--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We humans have millions of years of…" description: "\"We humans have millions of years of evolutionary baggage that makes us regard competition in a deadly light.\" — Vernor Vinge" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c17/vernor-vinge-4357_baggage_we-humans-have-millions-of-years-of-evol_1946098.jpg" --- # We humans have millions of years of evolutionary baggage… ![“We humans have millions of years of evolutionary baggage that makes us regard competition in a deadly light.” quote by Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c17/vernor-vinge-4357_baggage_we-humans-have-millions-of-years-of-evol_1946098.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c17/vernor-vinge-4357_baggage_we-humans-have-millions-of-years-of-evol_1946098.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c17/vernor-vinge-4357_baggage_we-humans-have-millions-of-years-of-evol_1946098.jpg) > “We humans have millions of years of evolutionary baggage that makes us regard competition in a deadly light.” [Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human evolution predisposes us to view competition as hostile. **In simple terms:** Evolution makes us see competition as dangerous. Key Takeaway Recognize and reframe competitive instincts constructively. Themes psychology evolution society Mood analytical thought‑provoking Type philosophical educational When to use this quote - team sports - business negotiations - conflict resolution Key Concepts competition evolutionary psychology social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How does competition affect your collaboration? - Can you channel competitive drive positively? A Different Perspective Some competition can drive innovation and growth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Baggage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/baggage/) [Competition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/competition/) [Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Light](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/light/) [Nature of man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) ## Related quotes > [Put simply, behavioural economics argues that human beings' decision-taking is guided by the evolutionary baggage which we bring with us to the present day.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-davis/put-simply-behavioural-economics-argues-that-human-beings-decision/) [Evan Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-davis/) > [You are the result of 4 billion years of evolutionary success. Act like it!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-memon/you-are-the-result-of-4-billion-years-of-evolutionary-success-act/) Rachel Memon > [There are so many ways to characterize evolutionary success. If one criterion is the number of millions of years that the species persists, we're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-graffin/there-are-so-many-ways-to-characterize-evolutionary-success-if-one/) [Greg Graffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-graffin/) > [It gets worse when you realize that for YECs, 22 months is only 1.4 million years in evolutionary time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-matzke/it-gets-worse-when-you-realize-that-for-yecs-22-months-is-only-1-4/) Nick Matzke > [“We hail from systems that remained self-contained for billions of years, with evolutionary clocks that all began at different times. How is it possible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/becky-chambers/we-hail-from-systems-that-remained-self-contained-for-billions-of/) [Becky Chambers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/becky-chambers/) > [If a single cell, under appropriate conditions, becomes a man in the space of a few years, there can surely be no difficulty in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/if-a-single-cell-under-appropriate-conditions-becomes-a-man-in-the/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [This last chapter .. may have given the impression that somehow man is the ultimate triumph of evolution, that all these millions of years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-attenborough/this-last-chapter-may-have-given-the-impression-that-somehow-man-is/) [David Attenborough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-attenborough/) > [If I could live for millions and millions of years, and if the air was my food and drink, and if I lived in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-guru-granth-sahib/if-i-could-live-for-millions-and-millions-of-years-and-if-the-air-was/) [Sri Guru Granth Sahib](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-guru-granth-sahib/) > [Humans will eventually become extinct. People treat that as a radical thing to say. But the fossil record shows us that everything eventually becomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/humans-will-eventually-become-extinct-people-treat-that-as-a-radical/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [For millions of years you have slept. This morning, will you not wake?