--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Some say we invented a new way of living…" description: "\"“Some say we invented a new way of living. Human Evolution, they called it. Piffle. That is the hubris of hindsight. I think what we did was far more s..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/510/j-d-lakey-26290_human-evolution_some-say-we-invented-a-new-way-of-living_2693691.jpg" --- # Some say we invented a new way of living. Human Evolution… ![“Some say we invented a new way of living. Human Evolution, they called it. Piffle. That is the hubris of hindsight. I think what we did was far more subtle. We forgot. We embraced our collective amnesia, wiping the slate clean so that we could remember what had been long forgotten. That, my…” quote by J.D. Lakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/510/j-d-lakey-26290_human-evolution_some-say-we-invented-a-new-way-of-living_2693691.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/510/j-d-lakey-26290_human-evolution_some-say-we-invented-a-new-way-of-living_2693691.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/510/j-d-lakey-26290_human-evolution_some-say-we-invented-a-new-way-of-living_2693691.jpg) > ““Some say we invented a new way of living. Human Evolution, they called it. Piffle. That is the hubris of hindsight. I think what we did was far more subtle. We forgot. We embraced our collective amnesia, wiping the slate clean so that we could remember what had been long forgotten. That, my friends, is the true definition of revolution.”” [J.D. Lakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-lakey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Revolution is not just new living styles but the collective forgetting and resetting of history, allowing us to remember what was forgotten. **In simple terms:** Revolution is collective amnesia that resets history. Key Takeaway Embrace forgetting to rediscover lost knowledge. Themes revolution memory history collective amnesia innovation Mood philosophical critical inspirational Type historical social psychological When to use this quote - political movements - technological shifts - cultural renaissances - education reform - personal growth Key Concepts historical reset cultural forgetting social change innovation cycles Questions to Reflect On - What past lessons might we be losing? - How can we balance forgetting with preserving wisdom? A Different Perspective Forgetting can erase valuable lessons. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Human evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-evolution/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Revolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolution/) [Way of living](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way-of-living/) ## Related quotes > [As no man can say who it was that first invented the use of clothes and houses against the inclemency of the weather, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sydenham/as-no-man-can-say-who-it-was-that-first-invented-the-use-of-clothes/) [Thomas Sydenham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sydenham/) > [The definition of a revolution: it destroys the perfect and enables the impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/the-definition-of-a-revolution-it-destroys-the-perfect-and-enables/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [Our task, of course, is to transmute the anger that is affliction into the anger that is determination to bring about change. I think,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-deming/our-task-of-course-is-to-transmute-the-anger-that-is-affliction-into/) [Barbara Deming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-deming/) > [“The cutthroat savagery of high school romance inspired in nearly all adults a collective amnesia. Having survived it themselves, they locked those memories far…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-russo/the-cutthroat-savagery-of-high-school-romance-inspired-in-nearly-all/) [Richard Russo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-russo/) > [“Aura is convinced that the entire country has succumbed to a collective amnesia. This is what happened in a society, where no one is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cristina-garc-a/aura-is-convinced-that-the-entire-country-has-succumbed-to-a/) [Cristina Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cristina-garc-a/) > [It was as if Japan had fallen victim to a case of collective amnesia.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-goldman/it-was-as-if-japan-had-fallen-victim-to-a-case-of-collective-amnesia/) Peter Goldman > [“Congratulations. You have invented a new kind of stupid. A 'damage you can never undo' kind of stupid. An 'open all the cages in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angelica-schuyler-from-hamilton-the-musical/congratulations-you-have-invented-a-new-kind-of-stupid-a-damage-you/) Angelica Schuyler from Hamilton: The Musical > [“Management is proving beyond a shadow of a doubt they don't have enough to do," she murmured back. "So they've invented a new acronym.