Student’s Name
Instructor’s Name
Course
Date
Adaptation and Survival
The ability to create and use symbols have changed along with the ability to adapt as well as to survive. According to Lombard (145), the primary mode of communication during the Stone Age period was through various symbols. Therefore, when a person could easily adapt to a particular situation, he or she would easily learn how to use the symbols for communication.
The Neanderthals, also known as the Homo sapiens, were the extinct species of the archaic parentingwithin the genus Homo which lived more than 400 000 years ago. One of the ways that this species survived is that it had a large nose for breathing more air (Finlayson, 50). The second way that the Neanderthal survived was that they had a skull-shaped in a way that enabled them to adapt and survive in cold weather. Also, their short and stocky stature helped them to adapt to the harsh cold weather.
The current state the planet earth is worrying. There is a total degradation of the environment that is taking place. Not only has the environment been affected but also its life-supporting system. If the deterioration of this environment continues, it will reach a time whereby it will be able to support the lives that it can. The action of human beings is the main issue that has impacted on the current state of the planet. Human beings continually engage in activities that cause the degradation of the environment. One way that humans have contributed to the destruction of the environment is careless dumping of nuclear, toxic, and biomedical waste (Kim, and Sexton, 3499). The other activity is cutting down of trees which has led to global warming due to increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere which is produced from the burning of fossil fuels (Kim, and Sexton, 3499). The third human factor that has contributed to the current state of the planet is the uncontrolled exploitation of groundwater. The exploitation of groundwater has led to its depletion threatening food production as well as other human systems that depend heavily on this water.
Human culture has been a significant factor that has resulted in the current state of the planet. However, there are certain aspects of human culture and creativity that can be used for saving our planet and for the survival of human beings. One of the positive aspects of human culture and creativity is re-afforestation and afforestation (Blaikie, and Brookfield, 105). This action can be adapted by planting trees where they had been cut and places where there were no trees. When these trees grow, they will be able to take carbon dioxide from the atmosphere thus reducing the rate of global warming. Reduced global warming will lead to lowered temperatures, warming of the ocean surface and melting of glaciers as well as ice hence making the planet a better place that can sustain lives. The second positive aspect of human culture and creativity is the proper disposal of toxic wastes (Brandi, 35). This approach can be adapted whereby individuals should be warned gained indiscriminate disposal of toxic waster. Also, industries should develop designated places for the disposal of toxic waste. These waste should then be treated before they are released into the environment to prevent it from being hazardous. The other positive aspect of human culture, as well as creativity, is focusing on green energy (Brandi, 36). This aspect can be adopted by using renewable sources of energy such as solar energy, wind power and geothermal.
Works Cited
Brandi, Clara. “Safeguarding the earth system for sustainable development and global ethics: the need for an earth system SDG.” Journal of Global Ethics vol. 11, no. 1, (2015): 32-36.
Lombard, Marlize. “Thinking through the Middle Stone Age of sub-Saharan Africa.” Quaternary International vol. 270, no. 3, (2012): 140-155.
Finlayson, Clive. The humans who went extinct: Why Neanderthals died out, and we survived. Oxford University Press, vol. 6, no. 1, 2010: 45-59.
Kim, Do‐Hyung, Joseph O. Sexton, and John R. Townshend. “Accelerated deforestation from the 1990s to the 2000s.” Geophysical Research Letters vol. 42, no. 9, (2015): 3495-3501.
Blaikie, Piers, and Harold Brookfield. Land degradation and society. Routledge, vol.16, no.1, 2015. 100-123.