Smaller brain size doesn't mean less intelligent. We have also plenty of diseases that were raging 100 years ago and that now are gone, thanks to medicine, Chihuahua,as I read, comes from Mexico, there were no wolves there, and there aren't now...
Our lifespan is longer and we are stronger, smarter and generally better than who we were 100/200 years ago. Unless you think that slavery and genocide were trait that we should have kept?
Of course there's plenty of places on the planet were people decides to go back in time and live like in the middle ages...It's a choice. Generally connected with religious extremism, not intelligence.

Man there is tons of evidence of epigenetic degredation. Do you understand what epigenetics actaully is? If not google it first, then go study the work of Weston Price, and people like Tony Wright.

Why do you think people nowaday are born with overbites, in need of braces, widom teeth not fitting into the jaw? Why do you think we suffer from chronic degenerative disease and our overall bone structure and desnity pales in comparison to indigenous peoples who have never stepped a foot into the western paradigm of industrial agriculture? Wheat, pasturized dairy, hybrid sugar rich nutrient devoid fruits, corn syrup and vegetable oils have been our downfall. The staples of the western diet.

VIII,

I said in this thread a couple times before that primitive technology on a local community scale is in my eyes the only potential. Adding modern technology to combat the mess that modern technology has created is just fighting fire with fire.

Modern industrial technology needs to be eradicated IMO. Primitive technology picked back up. If not by choice it will be by force b/c of degradation of environment and civilization. Billions of people still only use primitive technologies. We, the modern industrial, are the ones in the wrong forcing them towards modern methods of unsustainable practice.

MentalAnimal,

Brain size does effect intelligence as shown in this study, don't throw out such bold statements if you're not gonna give a citation.

Also, check what Chihuahua is classified as. CANUS LUPIS FAMILIARIS. It devolved from canus lupus aka grey wolf. So, yes, the name Chihuahua originated in Mexico as seen by the city Chihuahua, Mexico. But the physical evolution or devolution, depending on how you look at it, goes farther back than simply that.

I really think you need to do more research. What you are saying is not the case when you actaully start to look into this.

"Smaller brain size doesn't mean less intelligent"

Well, actaully yes it does. The ratio of brain size to body mass is directly correlated to intelligence in mammals. You cant really dispute this. It is well know. Spend some time studying mammalian intelligence esp in relation to cetaceans and you will find this is the case.

"We have also plenty of diseases that were raging 100 years ago and that now are gone, thanks to medicine"

This is of ne relevance here though. What we are talking about is epigenetic degredation that takes place over generations and was def already established 100 years ago. Industrial agricutlture has been around far longer than that..and in our world today it is far worse than it was back in the 1930's when Weston Price was around doing his research..we are exposed to far more toxins today than ever before.

The epigenetic damage we are talking about has not been cured at all due to medicine. It is getting worse. Just because we have antibiotics that can cure certain viruses etc does not mean anything in relation to epigenetic degredation. We dont have cures for week bone density, the screwed up jaw formations with overbites and teeth that dont fit etc that we see in people today that is completely absent in indigenous peoples who still live a traditional lifestyle.

Look up "wheat belly" if you want just one little place to start in relation to why the standard western diet is killing us.

Thanks for jumping in jamie! I appreciate it!

Ok then Elephants must be smarter than us... Not to mention whales...right?

and this is from your link Fairbanks....

Does evolution always lead to bigger brains?

The commonly held assumption that as primates evolved, their brains always tended to get bigger has been challenged by a team of scientists at Cambridge and Durham.

Elephants are one of the most intelligent species on earth, it's called elephant cognition, and their brains have just as many neurons as the human brain. Same goes for the whale brain, which shows surprising similarity to the human brain in terms of complexity.

Have you seen an elephant painting a self-portrait? Or how about studied the distinct language of whales?

You make baseless bold statements w/o even looking into the subject...

You seem to think that us humans are above or beyond nature; that we're the only ones with SKILLZ . In reality, there are equivalent if not stronger intelligences in this world as we speak. Even certain plant intelligences and mycelium intelligence out compete hominid in terms of importance to environment.

What is your point here by copy-pasting the header of the study? The scientists of Cambridge and Durham studied fossil records showing degradation. This backs up everything myself and Jamie are talking about with degradation & devolution.

You seem to be getting your arms and tongue tied.

I think we are the peak of evolution so far yes. We are the dominant specie.

You pointed out that our brain actually is smaller today compared to the past, I noted that smaller does not necessarily mean less intelligent, but probably more efficient and adaptable. So we have evolved.
All going back to your point (?) that we should all live in a tribal society, which is unsustainable for 7 billion people.

What I think we should do, is to develop a social and political system with less or none of the huge differences and classes that rogue capitalism created, where we all would have access to medicine, technology and information, in a balanced way compared to our planet's resources.

What I hope is that eventually we will get there. after all we are all here for a reason, that I believe is to be interacting with matter and this planet, making mistakes and correcting them.