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kabir/for-millions-of-years-you-have-slept-this-morning-will-you-not-wake/) [Kabir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kabir/) > [Women's intuition is the result of millions of years of not thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-hughes/women-s-intuition-is-the-result-of-millions-of-years-of-not-thinking/) [Rupert Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-hughes/) > [“it is millions of years away, but even if we survive the collapse of our sun, we will not survive forever. There was time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/it-is-millions-of-years-away-but-even-if-we-survive-the-collapse-of/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [But what really excited me was the idea that humans had a tremendous pre-history that went back millions of years. I wanted to go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-johanson/but-what-really-excited-me-was-the-idea-that-humans-had-a-tremendous/) [Donald Johanson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-johanson/) > [I believe that the brain has evolved over millions of years to be responsive to different kinds of content in the world. Language content,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-gardner/i-believe-that-the-brain-has-evolved-over-millions-of-years-to-be/) [Howard Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-gardner/) > [Mythology is something that always has opportunities to explore. 'It' has been on Earth for millions of years. He's been in contact with humans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-muschietti/mythology-is-something-that-always-has-opportunities-to-explore-it/) [Andy Muschietti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-muschietti/) ## More by Vernor Vinge > [I have come to kill you."The death's heads shrugged. "You have come to try.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/i-have-come-to-kill-you-the-death-s-heads-shrugged-you-have-come-to/) [Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) > [“From this era on, I think invention will be the parent of necessity – and not the other way around.’ That was easy for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/from-this-era-on-i-think-invention-will-be-the-parent-of-necessity/) [Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) > [How to explain? How to describe? Even the omniscient viewpoint quails.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/how-to-explain-how-to-describe-even-the-omniscient-viewpoint-quails/) [Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) > [All his life he had lived by the law. Often his job had been to stop acts of revenge…And now revenge was all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/all-his-life-he-had-lived-by-the-law-often-his-job-had-been-to-stop/) [Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) > [Animals can adapt to problems and make inventions, but often no faster than natural selection can do its work - the world acts as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/animals-can-adapt-to-problems-and-make-inventions-but-often-no-faster/) [Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) > [Within thirty years, we will have the technological means to create superhuman intelligence. Shortly after, the human era will be ended.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/within-thirty-years-we-will-have-the-technological-means-to-create/) [Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) > [“Tycoon had a peddler's talent for using words to redefine reality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/tycoon-had-a-peddler-s-talent-for-using-words-to-redefine-reality/) [Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) > [It is a point where our old models must be discarded and a new reality rules.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/it-is-a-point-where-our-old-models-must-be-discarded-and-a-new/) [Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) > [The heart of manipulation is to empathize without being touched.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/the-heart-of-manipulation-is-to-empathize-without-being-touched/) [Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) > [“I’m a librarian, not a leader.” “You’re both! Librarians and archeologists have always been the ones to bring civilization back.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/i-m-a-librarian-not-a-leader-you-re-both-librarians-and-archeologists/) [Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) > [“While We are out of Touch or How to Survive and Prosper during the Next Thirty Minutes by Your Friend, the Mysterious Stranger”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/while-we-are-out-of-touch-or-how-to-survive-and-prosper-during-the/) [Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) > [If there be only hours, at least learn what there is time to learn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/if-there-be-only-hours-at-least-learn-what-there-is-time-to-learn/) [Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) > [“Over the last few weeks, some newsgroups have been full of tales of war and battle fleets, of billions dying in the clash of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/over-the-last-few-weeks-some-newsgroups-have-been-full-of-tales-of/) [Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) > [Hexapodia as the key insight...I haven't had a chance to see the famous video from Straumli Realm, except as an evocation. (My only gateway…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/hexapodia-as-the-key-insight-i-haven-t-had-a-chance-to-see-the-famous/) [Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) > [“Nau had been very careful that enough nukes remained. If necessary, he could play the old, old game of total disaster management. So what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/nau-had-been-very-careful-that-enough-nukes-remained-if-necessary-he/) [Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) [Explore all 111 Vernor Vinge quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) ## More Baggage quotes > [“logotherapy,” which, in a nutshell, is about searching for the meaning packed in one’s baggage, something”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-lesser/logotherapy-which-in-a-nutshell-is-about-searching-for-the-meaning/) [Elizabeth Lesser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-lesser/) > [“Forgiveness is the process of dropping off your emotional baggage.