The Dragons of Eden: Speculations on the Evolution of Human Intelligence

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Dragons of Eden" is a beautiful book, worth reading even though some parts are outdated. Science may have advanced greatly in the past 40 years, but it's also become more compartmentalized. Today it's rarer today to see someone with knowledge both deep and wide in so many subjects — from mythology, to art, to molecular biology and astronomy — form theories and opinions on some of our biggest questions as a species. Interestingly enough, Sagan points out that dragon myths aren’t just found in the Western world, but are instead a worldwide phenomenon. This may be because of dinosaurs or similar reptiles, which may have resembled dragons. In a diagram of brain mass versus body mass for primates, mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, and dinosaurs, Homo sapiens rank number one while dolphins rank second. This book is crammed full of fascinating bits of information, intriguing theories, humor, vision, and some caustic observations about society as a whole,” Virginia Tech philosophy of science professor Joseph Pitt wrote in the journal Human Ecology. “What it does not contain is intellectual balance and rigor.” What drew Pitt’s ire in particular was that Sagan spent a significant portion of the book trumpeting a little-known, out-there theory from Yale University physiologist and psychiatrist Paul D. MacLean. Triune brain theory

The best measure of intelligence of an organism is not the mass of the brain, but the ratio of the mass of the brain to the total mass of the organism. Deep inside the skull of every one of us there is something like a brain of a crocodile. Surrounding the R-complex is the limbic system or mammalian brain, which evolved tens of millions of years ago in ancestors who were mammal but not yet primates. It is a major source of our moods and emotions, of our concern and care for the young. And finally, on the outside, living in uneasy truce with the more primitive brains beneath, is the cerebral cortex; civilization is a product of the cerebral cortex.” Reptile brain debunked

1) Humans are young, very young 

For his work, Dr. Sagan received the NASA medals for Exceptional Scientific Achievement and (twice) for Distinguished Public Service, as well as the NASA Apollo Achievement Award. Asteroid 2709 Sagan is named after him. He was also awarded the John F. Kennedy Astronautics Award of the American Astronautical Society, the Explorers Club 75th Anniversary Award, the Konstantin Tsiolkovsky Medal of the Soviet Cosmonauts Federation, and the Masursky Award of the American Astronomical Society, (" for his extraordinary contributions to the development of planetary science…As a scientist trained in both astronomy and biology, Dr. Sagan has made seminal contributions to the study of planetary atmospheres, planetary surfaces, the history of the Earth, and exobiology. Many of the most productive planetary scientists working today are his present and former students and associates"). However, the calendar gets even more specific. The first humans occur at ~10:30 PM on December 31st. By 11:46 PM, fire is domesticated. By 11:59:20 PM, agriculture is invented. The birth of Christ occurs at 11:59:56 PM, the Renaissance in Europe occurs at 11:59:58 PM, the current time period of man occurs at the first second of New Year’s Day. When archaeologists recently announced the discovery of cave paintings by neanderthals, I was not the least bit surprised. I had just finished reading Carl Sagan's, "The Dragons of Eden", a pulitzer prize winning book from the 1970s on the evolution of the human mind, and came away with the impression that while our brains are one of the most sophisticated structures in the known universe, we also share a great deal in common with our animal cousins. In chapter2, Sagan briefly summarizes the entire evolution of species starting from the Big Bang to the beginning of the human civilization with the help of a " Cosmic Calendar", an analogy where one year in the calendar corresponds to the time since the Big Bang. Sagan used the same analogy in the more-widely known television series Cosmos.

Our brain gives us the ability to think about the future and focus on long-term benefits, but we get a lot of anxiety from it and from thinking about our inevitable end. A history of the human brain from the big bang, fifteen billion years ago, to the day before yesterday . . . It's a delight.”—The New York Times The ink naturally poured before the resin is completely dry is an important step to create an Eden effect and make our keycap become unique. This step normally takes about 2-4 hours for the ink drops are falling slowly one by one.

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At the time of writing, the right / left split of the brain factored heavily into theories of the mind. The left being the seat of analytical and linguistic functions, the right the center of creativity and dreams. More recent neuroscience points to a more modular brain with specialized areas throughout. What's consistent with theories of Sagan's time and today is that much of our brain activity is subconscious, and the sensation that we are actively directing our behavior is largely an illusion. We are indeed creatures of habit, following sometimes ancient patterns, written in the mysterious language of our genetic code.

In addition, we apply the method of color mixing by hand-painting and airbrush painting to create a more highlighted effect on these details. We also use UV lighting effects to bring vivid color to our entire dragon. A history of the human brain from the big bang, fifteen billion years ago, to the day before yesterday . . . It's a delight."-- The New York Times

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Dragons might also be a metaphor for the ‘reptile brain’ in humans, which controls our aggression and rituals. Another theory is that perhaps humans fear the dragon inside of themselves and other people. Not accepting the decision of the six Descendants, Aiden challenged Edna to a duel, claiming that whoever won was the worthy owner of Supreme Power. Edna was undeterred and accepted the challenge. The two sides fought fiercely. After that, we put our complete dragon into a base for shaping and covering with resin. It takes more time to wait for it to get dried. Carl Sagan is arguably the greatest science writer and educator of recent times. In this book his mind, through his theories, is on full display for all to see. He steps through various evolutionary ideas about how man (and his brain) has evolved.