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Is it now time to reconsider the meaning of "intelligent life", since it cannot logically apply to human beings?

The common understanding of what means the term: "intelligent life" appears wrongly to be measured by reference to human beings and is applied to human beings, but that cannot be logical since human beings clearly cannot be a form of "intelligence" life, for the following reasons:

What form of allegedly intelligent life would:
Carry on practices actively destroying its own environment, with reference to the climate emergency e.g. continue to produce carbon-emissions, while at the same time, continue to destroy trees that are a major means to trap carbon.
Human-caused world-wide destruction of trees: 
https://www.livescience.com/52070-global-tree-census-human-impacts.html

Tree-destruction human "business as usual" - Undeniably lovely French-built replica of the U.S. war of independence ship Hermione sailing ship, taking 2,000 oak trees. The planet can no longer sustain such continued abuse of its natural resources: 
https://www.dw.com/en/french-replica-of-us-war-of-independence-ship-hermione-sets-sail-to-retrace-historic-atlantic-voyage/a-18391938

Human beings espouse "science" as a form of undeniable knowledge, yet while denying, without any logic, the mainstream-science on the climate emergency.
More than 11,000 scientists declare a Global Climate Emergency November 5, 2019: 
https://www.sciencealert.com/a-monumental-alliance-of-world-scientists-declare-a-climate-emergency

Time lapse video of decline of Arctic sea ice:
https://climate.nasa.gov/climate_resources/155/video-annual-arctic-sea-ice-minimum-1979-2020-with-area-graph/


World leaders and politicians in general trapped in a psychological comfort-zone, for which the generations to follow us will likely pay the ultimate price if nothing changes quickly. "Kicking the can down the road" by making fake-promises to reduce carbon-emissions to bring down the planet's projected temperature increase, by: 2030 / 2050, with no means of measuring emergency measures, and no commitment to enforcement.

Enormous sums of money found to boost Coronavirus-hit economies, while no real action taken on the Climate Emergency: 
https://www.reuters.com/article/health-coronavirus-cenbank-idUSL8N2CU1Q9

Continuing to destroy other life-forms on their planet, again ignoring the scientific evidence that shows this to be so.
The population of the world’s animals has fallen by 68 percent since 1970: 
https://thehill.com/changing-america/sustainability/environment/515808-human-activity-has-wiped-out-nearly-70-percent-of - :~:text=A%20new%20report%20published%20b

Producing waste such as plastics without any effective means to control its environmental disposal, turning away our eyes while our dishonest companies continue to dump at sea: 
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/plastic-pollution

Current definitions of "intelligence":
See under the heading "2. Collective definitions": 
https://arxiv.org/pdf/0706.3639.pdf





Posted - July 3, 2021

Responses


  • 581
    Intelligent Life in the simple definition means Beings that can learn and understand things.  Some of the human beings do actually fall under this definition. This post was edited by ONeg-84 at July 4, 2021 11:13 AM MDT
      July 3, 2021 7:02 PM MDT
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  • 258
    The last link that I gave in the Discussion description, provides some definitions for intelligence, but my question is on whether we need to re-evaluate or change the meaning to what we can understand as "intelligence", given that for example, it would be absurd surely, to class beings that can "learn and understand" yet  also destroy their own environment and wallow in a mess or their own making - "intelligence" - I propose: Not. This post was edited by Robert at July 5, 2021 3:30 PM MDT
      July 4, 2021 12:09 PM MDT
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  • 13395
    Waste of trees? Construction of the Noah's ark in Kentucky took 3,300,000 board feet and the boat doesn't even float and serves no purpose.
      July 4, 2021 10:12 AM MDT
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  • 34432
    It is an educational museum.  It has purpose. This post was edited by my2cents at July 4, 2021 11:27 AM MDT
      July 4, 2021 11:14 AM MDT
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  • 13395
    Yes, that and the creation museum are both  great places to learn stuff. 
    They are 'educational'. This post was edited by Kittigate at July 4, 2021 11:30 AM MDT
      July 4, 2021 11:25 AM MDT
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  • 258
    Unfortunately, and unlike the Flood, human beings are likely to be swept away by a lethal-deluge of their OWN making; if emergency action is not taken starting immediately, to radically-reduce human-caused climate emissions.
      July 7, 2021 2:33 PM MDT
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  • 34432
    No one denies the earth's climate changes. 

    The argument is...are humans the cause. 

    CA burns every year. Is this caused by humans?
    CA burns less now than it did before humans inhabited it.  Millions of acres less every year. There are trees there which have seeds that will NOT open unless they are exposed to fire.  Is the perhaps an example of man made/caused climate change in CA? Likey but that is not the type of example climate emergency claimers want.  They want to claim the opposite. 



    Yes...the climate is changing....and it will get hotter. That ia the cycle we are in.  And we cannot atop it nor are we the cause of it.
      July 4, 2021 11:25 AM MDT
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  • 258
    No. One cannot take one place on Earth in isolation to the effect of human beings on the whole planet. (Nice try though!) > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > This post was edited by Robert at July 4, 2021 12:13 PM MDT
      July 4, 2021 12:11 PM MDT
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  • 34432
    Tell that to the climate extremists who point to CA and claim it is human caused climate change that CA is dealing with.....
      July 4, 2021 12:18 PM MDT
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  • 258
    Now "mainstream-science" contributor "my2cents" describes as: "climate extremists"!

    More than 11,000 scientists declare a Global Climate Emergency November 5, 2019:
    https://www.sciencealert.com/a-monumental-alliance-of-world-scientists-declare-a-climate-emergency

    It is a climate emergency, based in mainstream science:
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_consensus_on_climate_change


    While it depends to what specifically contributor "my2cents" refers by "dealing with", the consequences of human-caused climate change affect the planet without exceptions to specific places; even California which uses a significant amount of non-fossil fuel energy. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > This post was edited by Robert at July 5, 2021 3:33 PM MDT
      July 5, 2021 2:44 PM MDT
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  • 10052
    Many kinds of intelligence and many kinds of beings (including human). I share your concern for the planet. 
      July 4, 2021 9:12 PM MDT
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