thinking. Athletes, singers, actors, comedians, and even TikTok dancers are more famous in our societies around the world than book authors, philosophers, and scientists. I am very happy for Arshad Nadeem for throwing that javelin so far and making a name for himself and his nation. His fortunes changed with it overnight, literally. And nothing makes me happier than that. However, and without angering anyone, I really want to ask this nagging question: would we also reward any author or a scientist that might do some fantastic work? You can name cricket and TV celebrities, but how many of you can name a favourite author? Do you even have one?

Fame and glory in this phase of human existence belong to those who can make us laugh or cry or arouse awe in us with their actions and words spoken. Those who have the ability to make us think have mediocre or no fame and glory. The Olympics are one of the many global events such as the Soccer World Cup, Cricket World Cup, and so forth that are only for pure entertainment devoid of anything that can involve thinking. We see so many commercial ads displayed around sports grounds and in between live coverage of sporting events. How many times have we seen the same in between pages of books or on the back of an author’s shirt, for example? Corporations know where the eyeballs of the masses are focused, and rest assured they are not on the pages of books. The ability to run and jump has more value than the ability to write thought-provoking things. When humans were hunters, it was no different. Tom Cruise jumped from the top toward the end of the Paris Olympics, which perfectly fit the entire idea: it is all about shock and awe.

Maybe in a distant era on this planet when thinkers and intellectuals are the Tom Cruise of that global society, perhaps humans could then justifiably call themselves intelligent beings. Today, Tom Cruise is the Tom Cruise. And he is famous because he likes to jump from the planes and mountain tops. If someone in the distant future is writing about human evolution and there is a mention of a certain phase during this evolutionary journey where humans were swayed more by watching others indulge in action instead of doing serious thinking, we must be that phase. And I have a feeling that perhaps we are regressing instead of marching toward an evolution where we actually might become intelligent beings. There is a lot more entertainment today than there ever was.

Courtesy The Express Tribune