Civilizations development and species origin technologies


Book Description

The origin of life on Earth is the basic view of the world’s concept. At present, its origin and development are treated either from the scientific evolutionary theory points of view or religious mythological ones. At the same time, the evolutionary theory fails to provide grounded explanations to a lot of events which have happened and are observed in nature. The data related to the complexity of life processes genetic programming and many biology and palaeontological facts cast doubt on the possibility of spontaneous occurrence of protein organisms during evolutionary transformations. They indicate that the protein life development occurred in the direction of the planned improvement through the complex technology’s implementation which requires specific scientific knowledge. Therefore, the necessity to formulate the new technological concept of the life appearance on Earth which is provided by the given book has occurred. It summarizes numerous well-known facts which are being interpreted as the result of the highly developed civilization technological developments. The stated views have more grounds for existence than the evolutionary theory and biblical ideas about the divine creation of the world. The fact that society treats all the ideas of the life creation as religious ones and that they are used by the theologians turns out to be the ideological problem. The book is aimed at overcoming the barrier of such non-perception. The analysis performed allows the reader to understand in which cases random events occur, and in which ones there is a logical purposeful intelligent activity, the result of which is the development of self-replicating protein organisms programmed to perform the work necessary to meet the needs of their creators on Earth. Reflections on the possible material nature of the highly developed mind carriers are given.According to the author, a human being is not a passive observer of random evolutionary changes in nature, but has his mission in the artificially developed system of energy supply of Earth along with other protein organisms. If the protein world, including humans, has been created for a specific purpose, then mankind must not violate its implementation and should follow its mission. A new worldview should introduce changes in the main mankind’s activity spheres: science, politics, religion and the human being’s personal life.The book is designed for a wide range of readers of various specialties. Conceptually, it is important for people who do not share the evolutionary theory provisions and existing religious beliefs.




Probabilities in the Galaxy


Book Description

The method used in the following chapters of the book is referred to in mathematics as an axiomatic approach. From the analysis of empirical data of the Kepler satellite hypotheses are drawn, which are called approaches and axioms. The derived statements are formulated as sentences to which certain probabilities are assigned. All axioms and sentences lead to an overall presentation of the situation, which can then be used as a working hypothesis. Namely as a working hypothesis regarding the abundance of habitable, Earth-like planets, as well as life, intelligence and civilizations in our galaxy. It is unprobable that we are alone in the universe. It is more probable that we are not alone.







Advancement in Ancient Civilizations


Book Description

Traditional scholarship on how ancient civilizations emerged is outmoded and new insights call for revision. According to the well-established paradigm, Mesopotamia is considered the cradle of civilization. Following the cliche of ex oriente lux ("light from the East") all major achievements of humankind spread from the Middle East. Modern archaeology, cultural science and historical linguistics indicate civilizations did not originate from a single prototype. Several models produced divergent patterns of advanced culture, developing both hierarchical and egalitarian societies. This study outlines a panorama of ancient civilizations, including the still little-known Danube civilization, now identified as the oldest advanced culture in Europe. In a comparative view, a new paradigm of research and a new cultural chronology of civilizations in the Old and New Worlds emerges, with climate change shown to be a continual influence on human lifeways.




Origins of Life


Book Description

Origins of Life: A Cosmic Perspective presents an overview of the concepts, methods, and theories of astrobiology and origins of life research while presenting a summary of the latest findings. The book provides insight into the environments and processes that gave birth to life on our planet, which naturally informs our assessment of the probability that has arisen (or will arise) elsewhere. In addition, the book encourages readers to go beyond basic concepts, to explore topics in greater depth, and to engage in lively discussions. The text is intended to be suitable for mid- and upper-level undergraduates and beginning graduate students and more generally as an introduction and overview for researchers and general readers seeking to follow current developments in this interdisciplinary field. Readers are assumed to have a basic grounding in the relevant sciences, but prior specialized knowledge is not required. Each chapter concludes with a list of questions and discussion topics as well as suggestions for further reading. Some questions can be answered with reference to material in the text, but others require further reading and some have no known answers. The intention is to encourage readers to go beyond basic concepts, to explore topics in greater depth, and, in a classroom setting, to engage in lively discussions with class members.




