Let me preface this post with apologies to all who I may have offended with my last contributions to this list. It was not my intention to antagonise you but bring you a different point of view. I will continue to provide my unabashed opinion on topics I deem fit (without fear of divine retribution) which have some relevance to Goa and it�s people. What follows should be general knowledge but I'll throw it out just in case. Any of this can be verified online.
Scientists have ascertained that all the particulate matter in the universe exploded from a dense aggregate the size of a baseball billions of years ago. However, they have not been able to deduce how many Big Bangs there were before this one which spawned intelligent life on Earth. The universe is still expanding and at some point in the future (again billions of years) it will reach a point at which it will start collapsing on itself again. Humanity as we know it will be just a passing phase in the bigger picture. Our life spans are briefer that a flashbulb going off! Are we going to make a difference? Our preoccupation with unfathomable events seems to dictate the necessity for a supreme creator. I have heard all the arguments against the fact that life as we know it today could have started by a random mixing of amino acids that were able to replicate themselves in an inorganic soup. However, that is precisely what happened. The conditions happened to be just right on this third rock from the sun to allow organic molecules to come together in a reproducible fashion within the film of surface moisture coating this planet. Comprehending the geological timeframe involved for this to happen is key to understanding the mystery of the evolution of life. Initially, strands of amino acids aggregated probably around deep sea thermal vents in the ocean. They were then surrounded by a membrane, accumulating organelles and coalescing into self sustaining unicellular organisms around 3.5 billion years ago. These self replicating life forms gave rise to every living entity and eventually multicellular organisms, of which homo sapiens are an integral part. Proof of this is in DNA evidence linking all life on earth. Homo sapiens have been around for approx 1.5 million years, early hominids splitting away from our closest relatives, chimpanzees & bonobo monkeys 5.5 million years ago. These early humans used ONLY stone tools in their hunting-gathering lifestyle, making their way out of Africa about 150,000 years ago. But around 40,000 years ago, in a 'Great Leap Forward' mankind suddenly developed more complicated tools, art and habitats. This is evident from Cro-Magnon settlements in Europe. Modern agriculture and civilization started with the domestication of wild plants and animals 20-15,000 years ago in the fertile crescent (Mesopotamia) which started us on this road to civilization. This is the area of the world that has produced all 3 of the monotheistic religions currently vying for top spot. Mankind has fanned out over the continents, using the resources available and decimating the environment in the process. However, within the last 150 years, this consumption of underground resources, primarily fossil fuels, is changing our atmosphere at an alarming rate. We have the technology to harness alternate energy sources but our greed is fueling environmental changes at such a rate that even divine intervention is not going to be able to help. We�re all on this fragile spaceship together and the sooner we learn to get along with each other AND THE PLANET, the more optimistic the future of our progeny. Kevin Saldanha -------------------------------------------------------------------- mail2web - Check your email from the web at http://mail2web.com/ . ----------------------------------------------------------------------- * G * O * A * N * E * T *** C * L * A * S * S * I * F * I * E * D * S * ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Make your mother in Goa happy on Mothers' Day. http://www.goa-world.com/goa/expressions/mothersday/ Limited "Mother's Happiness" packages. First come, first serve. -----------------------------------------------------------------------
