What does it mean to be Human?

[Nemmerle]

To be human is to conform to the accepted standards of behaviour in a given society at that specific time. Try violating them and see how quickly the label is denied you.

[Chemix2]

Human- an organism with a relatively advanced awareness of the world around them and how it relates to them. They are made distinct by their ability to exact their will on each other and their ecosystems in a way that is more effective than any other form of animalistic dominance. In short; advanced civilization

Emotions are not unique to humanity, they are present in many life forms. We default that these are automatic responses regarding the survival of the life form or their favored kin. This thereby "justifies" whatever actions we see fit to commit upon them to our fellow humans. When a calf is taken from the cow, the mother cries; when a dog feels shame, they hide their face; when a bird feels anger or sorrow, it screams. Take for example a barn swallow that sees a dead kin on the road, they attempt to nudge it, to wake it up, and when they can't, they just begin to scream. We are not very different than animals in the case of emotions; it's simply that it's easier to kill something when you don't have to feel remorse about it.

[Chris]

Originally Posted by Dragonelf68

What does it mean to be human?
What do you think? Not just physical attributes, but mental ones also. What characteristics do you think defines human? Give your definition of human.

The fact that we do not have multiple obvious acts that we all do together, like migration or whatever.

We are all over the earth (sans aqua). Most animals are not.

[Teufel Hunden]

I think Desire is a defining characteristic in a human. I would of typed more but most of you guys said it!