Evolution is defined as a process of change in a particular direction. As we look at evolution though, isn't it more away from a particular direction than toward it? One animal of a type changes and it is different from the original but it doesn't stay that way. It continues to change, every generation is different from the one before different than the last. One set of characteristics is passed on in a small section of society and it becomes the norm in that society, while a different norm has developed in another. What norm sets humans different from animals? .
Genetic evolution could be responsible for a change from chimpanzees to humans. More likely they both descended from one common ancestor. Neanderthals seem like a part of a direct human lineage. They walk upright, used sophisticated tools, and come after Homo sapiens and Homo erectus. However, studies show that they are most likely not in our lineage. But common features point to a common ancestor. .
Did Neanderthals learn to think from that ancestor? Did modern monkeys or apes descend from them? What changes were exhibited that differentiated the monkeys or Neanderthals from humans?.
Barbour takes a lot of information from a lot of different people. He seems to think that the difference between animals and humans is linked to a human ability to reason. Humans can decide if they want to help someone else or if they want to be selfish. We can remember the past and anticipate the future. We can pass his knowledge on through education. .
But I"d like to describe an experiment done on monkeys. A shiny object was placed in the middle of a pen. When one monkey examined it they all got doused with water. After a few times, when one monkey showed interest in the object, the others stopped him before they all got soaked. This shows that monkeys learn, that they remember and they anticipate the future. They stop the curious monkey because they don't" want to get wet.