Is science the fundamental reason for our existence? This can be answered only if science demonstrates, through the scientific method, that it is the fundamental reason for our existence. Be it geologists, anthropologists, physicists, palaeontologists, archaeologists, paleoanthropologists or any other science. What has been demonstrated thus far, that shows that science is the reason for our existence is the relevant question.
Very often theology (and faith) features in the answer to this question. The Christian belief was that human existence has been a more recent phenomenon. The origin of creation was placed at 4004 BC by one such historian with Christian beliefs. He used Hebrew genealogy, ancient Middle Eastern manuscripts, Greek marble inscriptions and astronomical chronicles.[1] Till 1860s, many intellectuals believed that humans had been on earth for less than 6000 years. The large period of human evolution was genuinely acknowledged only after Charles Lyell’s ‘Antiquity of Man’ in 1863[2] and Darwin’s ‘On the Origin of Species’ (1859). Darwin, in brief, stated that all living species had a shared common ancestry, which diverged through a process of natural selection. He was the first few to mention that descent happened through modification or transmutation. To further this thought, was Darwin’s colleague, Thomas Huxley, who actually had a human fossil which he described (the first Neandertal recognized by science, was discovered in 1856 and described in 1859)[3].
One can quickly see how young this science is. It commenced with Darwin’s ‘On the Origin of Species’ and lasted till World War II (1st phase) and from World War II till present (2nd phase).[4]
That God created the universe is a belief held even by scientists for a long time because much remained to be ascertained in the realm of how various organisms, especially how humans came into existence.[5]
The argument is probably not about theology laying claim or science laying claim to the reason for our existence. Science is a terminology given to what can be grasped within one plane (the plane of sense experience). Therefore, science should be able to explain every phenomenon in this realm of matter and energy. Given this logic, for matter to form, the reason should be science; or sooner or later science should be able find a reason for it.
A Related Question
Is science beginning to broaden its boundaries and become subtler to accommodate more than matter or energy within its purview? How much of subtlety is it willing and able to accept within its fold, without compromising the scientific approach? This may have already started, in terms of the link between quantum mechanics and biological systems (and its implications for ‘consciousness’) – a detailed theory appeared in the 1990s on the theme of Quantum Consciousness by the Nobel-prize winning physicist, Roger Penrose (University of Oxford) and anaesthesiologist, Stuart Hameroff.[6] The Quantum age is characterized by the work of Albert Einstein (light can behave like a continuous wave and also propagate discretely or as quanta – which we call photons[7]); Niels Bohr’s new model of atom and many such principles.
If there is something more than matter attributed to the human (as some faiths across the world believe), which is beyond the sense plane, science probably can’t demonstrate it (unless research such as above, leads us in that direction) and it would naturally fall under the purview of theology for now. There would be ways other than science to ‘reveal that to us’.
Can we then say that the knowable (for example: matter and energy) and unknowable world (human is more than just matter), both belong to the universe? One we can understand for now; the other, most of us, don’t know (because we don’t have personal ‘experience’ of it). The folly would be to say that only the “knowable” is the universe, because we don’t know that for sure, we can’t say it conclusively. To accept that “broadness and probabilistic stance”, is in itself a scientific approach.
The argument for taking this approach, is the story of evolution of man. Everyone is aware of the degree of evolution of man. “The tremendous expansion and differentiation of the neocortex constitute two major events in the evolution of the mammalian brain. The increase in the size and complexity of our brains opened the way to a spectacular development of cognitive and mental skills. This expansion during evolution facilitated the addition of microcircuits with a similar basic structure, which increased the complexity of the human brain and contributed to its uniqueness.”[8] Did this and subsequent developments of human brain facilitate deeper understanding, probing and discovery of the truths?
How did this phenomenon manifest in a human or what further phenomena will manifest in a human, are questions, we probably cannot answer with certainty.
What it does show is that we have been evolving and can’t put a limit on human possibilities for the future.
In this evolutionary journey, the development of the human psycho-physical system to its highest potentiality could possibly reveal such an infinitesimally subtle entity (beyond matter and energy) within the universe (macrocosm) and a human being (microcosm) altering our understanding of science (similar to how the natural philosophers and scientists of the past had been compelled to keep altering their ideas and methods with respect to science)
Let us take an example from everyday life: your mother calls out to you for lunch, but you are so “engrossed”, that you never heard her. You were immersed in a game and couldn’t feel the pinch of your younger sibling. You wake up and remark, “I slept so deeply, didn’t have a single dream” – how were you “aware that you slept deeply”? We are also often seen to remark: ‘I completely lost track of time’, so deep was the concentration in something that one’s sense of body and senses was absent. Similarly, is it possible for all the senses to be absent and yet your level of awareness and “being”, still exists. In that event, would a human be just matter?
Your body is functioning just fine, but you are not directing much of what is happening inside. What explains that? How did the heart come to function the way it does or for the other organs to function the way they do? I choose to move my hand, so my hand moves. Can I say the same about an internal organ?
Because we were born with 5 senses (some would argue more, such as Equilibrioception – a sense of balance or Chronoception – how we sense the passing of time[9]) and that is the “reality” for us, it is “obvious” but can we say with certainty that this reality will always exist, say 1,000 years from now?
There is a lot of unexplored territory for humans.
What has science unearthed so far about the cause of human existence.
