Poll: Do you think evolution and the earth were effected by outside sources?

[siomasm]

Better poll that that other guy! (Flings poo over fence)

Do you think that our life filled planet and humans as a sentient race occurred entirely through an insanely minute probability of chance happenings in the universe? Or do you think that something...some kind of factorable law of the galaxy, an intelligent entity beyond our understanding, or other meddling sentient have had a hand in our creation?

Not necessarily in such a degree as "Plopped humans down on earth millions of years ago and there ya are!" but potentially in such subtle degrees as slight shifts in atmosphere and ocean to better produce life.
Tampering with a few gene sequences to put one species on a path unlike any other on the planet. Or then again, as overt as directing a meteor at the earth to kill all Apex predators in order to allow a new Eco-system to be established.

 

[Neverhoodian]

I see no reason why God couldn't have created life on Earth through evolution over the course of billions of years. Indeed, it makes sense that a supposedly benevolent deity would subtly alter life throughout the eons so it would be able to adapt to the changing conditions of the world.

That's what exasperates me about the "Creation vs. Evolution" debate. Just because you believe in one doesn't mean you automatically have to throw out the other. They are not mutually exclusive ideas, unless you're one of those that interprets everything in the Bible literally. In that case, I merely present this for your consideration:

 

[madwarper]

Given that I'm partial to abiogenesis. And, that amino acid laden meteorites seeded the Earth with life, I'd have to say that Yes. Beyond that, it's impossible to dismiss the effects of other impacts had on the course of life.

However, if you're posturing that a bunch of Greys came down and stirred the petri dish, then No. I believe that's a load of rubbish.

 

[siomasm]

I see no reason why God couldn't have created life on Earth through evolution over the course of billions of years. Indeed, it makes sense that a supposedly benevolent deity would subtly alter life throughout the eons so it would be able to adapt to the changing conditions of the world.

That's what exasperates me about the "Creation vs. Evolution" debate. Just because you believe in one doesn't mean you automatically have to throw out the other. They are not mutually exclusive ideas, unless you're one of those that interprets everything in the Bible literally. In that case, I merely present this for your consideration

Indeed! Most stories in the bible were written for an audience of an entirely different culture, most of which weren't able to read. So most stories were written into an easy to remember, folktale-esque style that would be easy to repeat and remember. Most also weren't necessarily meant to be taken at face value, but more of the metaphorical sense. Hansel and gretel isn't about witches eating children, it's about listening to your parents (like most grimm tales ).

At any rate, a deity gently shifting the flow of things would make more sense than the more extreme "It just happened because it did" examples.

@madwarper
Well yeah when you put it it that way anything could sound pretty ridiculous.

I don't think it's immensely far fetched that there are other sentient species in space, though the probability of them leaving their own system is highly unlikely, much less attempting to found and foster life on another planet. If anything I would think it would be incidental.

 

[ShipofFools]

It's all outside sources, man!
The ashes of dead stars made our world, and the sun supplies it with the energy life needs to thrive.

As for gods, daemons, monsters and mythical beings of all kinds... I want to bet that those do not come from outside, but from within. Our subconcious, perhaps.

Hansel and gretel isn't about witches eating children, it's about listening to your parents (like most grimm tales ).
At any rate, a deity gently shifting the flow of things would make more sense than the more extreme "It just happened because it did" examples.

It just happened because it did always makes more sense to me then gods, luck, ancestral spirits or gnomes.
You can look back on extraordinary events and think: No way that happened! But it did. Your lucky socks had nothing to do with it, even though our brains are wired to believe they did.

Life is a very complicated and chaotic system, but there is order in the chaos if one knows how to look. You could argue life is nothing more then chemistry being chemistry, molecules reacting in certain ways with each other under certain circumstances... these circumstances, by the way, are present throughout the solar system and probably the universe.

There's no need for gods to have made us. Nature is more powerful then gods, and will have the last laugh in the end.

 

[Thaluikhain]

Yes, as a compromise between intelligent design and actual science, I've agreed to belief that life could not have occurred on Earth without outside help.

But this outside help came in the form of aliens that evolved normally on their own planet.

 

[Henrik Knudsen]

All things have a beginning.

If "something/someone" was so advanced to further our development, they must be incredibly advanced seen from our POV as the human race.
And if we think ourselves too advanced, to believe we couldn't evolve naturally by ourselves, then those even more advanced surely had to be created, by a third party even more advanced than our creators.

The loop will never end.

So in short no I don't think we were tampered with in any "un-natural" way. I don't believe we are alone either though.

 

[TheRightToArmBears]

Given that I'm partial to abiogenesis. And, that amino acid laden meteorites seeded the Earth with life, I'd have to say that Yes. Beyond that, it's impossible to dismiss the effects of other impacts had on the course of life.

However, if you're posturing that a bunch of Greys came down and stirred the petri dish, then No. I believe that's a load of rubbish.

Pretty much this. Shit coming in on meteorites is pretty plausible, be it amino-acids or even single-celled organisms (less likely, but I wouldn't entirely rule it out). However, the idea that sentient beings came here and intentionally modified evolution seems ridiculous to me, and also with incredibly insubstantial evidence to support it.

Whilst the fossil record has its gaps, it's possible to make fairly sound predictions on why we evolved the way we did due to environmental factors. The only way I can see 'aliens fiddling with life on earth' really fitting in is if they just seeded it here. For one, there's still no evidence to support it. Secondly, as mentioned above, there are much more likely means for similar things to happen.

