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Spaceways, v. 4, issue 6, whole no. 29, 1942
Page 13
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SPACEWAYS 13 DEVOLUTION tative of the ape-man he sprang from, and the tropical animals the only living survivor of the apes in Europe and Asia that gave rise to the ape-man—a sudden spell of cold—speaking in terms of evolutionary time—too intense even for these creatures, hitherto naturally protected against the comparatively mild cold spells of this on the whole semi-tropical world, yet too sudden for the up-to-now independent, happy ape folk to learn to supplement their natural covering with clothes—yet which would impose no serious extra hardships on the weaker bred of ape—or man, by this time—who had learned the boon of clothes and artificial devices already and had merely to dress himself a little more warmly, exert a little more cunning in securing his livelihood, to survive almost any extreme of cold. The climate in the tropics must have been similar to what it is today in the temperate zone, in the worst winter_and so the previously unfavored apes, shouldered out of their home by their hulking brothers after millions of years found the paradise, uncontested for by any bigger breed of ape, which by scriptural tradition accrues to the meek. This is how the paradox—the success story of the ages—of an inferior ape, doomed from the start by environment, capitalizing on his inferiority, mastering the environment so successfully as to withstand an Ice Age which wiped out the physically better endowed ape and ape-man forebears, out of existence, save perhaps where they tainted their blood with that of the degenerate man, sacrificing their physical superiority for some of his intelligence, as Faust sold his soul to Mephistopheles, might well have happened. If instead of an Ice Age there had been a very hot period, man might have died instead of his prehistoric ancestors who might be still living today but for the fact that it did not so happen. It may be that the whole history of life on this planet is a history of degeneration and a compensating corresponding growth of intelligence—that the ape was the product of the deterioration of a lemur-like creature who had to develop more intelligence to counteract some physical handicap not possessed by the original—or not to such a degree—that the lemur is a poorer and therefore of necessity a more intelligent lanimal than a better ancestor—and so on, back through time, with the single cell as the highest, most efficient organism in the universe—and by that token an intellectual zero, or maybe the ultravirus will be that. Perhaps, as Edmond Hamilton suggests in his story, "Devolution", in Amazing Stories some years ago (the first story I have read which challenges the doctrine that evolution is an upward progress, toward more complex and therefore better forms) evolution is really devolution, to use a highly improvised word, for there is no word in the English tongue which properly can be used to describe this idea—the opposite of evolution; that natural selection does not make for true superiority, but for inferiority; and that intelligence is like some hideous fungus flourishing on corporeal decay. It is, at any rate, not a thought to be easily dismissed—would that it were! To my knowledge, this idea of devolution, while not new, has never before been presented in quite this way. The End. ............................ DO FANS SUFFER FROM DEMENTIA? (concluded from page 10) scientists, others mathematicians, some artists, and others authors. At any rate, they couldn't be morons. Summing it up, you must see that the only way to explain the queer actions of many fans is to state that they have anywhere from a slight to serious case of dementia. They are now or may be soon mentally ill. They could be cured—given the proper cure in an institution; but the rest of you, why take the chance? Those of you who are rabid fans, heed this warning: do not become too wrapped up in your fan activities; catch yourself in time, do not slip into a amers' paradise—you too can become mentally ill. I have covered the subject but briefly, touching only on the seriousness of this possibility. Don't take it too lightly, or it might take you.
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SPACEWAYS 13 DEVOLUTION tative of the ape-man he sprang from, and the tropical animals the only living survivor of the apes in Europe and Asia that gave rise to the ape-man—a sudden spell of cold—speaking in terms of evolutionary time—too intense even for these creatures, hitherto naturally protected against the comparatively mild cold spells of this on the whole semi-tropical world, yet too sudden for the up-to-now independent, happy ape folk to learn to supplement their natural covering with clothes—yet which would impose no serious extra hardships on the weaker bred of ape—or man, by this time—who had learned the boon of clothes and artificial devices already and had merely to dress himself a little more warmly, exert a little more cunning in securing his livelihood, to survive almost any extreme of cold. The climate in the tropics must have been similar to what it is today in the temperate zone, in the worst winter_and so the previously unfavored apes, shouldered out of their home by their hulking brothers after millions of years found the paradise, uncontested for by any bigger breed of ape, which by scriptural tradition accrues to the meek. This is how the paradox—the success story of the ages—of an inferior ape, doomed from the start by environment, capitalizing on his inferiority, mastering the environment so successfully as to withstand an Ice Age which wiped out the physically better endowed ape and ape-man forebears, out of existence, save perhaps where they tainted their blood with that of the degenerate man, sacrificing their physical superiority for some of his intelligence, as Faust sold his soul to Mephistopheles, might well have happened. If instead of an Ice Age there had been a very hot period, man might have died instead of his prehistoric ancestors who might be still living today but for the fact that it did not so happen. It may be that the whole history of life on this planet is a history of degeneration and a compensating corresponding growth of intelligence—that the ape was the product of the deterioration of a lemur-like creature who had to develop more intelligence to counteract some physical handicap not possessed by the original—or not to such a degree—that the lemur is a poorer and therefore of necessity a more intelligent lanimal than a better ancestor—and so on, back through time, with the single cell as the highest, most efficient organism in the universe—and by that token an intellectual zero, or maybe the ultravirus will be that. Perhaps, as Edmond Hamilton suggests in his story, "Devolution", in Amazing Stories some years ago (the first story I have read which challenges the doctrine that evolution is an upward progress, toward more complex and therefore better forms) evolution is really devolution, to use a highly improvised word, for there is no word in the English tongue which properly can be used to describe this idea—the opposite of evolution; that natural selection does not make for true superiority, but for inferiority; and that intelligence is like some hideous fungus flourishing on corporeal decay. It is, at any rate, not a thought to be easily dismissed—would that it were! To my knowledge, this idea of devolution, while not new, has never before been presented in quite this way. The End. ............................ DO FANS SUFFER FROM DEMENTIA? (concluded from page 10) scientists, others mathematicians, some artists, and others authors. At any rate, they couldn't be morons. Summing it up, you must see that the only way to explain the queer actions of many fans is to state that they have anywhere from a slight to serious case of dementia. They are now or may be soon mentally ill. They could be cured—given the proper cure in an institution; but the rest of you, why take the chance? Those of you who are rabid fans, heed this warning: do not become too wrapped up in your fan activities; catch yourself in time, do not slip into a amers' paradise—you too can become mentally ill. I have covered the subject but briefly, touching only on the seriousness of this possibility. Don't take it too lightly, or it might take you.
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