The “mystery” of “why humans alone amongst the apes first began to walk on two feet,” and “why these chimpanzees spend so much time in the trees” presents yet another disconnect between the expectations of evolutionary theory and reality. However, both of these findings are in complete accord with the model of intelligent design, in which the Designer intended humans to walk on two feet and chimpanzees to spend most of their time in trees.
Human exceptionalism
At Evolution News: Intelligent Design and Man’s Free Will
C. S. Lewis: “Free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having.”
Man-ape chasm of differences
“Human beings have mental powers that include the material mental powers of animals but in addition entail a profoundly different kind of thinking.”
At Phys.org: Genes and languages aren’t always found together, says new study
If a specific language evolved along with a specific people group, it isn’t clear that this would result in an innate ability to become fluent in any human language, as children raised in cross-cultural settings have demonstrated.
At Tech Xplore: Advancing human-like perception in self-driving vehicles
“How can mobile robots perceive and understand the environment correctly, even if parts of the environment are occluded by other objects? “
At SciTech Daily: Harvard Researchers Have Linked Spirituality to Healthier Lives and Longer Lifespans
Researchers: “Integrating spirituality into care can help each person have a better chance of reaching complete well-being and their highest attainable standard of health.”
At Evolution News: Chatbots Might Chat, But They’re Not People
“It boils down to this: AI can process lots of data. AI can be programmed to mimic human interactions. But AI is not human — nor will it ever be.”
At Mind Matters News: Our sense of smell may have declined in recent millennia but it is sharper than we think
When tested, human noses turned out be pretty sensitive -but humans also rely heavily on symbolic information to which other life forms do not have access.
At Mind Matters News: Retro future: In a 1960s take on the 2020s, chimps do our chores
It seems such a crazy idea now. Is that because we have greater awareness of chimpanzees as they really are? Let’s hope so. It’s good to think we’ve made some progress in the last half century in understanding that chimpanzees are not “almost people.” We must still work on recognizing that we are not “almost chimpanzees” either.
Marks: Non-Computable You Won’t Achieve Immortality Through an AI Machine
“The most exceptional things about us as humans are not algorithmic, that is, not computable.”
Researchers argue that long human lifespan is due in part to the contributions of elders
“[This] puts humans (and some species of whale) in a unique club: animals that continue to live long after their reproductive lives end. How is it that we can live decades in selection’s shadow?”
At Eurekalert: Connectivity of language areas unique in the human brain
“Neuroscientists have gained new insight into how our brain evolved into a language-ready brain. Compared to chimpanzee brains, the pattern of connections of language areas in our brain has expanded more than previously thought. “
Five Reasons Why AI Programs Are Not “Human”
Wesley J. Smith gives us “five reasons to reject granting personhood, or membership in the moral community, to any AI program.”
At Science Daily: Military cannot rely on AI for strategy or judgment, study suggests
Using artificial intelligence (AI) for warfare has been the promise of science fiction and politicians for years, but new research argues only so much can be automated and shows the value of human judgment.
At Evolution News: Man, with His Special Place in Nature, Was Designed to Use Fire
With the evidence of our unique fitness for fire-making, the picture is complete. Nature is uniquely fit for man, designed with us in mind. The anthropocentric claim of Judeo-Christian tradition is vindicated.