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/connie-willis/management-is-proving-beyond-a-shadow-of-a-doubt-they-don-t-have/) [Connie Willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/connie-willis/) > [Surely it was time someone invented a new plot, or that the author came out from the bushes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/surely-it-was-time-someone-invented-a-new-plot-or-that-the-author/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [I invented nothing new. I simply combined the inventions of others into a car. Had I worked fifty or ten or even five years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/i-invented-nothing-new-i-simply-combined-the-inventions-of-others/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) > [There's so much stuff that has yet to be invented. There's so much new that's going to happen. People don't have any idea yet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-bezos/there-s-so-much-stuff-that-has-yet-to-be-invented-there-s-so-much-new/) [Jeff Bezos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-bezos/) > [I invented nothing new. I simply assembled the discoveries of other men behind whom were centuries of work. Had I worked fifty or ten…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/i-invented-nothing-new-i-simply-assembled-the-discoveries-of-other/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) > [In the old days when people invented a new function they had something useful in mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-poincare/in-the-old-days-when-people-invented-a-new-function-they-had/) [Henri Poincare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-poincare/) > [“If you’ve invented something new but you haven’t invented an effective way to sell it, you have a bad business—no matter how good the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-thiel/if-you-ve-invented-something-new-but-you-haven-t-invented-an/) [Peter Thiel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-thiel/) > [We have invented a new human right here - the right to return home after a war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paddy-ashdown/we-have-invented-a-new-human-right-here-the-right-to-return-home/) [Paddy Ashdown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paddy-ashdown/) ## More by J.D. Lakey > [“When is a thing out of place not out of place? When it belongs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-lakey/when-is-a-thing-out-of-place-not-out-of-place-when-it-belongs/) [J.D. Lakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-lakey/) > [“Ah, my mistake,” she said. “They are all there but they are hiding. The Void of the Hunter hangs over them. The animals of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-lakey/ah-my-mistake-she-said-they-are-all-there-but-they-are-hiding-the/) [J.D. Lakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-lakey/) > [“Cheobawn froze. The Dark of the Moons. Spider’s children knew of this time as well. It was the one night, in spring, as the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-lakey/cheobawn-froze-the-dark-of-the-moons-spider-s-children-knew-of-this/) [J.D. Lakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-lakey/) > [“Listen to the world, sister. Listen to the stars overhead. Let it go. It is nothing. 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Because we remember too much of that pain, so we build a family that is bonded with ties…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-lakey/that-is-why-packs-are-forever-because-we-remember-too-much-of-that/) [J.D. Lakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-lakey/) > [“Is there a name for a force in nature that takes you to the place you least want to be no matter how hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-lakey/is-there-a-name-for-a-force-in-nature-that-takes-you-to-the-place-you/) [J.D. Lakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-lakey/) > [“The pain and exhaustion of her body dropped away from her mind as she gathered the energy of the world and let it fuel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-lakey/the-pain-and-exhaustion-of-her-body-dropped-away-from-her-mind-as-she/) [J.D. Lakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-lakey/) > [“You seem to be getting better, if the dogs are any indication,” Zeff said wryly. “What do they know,” she sniffed. “I am still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-lakey/you-seem-to-be-getting-better-if-the-dogs-are-any-indication-zeff/) [J.D. Lakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-lakey/) > [“Do not be in such a rush to grow up.” Cheobawn opened her mouth but found nothing to say to this. It seemed a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-lakey/do-not-be-in-such-a-rush-to-grow-up-cheobawn-opened-her-mouth-but/) [J.D. Lakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-lakey/) > [“What did you learn, Little Father?” Cheobawn asked, catching her breath. The boy scowled at her. “It was not a fair fight. Your magic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-lakey/what-did-you-learn-little-father-cheobawn-asked-catching-her-breath/) [J.D. Lakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-lakey/) > [“A thought that had hatched in the back of her head during her conversation with Sigrid tumbled out of its shell into the front…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-lakey/a-thought-that-had-hatched-in-the-back-of-her-head-during-her/) [J.D. Lakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-lakey/) > [“Youth offends by its very nature and Elders offend because they forget what it is like to be young.