“Data emerging from molecular biology, combining analyses of mitochondrial DNA, autosomal nuclear DNA are cited to uphold the hypothesis of a single origin for modern humans” and this origin is said to be in Africa.[10]
Human Evolution[11]
Between 12 and 5.3 million years ago, in the Late Miocene Epoch, primates existed who are seen as the possible ancestors to the early hominins (who came in the Pliocene Epoch, 5.3 – 2.6 million years ago). “Hominin, is a member of the zoological tribe ‘Hominini’ of which only one species exists today, Homo Sapiens (Human Beings)”[12]. Other species of the human lineage included Homo Neanderthalensis, Homo erectus, Homo habilis, Australopithecus Afarensis. Their dentition suggests that our ancestors (primates), were not overly carnivorous and they had begun to engage in more of terrestrial than arboreal life.
Gradually bipedalism developed and uniquely humans developed the ability for bipedal striding (rather than hopping or waddling). By 3.5 million years ago, the Australopithecus Afarensis was used to walking. Evidence of the existence of the hominin species has primarily been found in eastern, central and southern Africa. The human hand took its unique shape due to regular use of complex tools and artifacts and the ability to manipulate objects with the hands (as evidenced in hominin species such as Homo habilis and Australopithecus Afarensis).
What is more interesting is the evidence on Hominin brain expansion which has been attributed to several factors including: refined use of tools, communication strategies, social complexity. It has been observed that throughout the human evolution, the brain has continued to expand. While the brain mass of Australopithecus Afarensis was 435 grams, for the Homo Sapiens it was 1.350 grams. The increasing use of tools and fire, also led to the reduction in the size of Hominin teeth eventually leading to a structure of the face, with lesser surface area for the jaws and teeth and more to accommodate the brain.
Fossil remains, genetic coding, archaeological remains are some of the indicators used to construct a theory of human evolution. This is where we stand in our understanding with continuous research efforts to know more about our origin. The discussion in the preceding paragraphs was to highlight the actual origins of humans as per the evolution theory.
If we take a step back, we also know reasons science has posited for the origin of the universe itself, making conditions favourable for our ancestors (the primates) and basic life itself to come into existence. The Big Bang Theory articulated[13]:
- How the universe was very compact in the beginning
- The 4 fundamental forces of gravity, electromagnetism, strong and weak nuclear forces acted as a single force
- This closeness, allowed the very first particles to mingle and settle into even temperature
- Within a really short duration, matter and energy expanded outward
- With passage of time, matter cooled and other types of particles began to form and condensed into stars and galaxies of our universe
About 4.6 billion years ago, our solar system formed, from a cloud of gas and dust which science explains to us in significant detail. The ages of the universe and Earth are accounted for using modern scientific methods. Bacteria-like organisms lived on Earth, roughly 3.5 billion years ago. Scientists continue to design experiments to decipher how Earth could have become a hospitable place for living systems to come into existence.[14]
As we write, there is considerable scientific research being conducted to reveal how humans came into existence, including their whole evolutionary journey. We see a cross-cutting and inter-disciplinary approach playing a crucial role in unravelling mysteries of human origin, from physicists to paleoanthropologists placing their theories in scientific communities. Will all this knowledge converge; to provide a comprehensive understanding of human existence; remains to be seen.
Some interesting disciplines mentioned in the article above:
Anthropology: Scientific study of humanity involving biology, evolution history, society, culture (including language);
Archaeology: Scientific study of human history or past based on remains which are material such as objects people created and used. For example, objects could be buildings or tools;
Geology: Study of Earth (or other astronomical objects) and its materials, structure of the materials and processes acting upon those materials. How all of this has changed over time is also relevant to this study;
Paleontology: Studies history of life on Earth based on fossils. It draws on information from both biology and geology;
Paleo-anthropology: Interdisciplinary field involving the study of human evolution through fossil and archaeological records. Fields of biology, archaeology, earth science and genetics contributes to its work
Theology: Study of the divine. Includes religion, religious belief, practice and experience (but not necessarily restricted only to these aspects of the divine)
[1] Livingstone, 2008 cited in T.D.Keel, Religion, Polygenism and the early science of human origins, 2013
[2] Numbers, 2000, cited in T.D.Keel, Religion, Polygenism and the early science of human origins, 2013
[3] T.Gundling, Human Origins Studies: A Historical Perspective, 2010
[4] ibid
[5] Science and Creationism: A View from the National Academy of Sciences, Second Edition, 1999. Chapter: The
Origin of Universe, Earth and Life
[6] Do Quantum Effects Play a Role in Consciousness? Article appeared as “The Light of the Mind” in Physics
World, January 2021 Issue
[7] Do Quantum Effects Play a Role in Consciousness? Article appeared as “The Light of the Mind” in Physics
World, January 2021 Issue
[8] J.DeFelipe, The Evolution of the Brain, the Human Nature of Cortical Circuits and Intellectual Creativity, 2011
[9] Weforum.org/agenda/2017/01/humans have more than 5 senses
[10] A-M.Tillier, The Earliest Homo Sapiens (Sapiens): Biological, Chronological and Taxonomic Perspectives, 2007
[11] Britannica.com/science/human-evolution
[12] ibid
[13] Nationalgeographic.com/science/article/origins-of-the-universe
[14] Science and Creationism: A View from the National Academy of Sciences, Second Edition, 1999. Chapter: The
Origin of Universe, Earth and Life
