Most people misunderstand the phrase, Survival of the fittest
Been meaning to post this for a while.
My coach just forwarded an article by a Ph.D named Dr. Rhadi Ferguson about who would win in a fight between Superman and Batman. You can hear the author read it in his own words here.
Now I agree with almost everything the doctor says with one major exception. He says:
In battles the strongest guy does not [always] (sic) win, nor (does) the fittest, but the one that has those qualities and is the smartest.
With all due respect to Dr. Ferguson, he gets what everyone gets wrong about the term “Survival of the fittest.”
If I say to you the words, “Survival of the fittest,” what do you hear?
Dr. Ferguson – and most people – invariably people hear, “Survival of the strongest.” They define fittest as being physically fit.
But this is an issue of logical equivocation: The meaning of “fit” in this phrase doesn’t mean physically fit, but appropriate to the situation.
In that sense, then, the actual meaning is the opposite of what most people think.
The phrase: Survival of the fittest, means: Survival of the most appropriate.
If you were locked in a smoke-filled room having a 3-foot window with a small girl, a strongman, and a billionaire, while the girl is the weakest, the poorest, and the most inexperienced, she will most likely survive because she is the most fit – the most appropriate – for survival in that situation.
I think that’s why I have so many interests; I wanna have the broadest skill set possible for any situation that arises. One of my goals for 2015 is to dust off some skills I had that were once pretty good and sharpen then up.
Speaking of 2015 and having skills, I started the year, as usual, by making a huge pot of chili and by fixing some technology around the house.
We were originally planning on heading out for dinner but the weekend was rainy and my shoulder was killing me.
2015. Maybe this will be our year.
One more nerdy pet peeve of mine; people seem to think that Darwin coined the phrase, but he didn’t.
A fella named Herb Spencer, who read Darwin’s work, came up with the term. Darwin used the term himself five years after On Species came out.
OK, now I’m done.
Location: at my desk again
Mood: hopeful
Music: You can get along if you try to be strong
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3 replies on “Survival of the strongest”
Great points! I always interpreted it as survival of the organism most adaptable to a given circumstance or environment. It’s a common mistake to conflate evolution in the Darwinian sense to progress, but it’s really meant as the most adaptable, which has nothing to do with strength, just appropriateness
Hey Coach! Thanks for the comment and the kind words!
I actually think what you teach in class mirrors my basic philosophy; we learn what is most appropriate for the widest range of situations.
On that note, I miss being in class! The shoulder, like everything else with me, is healing really slowly
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