Does it sounds that crazy?

That's a hasty generalization aka logical fallacy. Where is your evidence for this? I've provided multiple sources of evidence for rather the opposite, that we've been in fact devolving.



didn't we already go over this? AGAIN, lemme refer you to this study by Virginia Commonwealth University.



I wish it were that easy. Your snap of the fingers solution is up against the inverted totalitarian corporate states of america.



Couldn't agree more homie. I think we'll pass through this, not with hope, but with direct action.

I'm not well versed in this area, but read a new study on this topic recently that may add more to this. Granted, this is a broader approach to the subject than some other studies mentioned.
Here's a quote:

Blog Post on study
Comparative analyses of evolutionary rates reveal different pathways to encephalization in bats, carnivorans, and primates


Doesn't sound too crazy to me. We aren't perfect.

"I am very poorly today and very stupid and hate everybody and everything. One lives only to make blunders."
-Charles Darwin (just saw this when I went to find the above study)




Your previous posts assume that no technological progress can be made towards sustainability. We already have the technology to make a major change towards environmentally friendly and sustainable ways of living. Not only do we have the ability to reduce our impact now, but technology will progress to allow for even greater abilities.

The majority of technology was developed without sustainability or the environmental effects in mind. Improving upon our technologies by implementing safe processes and eliminating harmful processes is not fighting fire with fire, imo. I think it's more like learning fire doesn't only cook food, but can also harm you so you better take safety precautions.

This may require many changes, some of which we agree on. I simply believe at this point it would take a very large movement to return the masses to a primitive state of living with limited technology. Personally I would prefer the mentioned approach of sustainability being a primary focus while still allowing for technological progress (I love Earth & Space & Universe). However, I find your perspective very enjoyable and interesting to contemplate.

I'm still curious which particular technologies you feel are causing the most problems and whether it be their usage or production. Also I'm interested in your views as to the possible improvement or replacement of these technologies. If you feel like sharing

Evidence for evolution...We can build more complex machines and live longer and better than our ancestors with larger but less smart brain. If you believe that we learn by experience, you must also convey that we improve that experience over time obtaining better results with less effort each time..isn't that intelligence?


From the moment we discovered fire we improved the method to produce and keep it. I don't see any other specie on the planet do the same. I never said it was easy or painless but we both still have a choice to go somewhere else and live differently...no one is chaining us here in US. Yes, either direct action or indirect, that's why we are here, I guess...otherwise why have a body? Hands? eyes? Those are all tools to interact with....this...


Hard forum..I post on many other ( different subject) but the topic here is so wide and complex makes it hard to debate. Last thing I am looking for is to be "right" or aggressive. I'm just curious and in awe of what I discovered and saw after experiencing Dimitri.

Peace!

We're using one of them right now . Have you heard of coltan mining in the Congo? We've created a child slave, civil war zone, hell hole over there the past few decades just so that we can have our video game systems, computers, TVs, diamond rings, & more!



All modern electrical technology from the lights in your house to the computer your reading this on is powered by coal which right now is being mountain top removed from Appalachia.



Cars/oil are also one of the biggest problems, we've killed millions upon millions of innocent civilians and decimated entire ecosystems just to make sure you get to work on time. & Now that those reserves are running out, the new fad is domestic natural gas. These natural gas extractions are contaminating the water of entire cities from the Dakotas to Texas. It can be mined mostly anywhere though so don't be surprised when one day you're able to do this, thousands of people already can:



Our regular everyday items from clothing, paper, plastics, toothpaste, shampoo, mirrors, you name it are made from unsustainable mining processes, and most aren't even bio-degradable when you throw them away. Have you heard of the pacific plastic patch? Go boating out into the pacific ocean. I doubt you'll want to eat ANYTHING that you catch:



The problem with a lot of sustainable technology like wind farms and solar panels is that a) it would never match the productivity level of unsustainable sources therefore never be implemented on a large scale. and b) the materials needed to create these technologies would make it unsustainable if it were implemented on mass scale.

Not to mention the fact that if you live next to a wind farm good luck going to bed at night cuz the low frequency sound waves will keep you up all night! There's a reason why local municipalities when provided with counter evidence never vote in wind farms or many other sustainable tech. They're too dependent on the instant productive gratification of the earth's blood and bones.

Hey did you read my post?

I said the brain size to body size RATIO. Do you not understand what that means? This does not mean that becasue an elephant is bigger than us that it is more intelligent. An elephants brain to body ratio is smaller than ours. A bottlenose dolphins brain to body size ratio is bigger than ours.

Sorry but you are wrong.

And yes there is tons of evidence out there to suggest bottlenose dolphins and some whales have a larger capacity for intelligence than humans. They dont have fingers so dont expect them to be building cell phones and computers. Intelligence is not that linear a thing that intelligence is dictated by ability to make technology the way we do.

