Is the human race is genetically programmed a willingness to conquest of space?

[Nibb31]

Yes they did. Religious persecution was one of their primary motivations for leaving.

Comfort, safety, or wealth. Fleeing persecution counts as safety.

Note that they didn't migrate to a place that was even more dangerous, like the bottom of a volcano or Antarctica. They went to a place where they thought they could live off the land and offer a better life to their children.

Nobody can live off the land in space and it isn't the safest place to raise children.

[GeneralVeers]

Safety counts as quiet (and also as the "peace" half of "peace and quiet"). This is a fight you can't win, I'm better at nitpicking.

Nobody can live off the land in space

Space station. Hydroponics.

and it isn't the safest place to raise children.

Safer than what? Syria? North Korea? There are a number of places on Earth where it would in fact be a lot safer in outer space. It's all relative.

Edited November 5, 2015 by WedgeAntilles

[Kerbart]

(...)1,000 years ago, we thought God turned the Earth, and the Sun orbited the Earth, and the Earth was flat, and the edge was when things stopped existing. (...)

The truth is a bit more nuanced then what they tend to teach you at school... Understanding of the "universe" (at least what was known) was a lot more detailed and accurate 2000 years ago then we'd like to think. Even though the notion of a flat earth might have been the popular belief 1000 years ago, a round earth was pretty much considered a given by the people for who it did matter (sailors and astronomers/scientists).

On the conquest thing: given the background of hunter/gatherers it makes sense to have, from an evolutionary point of view, to have (a) some territorial tendencies built into our character and ( a desire, as a clan, to move out to the unknown as it increases your chances to carve out your own territory not held by another clan. The humans that did not display this behavior wouldn't have a clean territory with abundant food and thus would die out; over the estimated one million years that the human race exists (and their more ape-like predecessors before them) the trait of "go yonder" has pretty much been promoted all the time.

So yes, I think it's built into us as a species (not necessarily into each individual human, but as a species) to "go where no one has gone before" because we descend from the ones that have done that all along.

[vger]

We have a desire to conquer pretty much everything. Expansion and exploration are certainly ingrained in us. Without our insatiable curiosity, we probably wouldn't even have basic tools.

But we also have an innate sense for risk vs. reward, and space is VERY risky. There are a number of us who want to go for it anyway, but the majority, it seems, feel it isn't worth it.

[GoSlash27]

I'd say humans are genetically predisposed to wandering around in search of food, but not so much just wandering around for the sheer heck of it.

We do like to explore and learn new things, but I don't think that extends to space travel unless there's a compelling reason for it.

Best,

-Slashy

[GeneralVeers]

There have been compelling reasons in the past. The high seas were the medieval version of Outer Space back in the day; life at sea was very difficult, and the domain of a chosen few (some of whom, such as pirates, weren't completely right in the head.....)

[Bill Phil]

Comfort, safety, or wealth. Fleeing persecution counts as safety.

Note that they didn't migrate to a place that was even more dangerous, like the bottom of a volcano or Antarctica. They went to a place where they thought they could live off the land and offer a better life to their children.

Nobody can live off the land in space and it isn't the safest place to raise children.

You can live off the land.

There's energy from the Sun.

There's material in asteroids to build.

There's volatiles sprinkled about in the inner solar system and a huge amount farther out.

More water than on Earth...

Considering one asteroid is not the right way to look at it. Considering any planet other than Earth isn't either. Rather, ALL of it is what's important.