Re: Human Imperfection

[T3D John W Roberts <roberts@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>Date: Sun, 31 Aug 1997 20:00:22 -0500
>From: T3D john bercovitz  <bercov@xxxxxxxxxxx>
>Subject: Re: Human Imperfection

>Shab Levy writes:
>> What are the other choices John? Isn't the human body designed 
>> to function optimally?
 
>I don't even know that it was designed.  One may assume it jest 
>growed.  8-)  

Without getting into an "evolution versus creationism" debate on T3D :-),
I think it may be fair to say that the human organism shows many
characteristics that give the appearance of having been optimized or
near-optimized within a given environment and set of constraints. But
there is also a tendency to stick at "local optima", and obsolete features
may or may not go away if they don't provide a strong overall disadvantage.

>But seriously, appellations such as "Hawkeye" and 
>"Eagle Eye" are based on fact.  These animals' eyes have much 
>finer resolution than ours.  They must if they are going to see 
>dinner (rodents) from so very high up.  

If they had bad eyesight, they'd have to fly lower or eat bison? :-)
 
>I can't imagine any optical advantage in wearing one's retina 
>backwards, but optical advantages aren't the only possible 
>evolutionary advantages.  I think all the vertebrates are built 
>like this.  

That may be one of the "local optima" - it works just about as well as
the other way, and it would take considerable "redesign" to change it
now.

Humans are lucky in many aspects of their design, which work well with a
technological civilization, even though there hasn't been such an environment
long enough for significant evolutionary pressure. If we had ended up with
the behind-the-retina reflectors that many other mammals have, we might
consider a 200x200 (or even 100x100) display to be "super high-resolution".
High resolution visual capability in bright light has proven more useful for
us in a high-tech environment than optimized night vision, smell, extremely
sensitive hearing, and so on.

John R


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