Is it possible to speed up the evolution of a species by forcing it to evolve?

I've been wondering this. If someone were to put together a large group of organisms that reproduce and mature rapidly, could they possibly create an extreme environment for them where they would need to evolve to survive? And if so, could this experiment be taken to the extremes and force these creatures to become sentient? Like use fire? Then I'd have a bunch of smart squirrels :)