Across the Secular Abyss


Book Description

Across the Secular Abyss explains the cultural chasm we currently face, with a traditional religion-based society behind us, and an as-yet unknown secular society ahead. For over a century, scholars, social scientists, and policy makers have debated the apparent erosion of religious faith and wondered whether Western Civilization was turning its back on religion. Today, the issue has reached a crisis point. In the U.S., a new battle between faith and science has erupted within educational institutions, as political polarization progressively divides the country along religious lines. After a century-long truce in which religion and science implicitly agreed to leave each other alone, science is again invading the territory of religion, most obviously in cognitive science that is debunking religious notions of the human soul, and in the broad convergence of many branches of science into one that leaves few gaps where supernatural beliefs could survive. Religion, for its part, is resisting a range of emerging technologies that could transform human nature, namely human reproductive cloning and the kinds of transformative technologies advocated by the Transhumanist movement. Although pure Atheism has little to offer people, and Atheists tend to be people lacking in social obligations, entirely new possibilities are offered by emerging technologies such as computer emulation of human personalities.




Technology and the Growth of Civilization


Book Description

Our natural world has been irretrievably altered by humans, for humans. From domesticated wheat fields to nuclear power plants and spacecraft, everything we see and interact with has in some way been changed by the presence of our species, starting from the Neolithic era so many centuries ago. This book provides a crash course on the issues and debates surrounding technology’s shifting place in our society. It covers the history of our increasingly black-box world, which some theorize will end with technology accelerating beyond our understanding. At the same time, it analyzes competing trends and theories, the lack of scientific knowledge of large sections of the population, the dogmas of pseudoscience, and the growing suspicion of science and technology, which may inevitably lead to scientific stagnation. What will the future of our civilization look like? How soon might scientific acceleration or stagnation arrive at our doorstep, and just how radically will such technological shifts change our culture? These are issues that we must address now, to insure our future goes the way we choose.




Energy and Civilization


Book Description

A comprehensive account of how energy has shaped society throughout history, from pre-agricultural foraging societies through today's fossil fuel–driven civilization. "I wait for new Smil books the way some people wait for the next 'Star Wars' movie. In his latest book, Energy and Civilization: A History, he goes deep and broad to explain how innovations in humans' ability to turn energy into heat, light, and motion have been a driving force behind our cultural and economic progress over the past 10,000 years. —Bill Gates, Gates Notes, Best Books of the Year Energy is the only universal currency; it is necessary for getting anything done. The conversion of energy on Earth ranges from terra-forming forces of plate tectonics to cumulative erosive effects of raindrops. Life on Earth depends on the photosynthetic conversion of solar energy into plant biomass. Humans have come to rely on many more energy flows—ranging from fossil fuels to photovoltaic generation of electricity—for their civilized existence. In this monumental history, Vaclav Smil provides a comprehensive account of how energy has shaped society, from pre-agricultural foraging societies through today's fossil fuel–driven civilization. Humans are the only species that can systematically harness energies outside their bodies, using the power of their intellect and an enormous variety of artifacts—from the simplest tools to internal combustion engines and nuclear reactors. The epochal transition to fossil fuels affected everything: agriculture, industry, transportation, weapons, communication, economics, urbanization, quality of life, politics, and the environment. Smil describes humanity's energy eras in panoramic and interdisciplinary fashion, offering readers a magisterial overview. This book is an extensively updated and expanded version of Smil's Energy in World History (1994). Smil has incorporated an enormous amount of new material, reflecting the dramatic developments in energy studies over the last two decades and his own research over that time.




Meeting the Alien


Book Description

Is mankind alone in the universe? Will we ever encounter intelligent life beyond Earth? These questions have been asked for centuries. Recent advances in the fields of astrophysics, astronomy and astrobiology make it more likely than ever before, that Earth may not be the only inhabited planet, and that humanity may not the only intelligent species in the universe. What would be the consequences of contact with an extraterrestrial intelligence? This question is at the heart of the emerging discipline of exosociology. According to the authors, first contact with an extraterrestrial intelligence poses enormous risks for humanity. These risks come not only from extraterrestrials, but above all from ourselves. We should be prepared. Michael Schetsche and Andreas Anton's comprehensive introduction to exosociology was first published in German in 2019. The book has been widely acclaimed in Germany and internationally. It is now available in English for the first time.




Accelerating Economic Growth


Book Description

What made it possible for the human species to conquer the world, build a global digital economy, and still want more? What drives technological progress and economic growth in the long run and on a global scale? And how will technological progress, economic growth, and the overall prosperity of human civilization unfold in the future? This book sheds new light on these big questions by incorporating findings from physics, anthropology, psychology, history, philosophy, and computer science in a brand-new theory of economic growth. Looking back across the millennia, it identifies five major technological revolutions which have transformed humankind’s capacity to process energy and information—the cognitive, agricultural, scientific, industrial, and digital revolutions—and characterizes the new avenues of economic development which they have opened while also exponentially accelerating growth.