“The natural world contains about 8.7 million species, according to a new estimate described by scientists as the most accurate ever. But the vast majority have not been identified - and cataloguing them all could take more than 1,000 years.” (Black, 2011, p. [Page #]). Humans are only one species on the planet earth amongst 8.7 million species that we have identified and possibly more that we have not yet identified. Yet we still strive to control the planet, all its creatures and happenings. Humans have always found solace within the concept of being in control of those with whom they interact, both animate and inanimate as well as the events that take place around them, sometimes even when these do not concern them. But this idea of being in control requires knowledge and an understanding of the animate and inanimate objects that we interact with. While making decisions and choices, one requires an understanding of what is involved. Thus one of the motivations behind trying to discover the unknown could be to gain a better understanding of the world around us.
Humans are predominantly a social species who tend to enjoy communicating and sharing with others. The recent creation of social networking tools and their use at a rapidly escalating rate demonstrate the fundamental desire of humans for social belonging and interaction. This want for interacting with others also makes humans quite curious and inquisitive (Vrticka, 2013). Curiosity is defined as a need, thirst or desire for knowledge. The concept of curiosity is central to motivation. Curiosity can thus be considered a motivational prerequisite for exploratory behavior. (Edelman, 1997, p. 1). Humans therefore keep trying to discover more about themselves as well as others and other things they interact with.
Even before the advent of science, humans used logic to find answers and solutions. And while we did develop science to a vast extent and found innumerable answers about the world around us, there still remain many answers yet to be found. One of the questions man has always yearned to find the answer to is the purpose of life itself. Edward Humes, recipient of the Pulitzer prize award claimed in one of his works, that the truth of evolution was obvious and the cause of the inability of some to accept it was that they were trapped by the human obsession with trying to seek design and purpose in the world. According to him, “Darwin managed to look past the appearance of design thereby understanding the purposeless, merciless process of natural selection, of life and death in the wild, and how it culled all but the most successful organisms from the tree of life, thereby creating the illusion that a master intellect had designed the world. But close inspection of the watchlike "perfection" of honeybees' combs or ant trails…reveals that they are a product of random, repetitive, unconscious behaviors, not conscious design.”
What made Darwin’s theory hard to accept despite it being the logical answer is that it takes away the illusion of our significance. The theory of evolution forces us to accept the proposition that in consonance with other creatures, humans too are the result of a random, natural process. And so, science can provide us with no verification of the belief that we were created for a special purpose or as part of some cosmic design. Thus, the human obsession with the unknown could be propelled forward in the pursuit of answers as to the purpose of our existence (Bergman, 2007, p. 2).
Being a rather controversial as well as conceptual question, it is difficult to know exactly why humans experience this compelling urge to seek out the unknown. However as Stewart Weaver says in his History of Exploration (published by Oxford University Press), “For all the different forms it takes in different historical periods, for all the worthy and unworthy motives that lie behind it, exploration is it seems a human compulsion, a human obsession even (as the paleontologist Maeve Leakey says); it is a defining element of a distinctly human identity, and it will never rest at any frontier, whether terrestrial or extra-terrestrial.” (Patenaude, 2015, p. 2).
Humans are predominantly a social species who tend to enjoy communicating and sharing with others. The recent creation of social networking tools and their use at a rapidly escalating rate demonstrate the fundamental desire of humans for social belonging and interaction. This want for interacting with others also makes humans quite curious and inquisitive (Vrticka, 2013). Curiosity is defined as a need, thirst or desire for knowledge. The concept of curiosity is central to motivation. Curiosity can thus be considered a motivational prerequisite for exploratory behavior. (Edelman, 1997, p. 1). Humans therefore keep trying to discover more about themselves as well as others and other things they interact with.
Even before the advent of science, humans used logic to find answers and solutions. And while we did develop science to a vast extent and found innumerable answers about the world around us, there still remain many answers yet to be found. One of the questions man has always yearned to find the answer to is the purpose of life itself. Edward Humes, recipient of the Pulitzer prize award claimed in one of his works, that the truth of evolution was obvious and the cause of the inability of some to accept it was that they were trapped by the human obsession with trying to seek design and purpose in the world. According to him, “Darwin managed to look past the appearance of design thereby understanding the purposeless, merciless process of natural selection, of life and death in the wild, and how it culled all but the most successful organisms from the tree of life, thereby creating the illusion that a master intellect had designed the world. But close inspection of the watchlike "perfection" of honeybees' combs or ant trails…reveals that they are a product of random, repetitive, unconscious behaviors, not conscious design.”
What made Darwin’s theory hard to accept despite it being the logical answer is that it takes away the illusion of our significance. The theory of evolution forces us to accept the proposition that in consonance with other creatures, humans too are the result of a random, natural process. And so, science can provide us with no verification of the belief that we were created for a special purpose or as part of some cosmic design. Thus, the human obsession with the unknown could be propelled forward in the pursuit of answers as to the purpose of our existence (Bergman, 2007, p. 2).
Being a rather controversial as well as conceptual question, it is difficult to know exactly why humans experience this compelling urge to seek out the unknown. However as Stewart Weaver says in his History of Exploration (published by Oxford University Press), “For all the different forms it takes in different historical periods, for all the worthy and unworthy motives that lie behind it, exploration is it seems a human compulsion, a human obsession even (as the paleontologist Maeve Leakey says); it is a defining element of a distinctly human identity, and it will never rest at any frontier, whether terrestrial or extra-terrestrial.” (Patenaude, 2015, p. 2).
References
Bergman, J. (2007). Evidence for Creation: Darwinism: Survival without purpose. Retrieved from Institute for Creation Research website: http://www.icr.org/article/darwinism-survival-without-purpose/
Black, R. (2011, August 23). Species count put at 8.7 million. BBC News. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-14616161
Edelman, S. (1997, May). Curiosity and exploration. Retrieved from California State University, Northridge website: http://www.csun.edu/~vcpsy00h/students/explore.htm
Patenaude, M. (2015, February). What drives humans to explore the unknown? Retrieved from University of Rochester website: http://www.rochester.edu/newscenter/journeys-into-the-unknown-91212/
Vrticka, P. (2013, September 16). Evolution of the ‘social brain’ in humans: What are the benefits and costs of belonging to a social species? Retrieved August 20, 2016, from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/pascal-vrticka/human-social-development_b_3921942.html
Black, R. (2011, August 23). Species count put at 8.7 million. BBC News. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-14616161
Edelman, S. (1997, May). Curiosity and exploration. Retrieved from California State University, Northridge website: http://www.csun.edu/~vcpsy00h/students/explore.htm
Patenaude, M. (2015, February). What drives humans to explore the unknown? Retrieved from University of Rochester website: http://www.rochester.edu/newscenter/journeys-into-the-unknown-91212/
Vrticka, P. (2013, September 16). Evolution of the ‘social brain’ in humans: What are the benefits and costs of belonging to a social species? Retrieved August 20, 2016, from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/pascal-vrticka/human-social-development_b_3921942.html