Complex life may only exist because of millions of years of groundwork by fungi
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Re: Complex life may only exist because of millions of years of groundwork by fungi
#2The role of fungi in earth's ecology is endlessly fascinating.
In addition to laying the groundwork for complex life, there's evidence they helped in the emergence of intelligence and consciousness[1] as well as helping save honeybees[2]
[1] https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsif.2014... (pdf link)
[2] https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/10/09/446928755/co...
Re: Complex life may only exist because of millions of years of groundwork by fungi
#3Every time studies are published, we redefine the way in which could be heading towards LUCA. Maybe life on earth existed way earlier then we expected and earth recycles everything over period of time that the traces of origin are gone.
Re: Complex life may only exist because of millions of years of groundwork by fungi
#4Every time studies are published, we redefine the way in which could be heading towards LUCA. Maybe life on earth existed way earlier then we expected and earth recycles everything over period of time that the traces of origin are gone.
I mean, biogeochemically, we know this to be the case. The earliest evidence of life are not fossils, but changes in atmospheric chemistry recorded in the geologic record.
There are some well reasoned arguments that life is utterly common and almost inevitable when conditions are even basically adequate.
Re: Complex life may only exist because of millions of years of groundwork by fungi
#5The role of fungi in earth's ecology is endlessly fascinating. In addition to laying the groundwork for complex life, there's evidence they helped in the emergence of intelligence and consciousness[1] as well as helping save honeybees[2] [1] https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsif.2014... (pdf link) [2] https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/10/09/446928755/co...
It is indeed. I'd also recommend giving this podcast [1] with Paul Stamets a listen. He's a fairly well-known mycologist who has some very interesting things to say on the topic.
Re: Complex life may only exist because of millions of years of groundwork by fungi
#6The role of fungi in earth's ecology is endlessly fascinating. In addition to laying the groundwork for complex life, there's evidence they helped in the emergence of intelligence and consciousness[1] as well as helping save honeybees[2] [1] https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsif.2014... (pdf link) [2] https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/10/09/446928755/co...
I acknowledge that this comment is probably low quality, but if you have ever taken magic mushrooms you realise that fungi are definitely linked to the emergence of consciousness.
Re: Complex life may only exist because of millions of years of groundwork by fungi
#7The role of fungi in earth's ecology is endlessly fascinating. In addition to laying the groundwork for complex life, there's evidence they helped in the emergence of intelligence and consciousness[1] as well as helping save honeybees[2] [1] https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsif.2014... (pdf link) [2] https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/10/09/446928755/co...
See also Terence Mckenna's stoned ape theory:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terence_McKenna#%22Stoned_ape%...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnEKoFrx1rI
Yes it's "a little" out there, but I think it's actually quite plausible.
Re: Complex life may only exist because of millions of years of groundwork by fungi
#8The role of fungi in earth's ecology is endlessly fascinating. In addition to laying the groundwork for complex life, there's evidence they helped in the emergence of intelligence and consciousness[1] as well as helping save honeybees[2] [1] https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsif.2014... (pdf link) [2] https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/10/09/446928755/co...
It is indeed. I'd also recommend giving this podcast [1] with Paul Stamets a listen. He's a fairly well-known mycologist who has some very interesting things to say on the topic. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mPqWstVnRjQ
Stamets is an interesting guy who should never be considered an authority on anything other than the psychedelic experience. He's fun to listen to, but he's a total crank when it comes to actual reproducible science.
Re: Complex life may only exist because of millions of years of groundwork by fungi
#9The role of fungi in earth's ecology is endlessly fascinating. In addition to laying the groundwork for complex life, there's evidence they helped in the emergence of intelligence and consciousness[1] as well as helping save honeybees[2] [1] https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsif.2014... (pdf link) [2] https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/10/09/446928755/co...
See also Terence Mckenna's stoned ape theory: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terence_McKenna#%22Stoned_ape%... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnEKoFrx1rI Yes it's "a little" out there, but I think it's actually quite plausible.
Saw that recently...it's cool, but there's no actual evidence that psilocybin has any of the positive evolutionary effects that Mckenna hypothesizes.
Re: Complex life may only exist because of millions of years of groundwork by fungi
#10The role of fungi in earth's ecology is endlessly fascinating. In addition to laying the groundwork for complex life, there's evidence they helped in the emergence of intelligence and consciousness[1] as well as helping save honeybees[2] [1] https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsif.2014... (pdf link) [2] https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/10/09/446928755/co...
See also Terence Mckenna's stoned ape theory: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terence_McKenna#%22Stoned_ape%... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnEKoFrx1rI Yes it's "a little" out there, but I think it's actually quite plausible.
It's certainly interesting, but what is the explanation for how consuming Psilocybe mushrooms could have effects across generations? Is it that an organism having had that experience might have altered behavior leading to advantages in natural/sexual selection? Or that psilocybin literally alters something physiological or [epi]genetic? Basically how could psilocybin cause a permanent (since it has persisted long after humans stopped frequently consuming psilocybin, assuming that was ever a thing), multigenerational increase in intelligence over a very long period of time?