Alternate take on creationism (sort of)

[OmegaGuy]

Okay, suppose that, hypothetically, a few million years ago advanced aliens visited earth, and genetically engineered the human race from more primitive species (uplifting, like in 2001).

How would we be able to tell?

[Alyrium Denryle]

A few million years? We would have gone from australopithecine to advanced hominid... oh wait... that didnt happen

[Junghalli]

The biggest problem with the hypothesis is that there seems to be a fairly good progression from pithicines through Homo Erectus, archaic Homo Sapiens, and modern Homo Sapiens. Alien intervention could have happened at some point (probably between H. Erectus and H. Sapiens, which would be around 125,000 years ago IIRC), and assuming the aliens had only a minimal presence on Earth and were fairly subtle we might not know about it, but it's a basically unnecessary hypothesis.

[Covenant]

You'd have more luck looking for evidence that points towards a lack of progression, than looking for a hidden trigger.

Primarily, you'd want to look at the behaviors of our closest genetic relatives and see what they do, how they look, where they live, etc. If our closest relatives were Lemurs or Fish, then yes, you'd have a fairly strong indication that something went pretty crazy in a very short amount of time. However, like Junghalli said, our evolution is very slow and easily traced. So if there was any modification, it was imperceptively small and took hold only immeasurably slowly. There's more reason to believe that the pyramids are Alien Landing Platforms than to assume that space aliens flew all the way here just to genetically modify us in some subtle way that changed nothing.

You'd also want to look for a strong diversion in our genetic material from the origin. Dinosaurs, Turtles, Pandas, Blue Whales and Humans all share a common ancestor--which is a pretty mindblowing idea, but an important one. Really, the idea that we'd been modified is somewhat unnecessary, as there's no evidence to suggest our evolution was at all unusual.

If you could find DNA that is nowhere else, though, that'd be interesting. Some kind of unnatural sequence. Even that though wouldn't prove a divine or otherworldly explination. You'd really need to find, like, a 2 million year old Obelisk under the ground with videotape of an Alien dicking around with some apes, and giving a thumbs up to the camera.

[Ghost Rider]

Okay, suppose that, hypothetically, a few million years ago advanced aliens visited earth, and genetically engineered the human race from more primitive species (uplifting, like in 2001).

How would we be able to tell?

Wow, to get into what is stupid or inane about this.

Let's make it short and sweet. You do understand how theories work correct? Because seriously this line of question is the same as asking "What if most of the Dinosaurs took giant spaceships and left the planet, and all that are fossils are the dumbass dinosaurs?".

[Darth Raptor]

That violates parsimony. I know it isn't a law, but still. If there's no way to tell, then what fucking difference does it make?

LOL, what if the universe was MADE to look old!? ZOMG what if we're all just programs in a simulation!? So the fuck what? This kind of pointless speculation is for philosophers with nothing better to do and theologists hawking their horseshit. At MOST it can make for interesting fiction. Serious science it is not, and it never will be. There *is* no real way to tell, and when a hypothesis is unfalsifiable, that puts it outside the scope of science.

[OmegaGuy]

I think you guys are misunderstanding me. I'm not suggesting this did happen, I'm saying that if this had happened, hypothetically, how would we tell that it had happened?

[Darth Raptor]

I think you guys are misunderstanding me. I'm not suggesting this did happen, I'm saying that if this had happened, hypothetically, how would we tell that it had happened?

Presumably, such an operation could be forged with 100% effectiveness. If they have the magic/technology/unobtanium, the aliens could forge a genesis and their wouldn't be any way to tell. Despite cretinist claims to the contrary, we've yet to encounter a species that could not possibly have evolved naturally. Now, if there were goat/snake/eagle chimeras running about, that would be evidence for the interference of gods/wizards/aliens/robots. But as it stands the aliens have created a 100% convincing forgery of a species that has evolved naturally. Ergo, no falsification of this unnecessary hypothesis is possible.

[Darth Wong]

Okay, suppose that, hypothetically, a few million years ago advanced aliens visited earth, and genetically engineered the human race from more primitive species (uplifting, like in 2001).

How would we be able to tell?

The abrupt appearance of a complex feature which is completely unprecedented in our branch of the animal kingdom. As it is, we can't identify any single part of our bodies which isn't just a re-proportioned or refined version of something you'd find in any other primate.

[Lagmonster]

The smartest way I personally can think of to say 'god/aliens did it' (and that's being generous in the use of the term) would be through a more indirect intervention; say that instead of sculpting human intelligence, our mysterious benefactor simply chose humans for advancement and wiped out whatever was higher than us on the food chain, annihilated severe local diseases, protected us from predators, dumped food and clean water nearby so we'd have so much surplus that we'd actually have the leisure time to develop communication skills and culture, or otherwise served as a hidden hand on the environment we lived in so as to give us the best possible environment to develop in.

Of course, even that gets its throat slashed by Occam (leaving aside the fact that it was being forced to cooperate to survive that encouraged development, not living in some Edenic paradise), but it's ever so slightly more reasonable than to propose we were outright designed.

[Zixinus]

I'm not suggesting this did happen, I'm saying that if this had happened, hypothetically, how would we tell that it had happened?

We would have a serial number on our feet.

Seriously? We would have far less genetic diseases.

[TithonusSyndrome]

I'm not suggesting this did happen, I'm saying that if this had happened, hypothetically, how would we tell that it had happened?

We would have a serial number on our feet.

Seriously? We would have far less genetic diseases.

As compared to what? If we'd all been bioengineered, we'd have nothing to compare our number of genetic diseases against.

[Ghost Rider]

I think you guys are misunderstanding me. I'm not suggesting this did happen, I'm saying that if this had happened, hypothetically, how would we tell that it had happened?

Once again, you do grasp how evolution works?

Or if they were oh so subtle that there is nothing different from every other thing on this planet in terms of evolution, then Raptor's answer comes into play about who cares because no one can tell.

That answer your dumb question?

[Zixinus]

As compared to what? If we'd all been bioengineered, we'd have nothing to compare our number of genetic diseases against.

Animals that we can be sure that are native to Earth? My guess at least.
My more valid argument would have been what Darth Wong said, but repeating the same point over again and being a "me-too"-er is rather pointless.

Oh and another, more valid argument: we compared our DNA to various animals on Earth, and the more the animals are like us, the more does the DNA show familiarity. Primate DNA is closer to us then a dolphin DNA. If we were biologically engineered, then our DNA would be much different then any other native animal on Earth.
Assuming that Earth animals evolved naturally.

[Junghalli]

Seriously? We would have far less genetic diseases.

I don't know. Our species is over 100,000 years old, so there's been plenty of time for deletrious mutations to build up. This is also assuming that the designers would necessarily take the trouble to fix or weed out the ones the starting species (H. Erectus, presumably) had to begin with, when there's no reason they necessarily would have had to do so.

[OmegaGuy]

Thanks, you've answered my question pretty well

[Zixinus]

I don't know. Our species is over 100,000 years old, so there's been plenty of time for deletrious mutations to build up. This is also assuming that the designers would necessarily take the trouble to fix or weed out the ones the starting species (H. Erectus, presumably) had to begin with, when there's no reason they necessarily would have had to do so.

Most likely. Although, would the rate be EXCATLY the same as other animals?

I am merely guessing, what do you have? I am not challenging you or anything, I'm just curious what you base your opinion on.