We all know that humans are exceptional.  As far as we know there are no other forms of life that are as conscious as we are.  One important aspect of humans is that many  have decided not to live with nature but instead they are determined to conquer it.  Amazingly, in spite of setbacks, it seems that scientists and engineers are succeeding in this audacious effort.  As a result the advance of technology appears to be inexorable.  There is no end in sight.  As long as humans get off Earth and successfully colonize other worlds it should continue for a long, long time.

However, even though we appear to have the ability to increase our control of the natural world it is ironic that we show no signs of being able to control ourselves and our fellow humans.  Have we made progress in the way we live together?  After millions of years of evolution we still get angry and fight with each other.  We hurt ourselves and each other in so many ways and on different scales.  Unfortunately I do not see the same trend of progress occurring with regard to our social interactions.  It appears that there is a disconnect between our technology advancement and our progress in improving our minds and societies.

It is odd that we can be so powerful in one arena and helpless in others.  Our ability to develop technology tools may be moot if we do not learn how to live with each other.  I would posit that this is the biggest problem in our world today.