The Earth is a physical subsystem of the universe, and the physical processes within it are fairly well-known and describable. For example, concentrated reserves of raw materials are limited, and within such a finite system, infinite growth (organization of molecules) is not possible. This is bound by limits, just as the state of that system must meet certain conditions, otherwise, the system will lose its balance (as seen, for instance, through climate change).
However, for some time now, humans have been present in this system, either ignoring this fact or claiming to understand it while actually only focusing on themselves, the species, while acting in ways contrary to what is important for the system (and thus for their own species, and therefore indirectly for themselves). They primarily act in self-interest. And increasingly so, following their own man-made laws, rather than the physical laws, as I discussed in previous writings. But how does this work? Can something be done about it? Or is this, in itself, also a physical inevitability, that humans behave in this way? What is the reason for this? I touched on this in my recent book [1] and recently received some additional insights. Does maybe evolution play an even greater role than previously thought?
In practice, what we see, and in summary, is that humans are individualizing all their activities , but at the same time also materializing their needs and many wants. These are the two major trends distinguishable at the moment, creating the “obese” human, in every sense of its actions. Regarding materialization: everything is being done to make labor redundant: through mechanization, automation, robotics, and digitization, all that in service of material things: goods and more goods. These primarily serve individual pleasure: individualism is everywhere, further strengthened by self-developed information technology for among others social media. Everyone demands their own place, and their own stuff, to own everything themselves.
We also see it with the energy transition: it’s not about security of energysupply or climatestability for future generations, but about short (financial) payback periods for individuals, such as with solar panels, and investing in material goods. The government participates as well: everything is being pushed toward individual responsibility. Healthcare leads the way (abolishing retirement homes, pushing informal care, etc.), and under the guise of fairness, even the new pension system is becoming an individual (and speculative) responsibility. Nothing is collectively shared or burdens carried. Each individual materializes everything around them , and at an accelerated pace: always the newest phone, trendy furniture, not by bike but by plane for vacations, and even the bike becomes electric. All of this leads to more material and energy use for by definition temporary individual pleasures. There’s much more to say about this (think also of bullshit products, etc., and see the book Post Fossiel Leven), but the trend is clear. This is evolution, at least for humanity at this moment in time. But is there more to it?
I came across a description of this same behavior in Hoffman’s book, The Case Against Reality: How Evolution Hid the Truth from Our Eyes. In it, he analyzes and explains this, but from the perspective of evolutionary theory itself. It’s not an easy book; I often had to read a page twice. But simply put, it’s about ‘reality’ and illusion: people strive to increase options, to gain benefits, and think they are seeing reality, but they don’t really see it—they see reality through a ‘lens’. This touches on quantum positions and holography, but in plain terms: they buy goods but don’t see the actual physical resources from which those goods are made. Resources that are running out. They only see the immediate benefits it provides to them as individuals. It’s not rational, but aimed at increasing their options, or enhancing their ‘fitness’, as in “survival of the fittest,” but applied to everyday life, not just in a physiological sense, but also through their tendency to accumulate stuff, matter.. As long as it increases their chances. The brain, which acts as a kind of user interface between humans and reality, filters for increased chances. Hoffman also describes fascinating studies of how subtly everything unfolds between men and women, without either being consciously aware of it (much more than you’d realize…).
The Darwinian model seems (or is) much more broadly applicable than just to the physiological and biological development of species, is becoming more apparent. This is something that Hertog and Hawkins also described, but in relation to the Big Bang: at the time, there were multiple possible physical models for our universe, each with entirely different physical laws, but our current model was the ‘fittest’ and, at least in this universe, prevailed—an evolutionary outcome. Hertog describes this in more scientific language in his book, The origin of Time.
The evolutionary principle is therefore not about ’truth’ or reality, but about fitness: whether something makes us (or something else) fitter (‘more suited for the future’ or ‘in better condition’). This is more important than operating within (perceived or otherwise) reality and with fairly distributing resources, as summarized in my own words.
This is directly derived from Darwin, and evolution is thus a key concept in the development and organization of all matter, at least on this planet.
This idea also aligns well with a lesser-known physical principle: Max Power, leading to Max Mass. I discovered this principle after my first book was published, and it explained several things, but I immediately wondered back then if evolution played a role here as well. This principle is described more extensively in this blog [2], but it essentially boils down to the idea that everything within a bounded system strives for maximum power, not balance or efficiency. A tree is lavish with leaves and fruits/seeds, trying to claim as much of the light-space as possible. And it continues this as long as there is unused potential in the system (exergy). It’s even seen as a candidate for a fourth principle of thermodynamics.
This closely mirrors the behavior we see in society: people want to appropriate ever larger portions—Max Power—and this leads to Max Mass (a central analysis in my book), with the goal of becoming ‘fitter’: increasing the chances of survival for their own bloodline—good provisions, plenty of energy and goods, and, of course, linked to having enough money (via a self-devised system), for health care and related mass goods. Its the evolutionary fitness drive, combined with the physical max power drive, that leads to an overall drive ie principle of ‘Max Fitness’.
So, it’s not only evolution in ‘length’ (species development over time) but also in breadth (seizing space—energy and mass—during one’s ‘stay’).
A attempt to a possible definition for the combination could be (though it needs some fine-tuning): “As long as there is unused energy and mass in a system** , that system and every part of it strives to physically and biologically concentrate and organize mass into increasingly complex forms, in a continually renewing cycle.”
The species, and humanity, are therefore just a part of that process. And that species and that human are not interested in the physical consequences, but like every other component, driven by increasing their own survival chances, organizing ever more complex masses. If this is truly embedded in human nature (or in ‘everything’), then it may be too much to ask of people, in light of climate change and scarcity, to moderate themselves—to reduce their chances, to become ‘less fit’… And so, this doesn’t bode well for the crises we face. We are simply heading toward the next more complex phase.
.
* Though there are other cultures (or have been) where ‘sharing’ (and moderation) was the guiding principle, as described in this blog [link: https://ronaldrovers.nl/zeven-ballen-en-een-piek/], but perhaps that was the exception—the mutation that didn’t survive?
** or added-solar radiation?
.
[1] to be published soon in English: Post Fossile Living. :https://www.ribuilt.eu/winkel/
[2] about Max Power : https://www.ronaldrovers.com/people-vs-resources-update-and-annex-max-power/
