Keane Week 12: What Causes Human Power?
The most dominant species on land is without question humans. But how is that possible? There are animals such as hippos that can weigh up to nearly 9,000 pounds; humans are clearly not the strongest. Neither do we have exceptional population or overall biomass, the estimated total biomass of ants ranges from 10 to 100 billion tons. Yet given the resources, a relatively small group of humans can drive hippos to extinction, as we have for other endangered animals such as elephants, rhinos, and lions. We can alter the surrounding landscape and ecosystems far more efficiently than the world’s ant population, as we have by decimating rainforests and tunneling through mountains, feats no animal has been able to replicate at our scale. There is almost nothing any other species can accomplish that cannot be done the same by humans.
One of the biggest reasons for human dominance is our intelligence. Unlike other animals, we have the ability to think critically during moments requiring complex problem solving. Our curiosity and inherited knowledge has led us to develop new technologies, and answer universal questions with religion. We are better able to adapt to multiple environments and circumstances, allowing us to become widespread around the globe.
One of the biggest benefits of critical thinking is being able to delay gratification. In a current world where there is a time gap between the labor and the reward, being able to see long term and take action doing things that do not immediately benefit us but will in the future is a large reason for our success. We are able to project, and estimate what our lives would be like three weeks from now, and do current work that would benefit us in those three weeks, something most animals can not do. This is the reason many of us work out, even when after a day we will see no result. Other mammals are more prone to chasing a more primal instinct.
And, through a combination of intelligence, curiosity, and delayed gratification, we are able to come up with new technology that solves scientific problems, and new religions that answer the world's questions. We do have less prominent physical advantages, such as opposable thumbs, the ability to sweat, and being able to do a bipedal run without moving our chest, the main source of dominance comes from our head. With the power to change the world so drastically, we are given the equally weighty responsibility of preserving it.
Hi Keane,
ReplyDeleteIt's definitely interesting how humans dominate the planet over such powerful creatures as you described. I feel our tools are the key factor that has allowed us to reach this point; whether it's an axe and wood or a laptop and headphones, our tools are what allow us to use our intelligence and achieve magnificent feats. I agree that our intelligence is what has led us to dominate the earth, but comparing humans to other species, it's interesting how despite our immense intelligence we are the only species that has to pay to have a home on the planet. With all our intelligence, one would think life would be much easier for all humans rather than for other species, but modern, industrial society forces humans to work for almost the entire day over spending time with their families, unlike all other species on the planet. I agree that our critical thinking skills are one of our most beneficial since they protect us from making decisions that will severely harm us in the future which sets us apart from other species on the planet. Despite this ability and our intelligence, we still continue to actively destroy the planet significantly more than all other species which makes me wonder if humans are the most intelligent species or the least since we are actively destroying our own homes.