Yes, we do not know if it's possible for an alien civilisation to travel to earth, but from what we do know, it's very unlikely and has no evidence to support it. Given that there are much more sensible alternative theories, it makes no sense to believe something so fanciful.

 

[hermes]

Not to discredit a theory that has so much hypotetical value as the negative does, but no. I don't think so.

Nevermind the fact that its extremely rare to be able to contact another sentient being in the universe, but I have no reason to believe they were interested in creating a Petri dish on the other side of the universe. So, I am going with probability... Simply put, life was created on this planet because natural experiments with little chance of success would eventually end in success when its repeated over countless instances. And the reason we are here is the proof it worked.

 

[siomasm]

Yes, we do not know if it's possible for an alien civilisation to travel to earth, but from what we do know, it's very unlikely and has no evidence to support it.

Ironically there are a few theories pointed out in an episode of extra credits which (VERY) basically points out that in theory, the universe should have been colonized a few times over by now even if a race wasn't able to advance beyond the speed of light (using generation ships) and yet we've never seen any evidence of said potential colonies.

The majority of these theories are based on mathematical principal and probability if I recall, not any sort of scientific evidence but "it is logical to assume based on..."

To which some particular genius was baffled as to why this is, considering the mathematical probabilities that in theory, we should have seen SOME evidence of them at this point, though more likely is that no one makes it out of their solar system due to the immense cost (energy and resources) required, and moreso the drive to do so. Why bother?

 

[Zykon TheLich_v1legacy]

Outside sources? Sure, the Sun, meteors, comets etc. Intelligent prodding. No.

 

[Esotera]

Intelligent aliens interfering with evolution seems possible to me, but very unlikely (same goes for gods). I'm fairly damn certain that life exists on planets other than Earth, but intelligent life is probably quite rare & would find it hard to travel near enough to us.

 

[tilmoph]

Random chance. One thing you have to keep in mind is just how damn huge the universe is, how many planets it has. So while the odds that any given planet will have the right elements in the right position to spawn life, and will have that life eveolve to sapience are absurdly remote, the universe has an even more absurd number of chances at it.

I am absolutely certain there is life on other planets. I am confident a tiny percentage of that life is intelligent. I strongly doubt we have encountered any of it given the distances involved.

Honestly, if things were like Star Trek, where you can't fart without finding 5 new advanced aliens who feed on poo gas, I would be way more inclined to think a god or precursor super race had started the whole shebang, since that would be way too many advanced tech using species over way too small and area to be legit odds to me.

 

[TheYellowCellPhone]

Are we talking Chariot of the Gods or are we talking a being that is all-powerful all-knowing ageless undying etc.?

Either way, nope.

Here's the origin of the "Starstuff" explanation that everyone is saying.

 

[oooooooooooooooooooooooooo]

Better poll that that other guy! (Flings poo over fence)

Do you think that our life filled planet and humans as a sentient race occurred entirely through an insanely minute probability of chance happenings in the universe? Or do you think that something...some kind of factorable law of the galaxy, an intelligent entity beyond our understanding, or other meddling sentient have had a hand in our creation?

Not necessarily in such a degree as "Plopped humans down on earth millions of years ago and there ya are!" but potentially in such subtle degrees as slight shifts in atmosphere and ocean to better produce life.
Tampering with a few gene sequences to put one species on a path unlike any other on the planet. Or then again, as overt as directing a meteor at the earth to kill all Apex predators in order to allow a new Eco-system to be established.

Actually, given the enormous number of variables in play, it would be far more unlikely for something as incredible as life not to appear in our universe. Also, you would then have to explain how it's more likely that some other sentient being or beings somehow appeared and either created life or somehow found us and then for some reason decided messing with our evolution (somehow) was worthwhile to them and also that for some reason they need to keep that a secret form us. Personally, I don't believe anything that hasn't been empirically demonstrated to exist or have happened.

 

[Spitfire]

..slight shifts in atmosphere and ocean to better produce life.

Define "better".

Why would an advanced alien race need to interfere with the ongoing evolutionary process on Earth? That's sci-fi logic at work.

 

[Woodsey]

I see no reason why God couldn't have created life on Earth through evolution over the course of billions of years. Indeed, it makes sense that a supposedly benevolent deity would subtly alter life throughout the eons so it would be able to adapt to the changing conditions of the world.

You're stretching the word 'benevolent' pretty far as soon as you acknowledge that not all animals are pretty little butterflies.

At any rate, a deity gently shifting the flow of things would make more sense than the more extreme "It just happened because it did" examples.

No it doesn't. It just adds another layer of "where the fuck did that come from then?".

 

[Naeras]

There's no real way to know, but considering certain random/stupid anatomical features humans, I'm going to go with "no".

 

[Muspelheim]

Maaaaaybe..? I 'unno, could be anything. We could be an itsy bitsy tiny part of a quark forming a tiny, tiny atom which is part of arranging the lid of a coffee machine in someone's meta-kitchen.

If aliens do visit us in a friendly atmosphere, I'd say we ask them, and compare our notes. Doubt either of us would know, but it'd be an interesting discussion in their space drawing room smoking space tobacco, at least.

 

[Duncan Belfast]

There's the Miller/Urey Experiment, which demonstrates that amino acids can be created in environments similar to those on a prehistoric earth.

Barring that, while I can accept the idea of a creator, I'll need a lot of explanations, apologies and fruit baskets before I even begin to consider the idea of a benevolent creator.