Perhaps we are "Just Not That Smart"!

In a twist on our conventional human thinking, perhaps the big brained human is just not as smart as we like to think. If you think about it, while we have made amazing scientific advances ( in human terms), we are also systematically destroying our own environment, and wiping out species and habitat at a rate that can only be considered mass extinction. Our social fabric and currency is unraveling. Our economic system is broken and is not beneficial to most. So how smart are we really?
Actually you can make the case that we are really pretty dumb when compared to natural intelligence in the natural world honed by eons of development. So by comparison we are quite infantile when it comes to knowledge and the real world application of that knowledge.

Perhaps "Nature" can be one of our greatest teachers!

Here are just a few brief examples:

Our application of human chemistry: While impressive on one hand, man-made compounds or the human use of natural compounds is polluting our entire planet, and destroying the health of most biological creatures. Carcinogens are killing and effecting many species and a good percentage of use will have cancer during our lifetime. So how smart are we?

Our use of natural resources: We are over exploiting our forests, decimating biological diversity and the bio-integrity of our planet, over exploiting and polluting oceans and fisheries. Polluting our atmosphere with all sorts of gases, carbon and toxic particulates, misusing our land, and depleting the mineral richness of our earth. Water is again misused, over exploited and being polluted at an alarming rate. So how smart are we?

Social Currency: Our ability to develop social harmony and justice seems to be totally anemic. We still seem to prefer war to resolve our differences rather than develop systems of mutual respect and trust. Our own interests seem to out weight that of the greater good. The events of the recent financial crisis seem to say all that needs to be said. The exploitation of the masses to benefit the few. So how smart are we?

Global Finance: Tax and Spend. a system still based on enriching the aristocracy! This is a ridiculously myopic system, yet it is totally a human concept. Why have our governments and monetary systems not evolved way beyond the current system on the verge of collapse.

I could go on and on, actually when you stop and think about it, even with all of our acquired scientific knowledge, we haven't got a clue as to the workings of the universe, so perhaps we need to stop the self deception of thinking of ourselves ( the big-brained human) in superior terms when a simple look at the native intelligence inherent in the natural world and a review of bio-mimicy tells you otherwise.

So how smart are we? David Podmayersky