Does technology evolve, or does it just fill the gaps in our competence?
That’s one of the questions that Professor Julian Vincent from the University of Bath will be attempting to answer in a talk at the Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution (BRLSI) on Friday (1 May).
He will be looking at technology as human behaviour and asking whether its conscious development has allowed it to transcend Darwin’s Big Idea.
He said: “People talk about the evolution of technology, but what they really mean is the development of technology.
“There are many trends in parallel between biology and technology, increase in size and complexity, for instance. But technology is really a result of human behaviour, and thus can be directed in ways that natural selection cannot.
“Darwin was always at pains to point out that natural selection is undirected and has no goals. Technology has goals, like behaviour, is reversible and predictable (to a degree).
“What would it take to make technology Darwinian? What would be the advantages and dangers?
“The idea has been mooted in countless novels predicting that robots will take over the world. But that assumes that the forces driving selection are the ones which drive mankind.”
The talk starts at the BRLSI in Queen Square, Bath at 7.30pm and entrance costs £2 for students and members and £4 for visitors. Tickets are available on the night on the door.