Does evolution through natural selection produce "better" organisms in
an absolute sense?

Hi gobble-ga, 

Thanks for using Google Answers.

The brief answer to your question is "no."  At most we can say that
evolution produces "different" organisms in an absolute sense.  Take a
look at the diagram at:

http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evolibrary/article/_0/evo_25

It shows how natural selection "chooses" the brown beetles over the
green beetles. Brown is no "better" than green in the usual sense of
that word.  It is just a different color that survives because birds
don't eat it.

Of course, as qued100-ga and marvmd-ga noted in the Comments section,
brown is certainly "better suited" to an environment in which birds
pick off brightly colored beetles.

I hope you enjoy further travel through the evolution web site.

All the best,

alanna-ga

No. Natural selection simply produces species which tend not to be
prevented from reproducing under the predominant environmental
circumstances.

Qed100 is correct. "Better suited" is fitting term.

'Those most fitted to survive'

For example, I exist because my grandfather had TB in WWI

"I exist because my grandfather had TB in WWI"

   I exist because my Dad had the hots for Mom, sometime late in '58. :)

Every evolutionary change has its biological adaptive significance.
Natural selection generally tends to "extinguish" those with less good
traits. However this is for survival, but not neccessarily for
"getting better".

It is true, in natural selection better just means better in terms of
survival. It might be possible that the environmental conditions
change and the features that saved a creature earlier may no longer be
'better' anymore. I am currently reading Jared Diamond's 'Germs, Guns
and Steel'. It provides a fascinating description of how evolution
happened for human beings and how the societies shaped to reach
today's level. If you are interested in that area, may be you want to
try it.