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-fargo/forgiveness-is-the-process-of-dropping-off-your-emotional-baggage/) [Tim Fargo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-fargo/) > [All the baggage that comes with fame, being an actress. The down side to it is the intrusion into your life and this expectation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-watson/all-the-baggage-that-comes-with-fame-being-an-actress-the-down-side/) [Emma Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-watson/) > [“they accepted any baggage that came with you and made you believe you were more than you actually were”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/they-accepted-any-baggage-that-came-with-you-and-made-you-believe-you/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Out, you tallow-face! You baggage!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/out-you-tallow-face-you-baggage/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“The thing about moving," he said, "is it's a good way to shake loose whatever old baggage you have, or the old things that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tara-schuster/the-thing-about-moving-he-said-is-it-s-a-good-way-to-shake-loose/) Tara Schuster > [A lot of people approach their barn or horse like they are going to war, because it's been going badly. So you pick up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cindy-meehl/a-lot-of-people-approach-their-barn-or-horse-like-they-are-going-to/) Cindy Meehl > [I had a great dislike to the annoyances entailed by baggage; and it was always with some feeling of elation that I cut myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/i-had-a-great-dislike-to-the-annoyances-entailed-by-baggage-and-it/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [My beginnings in the Southwest are clear and palpable. My beginnings here made me pay attention to where the sun is, where the winds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-predock/my-beginnings-in-the-southwest-are-clear-and-palpable-my-beginnings/) [Antoine Predock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-predock/) > [Carry your baggage towards silence , when you seek the signs of the way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/carry-your-baggage-towards-silence-when-you-seek-the-signs-of-the-way/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [I just try to leave my baggage at the door. I don't want to carry my stuff into a working environment with me, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-dane/i-just-try-to-leave-my-baggage-at-the-door-i-don-t-want-to-carry-my/) [Eric Dane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-dane/) > [When you're coming off a flight, skip the restroom by the gates and head to the one in baggage claim, which is always cleaner…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hallie-jackson/when-you-re-coming-off-a-flight-skip-the-restroom-by-the-gates-and/) [Hallie Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hallie-jackson/) > [“This actually isn't a boohoo entry about my baggage. It is meant to be a 'learn from the mistakes of others'. Hopefully my 'duh'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordan-m-alexander/this-actually-isn-t-a-boohoo-entry-about-my-baggage-it-is-meant-to-be/) [Jordan M. Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordan-m-alexander/) > [It's very inconvenient being a sculptor. It's like playing the double-bass; one's so handicapped by one's baggage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-l-sayers/it-s-very-inconvenient-being-a-sculptor-it-s-like-playing-the-double/) [Dorothy L. Sayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-l-sayers/) > [“We lose the fear of letting go of our baggage, but also the certainty that what is in them belongs to us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andr-s-neuman/we-lose-the-fear-of-letting-go-of-our-baggage-but-also-the-certainty/) [Andrés Neuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andr-s-neuman/) [Browse all 359 Baggage quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/baggage/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We humans have millions of years of evolutionary baggage that makes us regard competition in a deadly light.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Vernor Vinge" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/we-humans-have-millions-of-years-of-evolutionary-baggage-that-makes/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Baggage" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/we-humans-have-millions-of-years-of-evolutionary-baggage-that-makes/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c17/vernor-vinge-4357_baggage_we-humans-have-millions-of-years-of-evol_1946098.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c17/vernor-vinge-4357_baggage_we-humans-have-millions-of-years-of-evol_1946098.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c17/vernor-vinge-4357_baggage_we-humans-have-millions-of-years-of-evol_1946098.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We humans have millions of years of evolutionary baggage that makes us regard competition in a deadly light.” — Vernor Vinge", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Vernor Vinge", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We humans have millions of years...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/we-humans-have-millions-of-years-of-evolutionary-baggage-that-makes/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/we-humans-have-millions-of-years-of-evolutionary-baggage-that-makes/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```