Natural selection is the process by which individuals of a species that are best suited to the environment survive to reproduce and pass on their beneficial traits. It is believed to be the primary mechanism that drives evolution. With the human species, one of the results of this is the increased intelligence required to develop technology.
Some of this technology has, for a long time, been able to compensate for undesirable traits to allow more individuals to survive, and the effect of this technology is constantly increasing. So individuals who would otherwise not survive the environment, are able to live long enough to reproduce. It would appear that this is working against natural selection.
I see two ways to look at this. One is that modern technology is nullifying natural selection, and preventing evolution from continuing. The other is that technology is a direct result of our intelligence gained through the process of natural selection, and therefore is part of evolution. I think both of these are valid.
There is also a potentially devastating long-term effect of modern medicine. As we develop more and more potent antibiotics and disinfectants, we kill off the majority of bacteria species. This leaves the most resistant species and removes their competition. This effectively accelerates natural selection and creates stronger and stronger bacteria at an unnatural rate. This is evident in the existence of “super bugs” in sterile environments like hospitals.
The only real conclusion I can come up with is that technology plays a large part in the survivability of individuals. I’d say it’s the same exact effect of a less hostile environment. The question is, are the long-term effects of this good or bad for us as a species?
This is to all those who have given their lives to protecting others, from threats known and unknown. I don’t care who you are or where you came from, but risking your own life for the lives of others is the definition of heroism and deserves recognition.
Today is the day to remember all of the fallen US soldiers. Let’s not forget also those who are currently risking their lives right now.
To all of these people I’ve mentioned: Thank You
You don’t have to support the war or the politics behind it, but you have to support the men and women who fight in them so others don’t have to. There are few things that anger me me more than to see so-called “anti-war” protesters direct their contempt toward the soldiers that have to fight in those wars. They’re doing it wrong.
I do a lot of programming as a freelancer, mostly PHP and JavaScript for Web based projects. I know these two languages very well, but that’s all I really know. I’ve had a lot of spare time lately, so I decided it would be a good time to learn something new.
First I had to decide what language to go with. Some options I considered were Java, Ruby, C, and C++. I decided to go with C++ since it seemed widely used and different from what I know. So I’m starting with the C++ Language Tutorial.
Now I don’t really know what I’ll be doing with this new knowledge, but I’m sure it will come to some use…
Well it’s been 2010 for five days now, so I think it’s about time for a post. The new decade came with a surprising announcement. So here’s a short post about that and stuff…
If you pay any attention, you know that my favorite band without question is Soundgarden. Unfortunately they have been broken up since ’97, so by the time I discovered the band there was no chance of seeing them live or anything. Whenever asked, the frontman Chris Cornell always said they would never get back together.
So you can imagine my amazement to see this tweet on New Year’s Eve. I just hope that it’s true, and I’m looking forward to more news about this potential reunion.
Editing videos is kind if a hobby of mine. Sometimes I put together DVDs for my family, but that doesn’t really allow for a lot of creativity. So another thing I do is make videos from game footage.
I, along with several other people, formed a group of video makers for TheVille called Ville Productions. The original intent was to document some of the events that take place, but we also wanted to do some creative stuff.
The biggest projects we created were music videos for each class in Team Fortress 2. So far, we’ve made one for the Medic, Spy, Pyro, Demo, and Scout. Below is a great example using my favorite video, The Spy:
It’s been a while since we have worked on that series, but we have made some smaller projects since. The reason we haven’t continued is that the work proved to be too much for such a small group. Most of the people involved in the group are there to act, while some others help come up with ideas.
None of the other members have volunteered to do the editing of the videos, which is the hard part. It is also impossible to share the load of editing since the raw video footage is too massive to share over the internet. So this meant that I was doing all of the recording and editing, which takes more time than I have to spare.
Anyway, what this all means is that there won’t be any large projects coming out of Ville Productions for the foreseeable future. The good news is that there still may be some smaller projects too look forward to…
I am posting this from a new freshly built computer system. I thought this would be a good time to list the components that went into it. Click on titles for more info.
In short, it has an Intel Core i7 CPU with 12 GB of RAM and Radeon HD 5870 (interesting story about that) running Windows 7. It’s fast and it has plenty of memory for video editing etc.
12 gigs give me plenty of room for multitasking. I can video chat while writing a letter while editing a movie while watching YouTube while editing several photos while playing a game while cracking government encryption.
If you read a previous post, you know what I went through to get this. The 5870 is one of the latest from ATI and features DirectX 11. What’s unique about this one is the non-reference cooler, which supposedly works better because of magic vapors.
This is my primary drive for the OS and program files. I’ve always used WD and never had one fail (though none of the Seagates I’ve owned have either).
This is a very nice mid tower case with a sleek low profile design. There’s no lights on the fans or anything flashy, but it is a very quiet case. There is sound dampening material on the sides and rubber padding on the drive cages and frame. I also added 2 intake fans to the front for more air flow.
I’ve been trying to get something new posted here for the last few days. It’s just that whenever I started to, someone would say “durrr, let’s play L4D2” and I did. Sorry loyal reader(s) but playing that game is more fun than writing.
So the reason I’m posting is to talk about my adventures ordering the parts for a new computer system.
I started by compiling a list and posting it for my good friends at TheVille.org for advice on improvements. Several changes later, it was ready and I decided to order everything from NewEgg on Black Friday. This saved me a couple hundred bucks.
There was just one problem.
While I was able to order most of the parts, one part was missing. It was the elusive ATI Radeon HD 5870 graphics card. This sneaky little bastard was nowhere to be found. Legend had it the thing was a myth, but I would not except that.
I set out on a quest to find the 5870, searching every website, store, warehouse, outhouse, crackhouse, and taco stand in the country. At some point I was searching a sewer when I realized they don’t sell electronics in sewers.
I searched all these places
I was somewhere in the Sahara when I saw it in the distance. With light shining down from the ridiculously hot sun, the card was levitating there before it turned into a cheeseburger. It was then that it became obvious I was suffering from severe dehydration.
After that I decided to check NewEgg again, and there it was. The Sapphire Radeon HD 5870 was in stock, so I ordered it immediately.
Natural selection is the process by which individuals of a species that are best suited to the environment survive to reproduce and pass on their beneficial traits. It is believed to be the primary mechanism that drives evolution. With the human species, one of the results of this is the increased intelligence required to develop technology.
There is also a potentially devastating long-term effect of modern medicine. As we develop more and more potent antibiotics and disinfectants, we kill off the majority of bacteria species. This leaves the most resistant species and removes their competition. This effectively accelerates natural selection and creates stronger and stronger bacteria at an unnatural rate. This is evident in the existence of “super bugs” in sterile environments like hospitals.
This is to all those who have given their lives to protecting others, from threats known and unknown. I don’t care who you are or where you came from, but risking your own life for the lives of others is the definition of heroism and deserves recognition.
