Self and Other, Man and Chimp

Humans have consciousness (awareness) of themselves and others. They know they are different from their fellow humans by degrees, not kind. Then they look at the chimps and start wondering ever since Darwin burst on the scene if their closest cousin differs from them also by degrees, and not in kind. You've finished reading a book about chips. And you learned various things. You always have an interest in chimps, besides the human animal. The camp you seem to gravitate to is the one which says humans differ from chimps in kind. You are persuaded by the following words

"The profound biological continuity between human and nonhuman animals masks an equally profound functional discontinuity between the human and nonhuman mind. Human animals---and no ther---build fires and wheels, diagnose each others' illnesses, communicate using symbols, navigate with maps, risk their lives for ideals, collaborate with each other, explain the world in terms of hypothetical causes, punish transgressors for breaking rules, imagine impossible scenarios, and teach each other how to do all the above.

Chimps perceive what they can observe, and nothing else. They have no concepts of ghosts, gravity, and God. Unlike chimps, humans interpret and reinterpret the world."

Religion is nothing but Man's interpretation and construct of the world. It had its usefulness in ancient times when Science was in its infancy. Today it still retains its usefulness and relevance with most people, but not with individuals like you. You prefer Science's interpretation of the world because of the principle of verifiability.

As you engage in debates with others, you find yourself, unlike most of your opponents, behave like a scientist---curious, skeptical, intellectually honest, welcoming of criticism, and bound by data and facts.

You read about language development and are immensely gratified to learn about the process. Everything's about genes and brain development. You feel lucky. You won a lottery.