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2001: a Space Odyssey - Essay

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2001: a Space Odyssey - Essay
2001: A Space Odyssey

Three million B.C. The gunpowder for a smashing evolutionary hit was amassing for a long time, but the necessary spark came from an outside help, which soon set the whole world ablaze. From this heated inferno, came the most proficient species ever to grace the planet. And now man has to be prepared for what comes next. Arthur C. Clarke skillfully proves the point that 'truth is stranger than fiction' in his remarkable book - 2001: A Space Odyssey. He also carefully examines the point that in spite of their intelligence and curious mind, humans lack the capacity to be a complete species on their own. Without the assistance of concerned alien species humans would never had climbed the evolutionary ladder. Devoid of the outside help they wouldn't had escaped their self made prison, explored the enormity of the universe and known their place in it.

If earth were a field and evolution a farmer then the leading and the healthiest crop in his field would be the human or homo sapiens. But this human race would never had flourished into an above average species without assistance from outer space friends. The aliens initialized the primary phase of the advancement process about three million years ago. They did this by means of a monolith, planted on earth on a fateful night. The monolith probed the ape-man's (Austrapethicas Erectus) mind, studied their reactions and finally evaluated their potential. By carefully conducted experiments the monolith altered the molecular makeup of the ape-man's brain making them smarter and providing them with the necessary skills needed to survive in the hostile world. The ape-man changed its shape

and size evolving into a new and improved species. It was a slow, cumulative process, and at its end was man. Therefore, without the assistance of helpful extra terrestrial friends, ape-man would never had developed the dexterity to compete for life sustaining rations with rival species and would probably had

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