Quote:
Originally Posted by SDavid
I think we need to be precise about what we mean by "ancient", because modern humans have been around for about 70 000 years. Prophets and organized religions appeared just 5000 years ago at the time of agricultural revolution.
I suspect individualism was superior to community in early humans, because without strong communities it would be impossible for any single one to survive. Individualism appeared only as life has gotten easier, where individuals can live without relying directly on the community.
We have evolved to survive best in our environments. Thinking and innovation were important to survive, not to build skyscraper and understand quantum physics. That is why we have hard times in learning in schools, because the human logical mind (I think it is called the frontal cortex) isn't wired to work all the time. All of these civilizations and innovations are by-product of the capacity of humans that has evolved for other environments and needs. That is why I think humans are not well adapted to the relatively modern way of life.
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Sorry, I was lazy with my post. When I said ancient humans I meant Victorian days and earlier. From those days on to earlier parts of civilization, religion played a big part of society. It can be argued that every god/goddess or mythical creature ever conceived was thought up by some kind of delusional prophet that was well regarded by the society of their time. Even in prehistoric days before the agricultural revolution it wasn't uncommon for people to pray to gods or other creatures thinking that they could control the weather or bring them safety.
I couldn't agree more with your post and with how self aware that I am, I noticed that the more time that I devote to work or study, the more I under preform and the less I get out of my time. If I'm studying or doing a job that takes some knowledge and skill such as writing a web page, I can do a similar amount of work and bring a similar amount of quality or retain a similar amount of information hyperfocusing on the job at hand for 10-20 hours a week as I could working or studying 60 hours a week feeling forced to do the task.