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Journalism of Courage
Life, it is believed, started from a chain of self-replicating molecules in the oceans. From there it evolved into the single-celled amoebae and onto more diverse life forms like insects, reptiles and mammals 8211; man being the highest on the evolutionary scale. The process of evolution seems to have halted there. Or has it?
We know that the great reptiles, the dinosaurs were wiped out by a cataclysmic event, letting the smaller mammals a free run of terra firma. Man is one of the newest animals that emerged from this branch. An animal with great intelligence, he has managed to literally transform the earth with his imagination and machines. Together the two man and machine have managed to accomplish feats that would not have been possible if man had tried to perform them alone. For example, landings on the moon, space exploration and even the exploration of the human body would not have been possible without the aid of machines.
Does this mean that man is evolving into a being who uses facilities other than his biological body to alter himself and the environment? It really isn8217;t as shocking as it seems. There are artificial heart valves which serve the purpose of biological valves, inserted into heart patients; the contact lens is inserted into into the eye to help correct vision; steel rods are inserted in place of bones to help accident victims; artificial skin grafts to help patients with burns are being developed8230; the list of more possibilities is endless. Soon it might become possible for man to live for more than 500 years, replacing his worn out organs and tissues with artificial products and machines. An artificial hip, limb or heart may not be such a far fetched idea after all. This would enable man to evolve into a superior being with a greater intellect, his memory and body aided by machines which will help him integrate better with his environment.