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-lakey/youth-offends-by-its-very-nature-and-elders-offend-because-they/) [J.D. Lakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-lakey/) > [“But mostly she was tired of being cut off from the part of herself that existed in the ambient. She would never be whole,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-lakey/but-mostly-she-was-tired-of-being-cut-off-from-the-part-of-herself/) [J.D. Lakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-lakey/) [Explore all 22 J.D. Lakey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-lakey/) ## More Human evolution quotes > [“As a special branch of general philosophy, pathogenesis had never been explored. In my opinion it had never been approached in a strictly scientific…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-cendrars/as-a-special-branch-of-general-philosophy-pathogenesis-had-never-been/) [Blaise Cendrars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-cendrars/) > [I sometimes try to imagine what would have happened if we’d known the bonobo first and the chimpanzee only later—or not at all. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/i-sometimes-try-to-imagine-what-would-have-happened-if-we-d-known-the/) [Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/) > [“Pleasure is a reward, given to the human system by evolution in return for services rendered to the preservation and increase of the species.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-barker/pleasure-is-a-reward-given-to-the-human-system-by-evolution-in-return/) [Clive Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-barker/) > [It is fashionable to wax apocalyptic about the threat to humanity posed by the AIDS virus, "mad cow" disease, and many others, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/it-is-fashionable-to-wax-apocalyptic-about-the-threat-to-humanity/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“The envisaged self is the next stage in human evolution, and it will be born explicitly from the refusion of experienced spirit and experienced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-sj/the-envisaged-self-is-the-next-stage-in-human-evolution-and-it-will/) [Monica Sjöö](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-sj/) > [The greatest step forward in human evolution was made when society began to help the weak and the poor, instead of oppressing and despising…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/the-greatest-step-forward-in-human-evolution-was-made-when-society/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [“I beg you to see this in the right light, and to combine it with the feeling about what happened through the Mystery of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-steiner/i-beg-you-to-see-this-in-the-right-light-and-to-combine-it-with-the/) [Rudolf Steiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-steiner/) > [“In the forests man has always deteriorated; human evolution has made progress only in the open and in the higher latitudes. The cold and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/urantia-foundation/in-the-forests-man-has-always-deteriorated-human-evolution-has-made/) Urantia Foundation > [It is my idea to make capitalism create socialism in China so that these two economic forces of human evolution will work side by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-yat-sen/it-is-my-idea-to-make-capitalism-create-socialism-in-china-so-that/) [Sun Yat-sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-yat-sen/) > [“Advances in technology can be empowering, progressive and enriching. History has shown this across civilisations and societies. But it has also shown, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rasheed-ogunlaru/advances-in-technology-can-be-empowering-progressive-and-enriching/) [Rasheed Ogunlaru](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rasheed-ogunlaru/) > [Forget the Bible, the greatest argument against human evolution is a YouTube comment thread.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damien-fahey/forget-the-bible-the-greatest-argument-against-human-evolution-is-a/) [Damien Fahey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damien-fahey/) > [“More than any previous coterie of corporations, the tech monopolies aspire to mold humanity into their desired image of it. They believe that they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-foer/more-than-any-previous-coterie-of-corporations-the-tech-monopolies/) [Franklin Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-foer/) > [The nature of emergent technology is, as Kevin Kelly once said, right out of control. It's an element of human evolution that's completely out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/the-nature-of-emergent-technology-is-as-kevin-kelly-once-said-right/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [“There are few more powerful mirrors of the human brain's astonishing ability to rearrange itself to learn a new intellectual function than the act…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maryanne-wolf/there-are-few-more-powerful-mirrors-of-the-human-brain-s-astonishing/) [Maryanne Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maryanne-wolf/) > [There are a couple of watersheds in human evolution. Most people are comfortable thinking about tool use and language use as watersheds. But the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-haidt/there-are-a-couple-of-watersheds-in-human-evolution-most-people-are/) [Jonathan Haidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-haidt/) [Browse all 146 Human evolution quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-evolution/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Some say we invented a new way of living. Human Evolution, they called it. Piffle. That is the hubris of hindsight. I think what we did was far more subtle. We forgot. We embraced our collective amnesia, wiping the slate clean so that we could remember what had been long forgotten. That, my friends, is the true definition of revolution.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "J.D. 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