what makes a civilisation?

A constant preoccupation of philosophers and scientists alike has been to determine if there are other civilisations in the universe, but it there search they have always looked upwards to the skies. But the other day I decided to look down and saw an ant scurrying in front of my feet and thought, “do they count?”

So my question is what makes a civilisation just that?

Is it the ability to build structures?

Being able to cultivate land and grow live stock?

The ability to communicate with each other?

Social rankings?

The ability to expand and colonise new areas?

Ants do all of these things, their more advance than our early cave dwelling ancestors that we consider to be the start of our culture. And they’ve been like that a lot longer then we have.

So why aren’t ants considered a civilisation in their own right?

Does it have do with the fact that we’re bigger than them?

Or are we just not willing to give the title of first and only civilisation on the planet earth to them?

What do people think about this?

(edit for gramer)


[edit on 12-3-2010 by RokNinja]

hmmm... not trying to troll or anything but i think it may also be the ability to keep records and teach these lessons learned to the following generations.

Developement of a common language seems necessary as well.

...A collective intelligence that relates to and benefits all within that society.

Diversity, Culture, consisting of both complexity and organization.

many of the questions you ask in the op contribute to the concept of civilization, but... i believe these attributes above distinguish us from them.

...IMO anyway

reply to post by H4W4II4N_PUNCH


ants do have the ability to teach and pass the knolledge on an older meber of a collony to the younger generations and their are a number of different speices of ants that work together in co-operation with could not be done with a common language (although this language is not verbale).

ants have a very diverse socal organisation that varries in differant reagions of the world. eg. some ants farm moss while some even use slavery of other ant hives to support them selves.

In my opinion, if we were to come across other life in the universe it could only be classified as a civilization if it showed some form of self-aware consciousness. If they were self-aware they would eventually build structures, cultivate land, and communicate with each other and probably have different forms of language.

There's probably more chance that any life out there is equivalent to an animal in our eyes. That is, that it relies purely on instinct and doesn't use emotion. It wouldn't know what we were because it isn't self-aware and doesn't know what itself is. I think that sort of life is just as important though because it would show we aren't alone.

I don't think it has anything to do with size. The reason no other group of beings on Earth is classified as a civilization is because so far none of them are like us. They don't have the consciousness we have, for one thing.

reply to post by Nventual


so then i guess it comes down to what aspects make something self aware we say were the only ones but thats just an assumption. we say were self aware but their are some people out thier that makes me question that

If they were self-aware they would eventually build structures, cultivate land, and communicate with each other and probably have different forms of language.

ant do all of that so by that reasoning they are self aware and thus a civilisiation, don't you think?