The Power of Adaptation

Darwin talks about man in many ways during his discussions on evolution and natural selection. One thing I found interesting was when he mentions how adaptable man is and how humans can basically survive anywhere on the Earth. Darwin states about man, "He has the great power of adapting to his habits to new conditions of life" (242).

I agree with this. Humans are amazing the way they can make almost any situation livable with the aid of technology and certain tools. I guess it's something we've had to evolve to be. Could our will to adapt and power over our surroundings be something natural selection has allowed to evolve? I think so. Otherwise we would still be hunting and gathering in the heart of Africa, unable to tolerate any other climate, food or environment. I think it was necessary for humans, for survival as a species, to learn how to be adaptable because we have such a large population and we live for so long. We also take up a lot of space, using a lot of resources. We have to adapt to be able to expand our "territories" to gain more space for the species.

This also makes me think of college. Adapting. I was suddenly thrown into a campus full of young adults, in the middle of VA, on the west coast, expected to thrive and prosper. At first I was shocked coming from an average Oregon town. But I learned to adapt. To make my situation livable and now enjoyable. As a part of the human species, I survived.