A quick story

Post Reply New Topic

Culture is a young factor, culture is just few thousands of years old, on the evolutionary scale this is a very very short time (almost nothing) and I don't think it was there long enough to alter our DNA composition yet. Before any culture, humans and their ancestor species were probably much more "culturally" homogeneous for millions of years.

You have archaeological and & anthropological knowledge so I am sure you know best , and I am sure you're aware of the huge time scale difference between the most ancient archaeological discoveries vs the oldest anthropological discoveries.


Maybe after millions of years, culture would shape the evolution course of humans and give birth of several distinct human subspecies ;p
Like a distinct human species in Saudi Arabia where the men would be extremely hair , very violent and 10 times larger than their women (strong sexual dimorphism) while humans in Sweden would evolve into one-sex subspecies. The Chinese would probably evolve into a hive-like system species where there are few super-overlord-brains and billions of brainless fast hard workers while the Japaneses into waterproof cyber-men . As for the USA, they would probably evolve into a fat blubby ball-like species that crawls by using advanced legged chairs.

My point is, that culture is not yet a significant factor to be much considered while studying the sexual/natural selection of modern humans.






Only 3 to 5% of the sexual species are known to form monogamous pairing and some of those are still debatable how monogamous are (also bear in mind the difference between social monogamy and sexual monogamy).

Culture is a couple of millions of years old. Even hominids (such as Australopithecus Africanus) had some form of culture, not to mention our own species.

And it's not about the altering of DNA: culture tells us what to do or how to do it. Are you allowed to urinate in public when you feel like it? Are you allowed to grab a first female that walks past you and put your penis inside her when you feel like it?



And my point is quite the opposite: culture is a crucial factor you need to consider. Everything humans do is influenced by culture so it often impossible to tell which parts of human behaviour are natural.



Monogamy (and other strategies) often (though not always) depends on the way a species care for the offspring. If both parents are needed to care for the offspring, a species is often monogamous (or at least, monogamous while taking care of the offspring). If none of the parents is needed, then the parents mate, female deposits the eggs, and they both move on. If one parent is needed, then the female usually cares for the offspring while males search for the other females.

We can only argue which of these strategies are good for humans, and whether two, one or none parents are needed to raise human offspring. (Personally, I think both parents are needed, or at least preferred, from the economical as well as emotional point of view).

Hmm, you have a point there, I was more equating culture to civilization in my argument, but culture can be far more simple than civilization and is certainly older.

That depends ony how you define culture though, some animal scientists view that other primates have some form of 'cultures' while others view culture as unique to humans. There have been a long debate whether culture is by itself an inborn human nature resulted by evolution or it's something that only recently appeared with the eruption of (primitive) civilizations.





A beta wolf has to lower his tail in the alpha's presence, doesn't that mean that wolves also have some sort of 'culture"?

Last edited by The_Face_of_Boo on 06 Dec 2011, 5:11 pm, edited 2 times in total.

Not always, at least not necessarily ultimately monogamous, seek out the difference between sexual monogamy and social monogamy (hint: birds).

This is true, too. It is argued that certain animals have certain forms of culture. However, with animals, behaviour is mainly guided by instincts, while with humans that's not the case. We rely on culture more than instinct. We rely on culture so much it's difficult to tell which part of our behaviour is natural and which is cultural.

And you're right about monogamy. Still, with humans, it's more about the social aspects of sexual behaviour than the instincts themselves. Culture, and not instincts, tell us that we shouldn't have sex with our parents, or that women "shouldn't" enjoy one night stands, or that virgin men "are" weak, unworthy creatures.

And what was this thread about, again?

About my douche bag "friend" and me being too pathetic, inferior, and repulsive to have real friends and date.

I thought it was about your douche "friend" MAKING you feel pathetic and inferior.

Yeah he didn't really help matters, that's for sure.

It was annoying as how he wanted to turn everything into a competition. Always bragging about his new clothes, money he's somehow acquired, and the next female he pulled. (I could never compete with him at getting dates)

Most of the time he was very condescending and always tried to diminish things I've done. It was like he thought I should be grateful that he let someone like me hang around him all those years.

At first my ego kinda got in the way. I resented him so much it got to the point that I was obsessed. I spent nearly day thinking about how I can be better than him, how to get him back, and how to get him to feel the way I felt. After awhile I just finally accepted it. I had nothing and I was pathetic.

I realized I was lower functioning and he was just higher on the totem pole. He really was better. (smarter, better looking, confidence, charisma, talent, etc) I was just born an inferior being. It was a bitter pill to shallow, but I had to own it if I was going to get pass the obsession.

So I've gotten over it somewhat, although half of it's probably because he moved away. (out of sight, out of mind) I don't know how I'd react if he showed up to my house in the future and tried to get us to be friends again.

Well, there you go. This person has made you feel inferior.



I kind of hoped you finally accepted that a jerk like that is not worth your time.



Screw the "totem pole". The whole idea behind the totem pole makes no sense. People who are low on the totem pole still manage to get dates, marry, and have perfectly good lives, often better than those who are high in the social hierarchy. You don't need to be high in the hierarchy to be happy and to have a good life.

I'd settle just for being in the middle. Right now I'm a nobody, literally. I have no friends, no chance at dating, poor, ugly, slow, uneducated, un-charismatic, have no useful skills and is talent-less. I can barely bathe myself, heck I even struggle to change clothes, as I've had the same clothing on for about a month. I have no prospects for any kind of a decent future and I spend most of my days watching anime, porn, and playing video games.

I'm a hermit, I haven't been anywhere outside my house in 3-4 years. I'm depressed all the time, I'm lonely, bitter, frustrated, and I have to fight suicidal thoughts every so often.

I AM pathetic and inferior, I'm tired of people like you making up lies at an attempt to me feel better about myself. I have no shot at a decent life. Who the f**k would want to date and marry me? huh? No one that's who.

Just tell the truth and say that I should just off myself and get it over with.

so what you actually want is for people to tell you to kill yourself? are you looking for permission or encouragement to commit suicide?

I'd never tell anybody to "off themselves". My father killed himself when i was a child and it had a huge influence on my life and me as a person. The mere thought of it makes me anxious and prone to shutdown.

MR20

You really need to realize that you have everything you need to change your life right now. You have yourself and you have the wealth of information available on the internet at any time.

If you really desire a better life than you have now you will have to give up EVERYTHING you find comfortable. Your video games, your anime, your time you spend on forums, everything you find comfort in.

Start exercising, start studying, get your GED, study something online, practice good hygiene, go out and socialize every day,and NEVER look back. To make THIS change in yourself will require all of your willpower.

If you like your life exactly as it is now then continue on but if you want to be successful in life you need to be willing to sacrifice everything for the chance to change your life.

Not necessarily, I just want people to agreed with my views about myself.

Dude go buy some rollerblades or something and go outside.

You're asking me to completely change who I am? I don't know if that's possible. I can't just "go out and socialize" like it's something that comes very easy for a person like me.

You're also asking me to give up things that I am passionate about. I love playing video games and watching anime, both have been a hobby of mine since my tweens. There's no way I'm giving that up. I don't care or give a crap if you "normal" people think it's useless or a waste of time. It's some of the few things I like and I won't give it up just because most of the males/females in the world think it's uncool. You won't take it away from me.

Last edited by MR20 on 07 Dec 2011, 4:28 pm, edited 2 times in total.