Philosophy Wire by Spiros Kakos [2011-04-24]: We found traces of caries in the tooth of a prehistoric animal [source: web news]. Evolution has given us permanent teeth instead of teeth which are replaced. Why is this really an advantage? Evolution works with strange ways and evolutionary biologists simply name "advantage" each product of the natural evolution process. However it is difficult in this case to prove that the risk of tooth decay is an "advantage" over teeth which are replaced by new every time they break... In any case the crocodile and the shark - the most fierce carnivores in the world - use such tooth successfully. Why did nature deprive us of such an advantage? If we stop to be blinded from our "universal theories" we may see how evolution does not gives us "advantages" all the time... (whatever that word means) Ultimately and in terms of culture, it is disputed by many whether we progress or not... If we cannot progress based on planning, how could we progress based on randomness? Unless the process is not random... Or is it because it is random that it will succeed? Maybe we progress and evolution is turning us back? Confusing...
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