Human Evolution at the Crossroads.

“Essays of a Humanist" by Julian Huxley
Chatto and Windus, 288, 30s

by Walter F. Bodmer —

The central theme in this collection of essays by Julian Huxley is
the importance of what he calls “Psychosocial Evolution" in a reappraisal
of Man's present and future position on earth. The topics covered range
from the description of an expedition to a bird sanctuary in Spain, to an
attempt to define a new religion based on evolutionary humanism. As has
often been emphasized in the pages of this journal and elsewhere, Man is
now in the unique position of being able consciously to control his own
future evolution. Since he is the dominant biological species, this
necessarily implies the ability to influence in a major way the whole
pattern of biological existence. If he uses his power unwisely, the
results may be wholesale destruction. To take on the burden of nature's
decisions is no easy task.

As is appropriate for a book with evolution as its central theme,
the first chapter entitled "The Emergence of Darwinism", is a historical
analysis of the development of Darwin's ideas on evolution by natural
selection. Darwin, it seems, failed to recognize that Man, in contrast
to other animals, has the unique capacity to transmit cumulative experience
from one generation to the next through his development of the written and
spoken language. He is thus able to accumulate not only hereditary infor-
mation by the relatively slow process of natural selection, but also

"cultural" information by the much more rapid process of direct acquisition,

 
by the spoken and written word,of the information accumulated by his
forefathers. It is not clear why Huxley considers this cultural or
psychosocial evolution as nonbiological. Man is, after all, still a
part of the biological world. These special features of human evolution
are further emphasized in a discussion of what is meant by higher and
lower organisms. The evolutionary development of the mind is clearly
the major single factor which has resulted in Man having this unique
capacity for rapid cultural evolution. |

Here, as elsewhere in the book when discussing ethology or the
science of animal behavior (particularly in birds), Huxley points out
clearly those aspects of human behavior which are not unique to the
species. Man has inherited components of behavior as do other animals.
However, the hereditary program for his brain (computer) must occupy a
relatively small part of its total storage capacity. The modification of
this hereditary program, the creation of appropriate new programs, and
the acquisition of data, are the primary functions of education. Huxley
considers that a major goal of education should be to insure further
evolutionary progress. Moreover, he also considers that an evolutionary
viewpoint should underlie all education for,"evolution is the most power-
ful and the most comprehensive idea that has ever arisen on earth". To
achieve the next stage of cultural evolution, education must cope with
the "knowledge explosion". The student now has to learn more and more
before he can reach the frontiers of present knowledge. It is difficult
to escape the need for greater specialization, in scientific training at

least, which must be coupled with a more efficient collaboration between

 
specialists. The proper balance must be sought between a breadth of
training adequate for a general cultural education and for communication
with others, and the narrowness required by greater degrees of specializa~
tion. Here we have not considered the nature of the education needed for
the non-specialist, perhaps the victim of automation. Surely there is a
need for much more intensive research on methods of education and in par-
ticular for research aimed at long term evaluation of our teaching programs,

The problems of man interfering with his environment are strikingly
illustrated by the discussion of the fate of big game in Africa. Here
Man is thoughtlessly destroying the balance of nature built up by millions
of years of evolution. What is more, he is doing it to his own economic
detriment. For Huxley points out that proper farming of wild ungulates
could yield 5-10 times as much protein per square mile as farming of
domestic cattle in these same areas. One is reminded of the current
problems in the control of the use of insecticides,

"Evolutionary humanism" as a religion, is discussed in three articles.
The first is a specific description of Huxley's view on how a theistic
religion must be replaced by an evolutionary religion with evolution
replacing God. The second is a comment of the Bishop of Woolwich's book
"Honest to God", and the third a historical commentary on Teilhard de
Chardin.

The last three essays are concerned with the population explosion
and the practical prospects for eugenics. It is interesting to learn
that Sir Walter Raleigh foreshadowed the idea of evolution through a
consideration of the fact that Noah's ark could not have been large enough
to hold all the species, some of which, therefore, must have been recon-
stituted by hybridization: There is a good historical development of the

"enlightenment" with respect to the population explosion and the current

 
 

4.

need for wide~spread birth control. Once again the problem of man in
relation to his environment is at the center of the discussion, So much
so, in fact, that Busty considers "Ecology - the basic science of the
new age with physics, chemistry and technology as its hand maidens".
Positive eugenics or selection for excellence along with EID (eugenic
insemination by donor) is strongly advocated and “eugenics is revealed
as one of the basic human sciences". Discussion on this subject is
never ending and the future possibilities for eugenics and euphenics
almost unimaginable.

The whole book has the mark of Huxley's lively style and erudition.
Phrases like "the tick of evolution's clock", and the description of
"taster" chimpanzees spitting PTC back at their investigators spring to
the mind. Whether or not one agrees with Huxley on many of the issues
he raises, this book can be read with profit by all those who are con-
cerned with the study of Man and his future. This study should surely

be one of our main fields of endeavor.