I think that.. when we are born into this world, our minds are programmed in such a way as to allow us to make the most of what is available to us to build our lives. I don't think it's very easy to adopt new methods, though, even as technology advances.
It seems to me that the way society evolves requires older generations as well as their practices and beliefs to die out. Once this happens, the new generation may impliment their ideas, and I believe only then can society truely be influenced.
A great example of this is gay rights or racism. So many of the older generation dislike like gay people, and some even dislike black people. Why is this? Why would someone dislike someone else? Is it becasue they are a evil Humans? We are the result of the envrionments we grew up in. Our tastes, our goals, our life values.
Marijuana is another great example. For so long-- so few dared to speak up. But then.. society came around. Christianity as well. My grandmother is extreme Christian. Spooky pictures of Christ hang above her bed. My family on the other hand... less so, and obviously us kids even less so.
I think we can consider ourselves as robots. Mocking birds. In that way, our tastes are not the choice of our own selves, but rather the circumstances that influenced us throughout our lives. In this way, it's society which can be considered to be alive. It's culture which evolves, and shapes itself through time as Human perception changes from one generation to the next. Peraps society is true Humanity. We as individuals.. simple cells. Fullfilling our function in order to keep society alive. 