The human race has stopped evolving. Charles Darwin defined evolution in terms of natural selection, survival of the fittest. That is, the antelope that cannot run fast enough doesn't pass on genes, but the antelope with better muscle definition can live to breed another day.
This weeding out of weaker, more susceptible organisms is a natural process which has gone on for millions and millions of years, affecting flora and fauna of all shapes and sizes, including man's favorite organism: man. That is, until recently.
The advancements made in medical science and the world's seeming new obsessions with plastic surgery are creating a society in which evolution is being halted.
Examples of past human evolution can be seen just as clearly as the buboes on black plague victims in 14th century Europe.
Speaking of 14th century Europe, were the deaths that occurred from the bubonic plague centered on random, unfortunate victims?
While definitely unfortunate, these "random" victims had one thing in common: susceptibility to the plague, which is why not everyone died. The humans with natural resistance lived long enough to have offspring with that same resistance, developing the species into one which was less venerable to plague.
But what happens when doctors make a cure for the plague and save people who normally would have died from it?
What if doctors created a whole slew of antibiotics, medical equipment and other drugs that stop diseases from killing organisms predisposed to them, eliminating resistance for the next generations to come?
But wait, they already have. Actually, the last 50 years are a great indicator of what could happen. Humans are no longer more prone to one or two diseases. We've become at risk for everything, all the time. And the world keeps turning.
As we stand frozen in our evolution, the rest of the world spins on creating new viruses, more disease to add to the swaying mountain we already have to counteract medically because all of our virtually nonexistent immune systems due to our near-religious dependence on antibiotics.
Soon and very soon one of these new "super viruses" is going to find its host in a human body. It's going to replicate, and it's going to spread, and we will be defenseless. I wonder if we would be at such great risk if the human race has evolved with the virus instead of running and barricading itself from it.
Back in the golden days, evolution used to have its say in relationships and genetics as well. Men with strong chins, women with healthy hair, these were the traits which subconsciously described a good mate; in turn describing one capable of producing healthy offspring.
Now, what if these traits could somehow be surgically implanted? Well, you've just fooled the system, because while the traits are still attractive, there is no longer any genetic basis. What if under the big-busted, healthy, tan blonde there is a scrawny pale little thing? When Barbie has a child, that offspring will resemble the genes, not the surgeries.
Humans are frozen in an evolution time bubble. We cheer over medical advances, as we should, but what we don't realize is they come at a cost.
As we fight for our survival in the present, the future of our species is at risk, growing weaker and weaker, as we tan under UV rays, whitening our teeth.
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