I have spent time working at an aquarium with dolphins and whales..if you dont think they are extremely intelligent beings try spending some time with them. Why is there bottlenose dolphins that have learned english and can communicate with people through a keyboard, while no human has yet to learn dolphin? I also have family who has worked for many many years with dolphins and is well known and respected in the field. You passing off the idea of cetaceans being at least as intelligent as humans just makes you look ignorant and uneducated on the subject.

"think we are the peak of evolution so far yes. We are the dominant species."

Yes but you have provided no proof of this whatsoever, and have disreguarded the works of real scientists like Weston Price who's work strongly does suggest epigenetic degredation. Being the dominant species does not mean anything. I am really surprised that you are going to use this claim to support your points here.

I could say that the US military is the dominant group amongst humans, and the entire planet..but it would be stupid to stretch that point as support for them also being the most intelligent group on the planet.

It is a fallacy.

Does evolution even have peaks in that way? Evolution is not a linear process.

Dear Mental Animal,

You're a bit confusing. I don't think you understand what I mean by evidence. I respect your opinion, but I'm not going to continue to counter it and provide studies, I'm tired, we can go in circles forever. Please research this subject and try to find counter evidence outside of your opinion.



The groups of people with the longest longevity (Hunza and Okinawa as examples of many) are people who maintain a relatively primitive diet and life style. So, no, techno-industrial society does not produce longer life expectancy but rather the opposite. For fucks sake, we have an entire population of kids dying from juvenile degenerative disease, how could you say we are improving life expectancy?



Life and intelligence is not about figuring out ways to apply the least amount of effort. That's a lazy mentality. It is not intelligent to further domesticate ourselves with these technological crutches. We are just making ourselves more dependent. Learning by experience when applied to a primitive lifestyle is a good thing. But when you apply that to industrial exponential growth, you quickly become the exact definition of addiction and insanity, furthering entire population dependency on the techno-industrial planetary suicide march.

Thanks mescaline-man. Ruppert is a good guy.

Here are some other documentaries for those who don't want to trek through the mountains of research & studies.

Surviving Progress: http://thoughtmaybe.com/surviving-progress/

Technocalyps: http://thoughtmaybe.com/technocalyps/

All Watched Over By Machines of Loving Grace: http://thoughtmaybe.com/all-watched-over-by-machines-of-loving-grace/

The Last Mountain: http://thoughtmaybe.com/the-last-mountain/

Gasland: http://thoughtmaybe.com/gasland/

I think you rush to understand mythology a little bit too quickly. Mythology is murky waters. Hermes, like any mythological character, has multiple correspondences, multiple associations. http://www.theoi.com/Olympios/HermesGod.html

Do a google search for "Hermes language"

Or try "Hermes Thoth"

Or read Germania, by the Roman senetor Tacitus. he believed that Wotan/Odin (the god who invented/discovered the runes--the god of writing, poetry and magic) was the same guy as Mercury. What he wrote was that the german peoples chief diety is Mercury. The main similarity between the two gods, would seem to be the language/trickster/psychopomp thing. these two gods seem very different, though they both play that role among other roles that each respectively plays.

Look at a calander. Wednsday is of course Wodens day, the day of the god Odin. Now look at a spanish calander--that same day, the fourth day of the week is called....mercules, the day of the god mercury.


Or google Hermes Trismegistus. Hermes is muchly associate with Thoth and with writing. hence my assertion that the cross of Agadez, the Symbol for Mercury and the mushroom language thing. Your bit about the date the bee-shaman was painted seems to have some flaws. Cave paintings were frequently painted over and over and over. When was the bee-shaman first painted, can we say for sure? More importantly is the fact that language, I believe, was very likely a well developed this long before the supposed age of the cave painting. Language being let's guess 80 thousand years old and that cave painting maybe like 10 thousand years old. Language is way older than one painting of a mushroom shaman. That does not prove anything at all. Mushrooms could still possibly have catylized language. perhaps. I doubt that painting was made by the first person who ever tripped off of mushrooms. Also, the rudiments of language were probably there before the mushrooms came in and helped (if such a thing happened) the mushrooms could have played their role at any point during the development of language. The catalyzation could have occurred 10-12 thousand years ago, when that painting was being made.....or it could have happened 100 thousand years before that. Either way, the agadez seems associated with the cave painting AND with the symbol for Mercury and maybe Thoth, like santa odin and jesus and a host of other gods, was a mushroom. Sais I. maybe. They inspire me to poetry everytime I eats 'em, so for me, Thoth is a mushroom, for the human species, who knows?




About the pacific island of trash....I've read that the photo of the guy kayaking through rubbish is a hoax. IDK, just something I read. The thing is that plastic does dissolve, some plastics do anyway. they crumble in the sun. I've also read that the pacific trash island thing is actually in all the oceans, towards the center of each ocean there's a huge area where the top foot or so of the water is a nasty soup of dissolved plastic. I claim no knowledge, haven't been that far out at sea.