Re: Adaptability of man
- From: "Paul Crowley" <slkwuoiutiuytciuyik@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 18 Feb 2007 14:14:41 -0500 (EST)
"William Morse" <wdmorse@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message news:er5aot$1qus$1@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Is the following true?:
- Man is a creature adapted for life under circumstances which are
very narrowly limited. A few degrees of temperature more or less, a
slight variation in the composition of the air, the precise
suitability of food, make all the differences between health and
sickness, between life and death.
without blankets and shelter) where could they
sleep at night?
The only reasonable answer is "in the tropics
within a few miles of the sea". And in the wet
season (with frequent heavy rain), you'd all need
something like a sandy beach. That is an extra-
ordinarily limited habitat. Once the hominids
could build shelters, make fabrics and exploit fire,
they could expand it substantially.
But -- until substantial technology arrived, the
statement above is true.
But substantial technology is the hallmark of our species. Take away
that, and we are bipedal chimps. Homo species have had substantial
technology for at least several hundreds of thousands of years, and have
occupied a huge range of niches for at least that long. So the above
is false, unless you are referring only to the early evolution of man
When the person quoted above wrote:
. . . he was hardly intending life 'with- Man is a creature adapted for life under circumstances which are
very narrowly limited.
substantial technology'. But, while I agree
that it is a confounding issue, there is still
little sign of agreement on the nature of the
habitat of early hominids
He continues:
very narrowly limited. A few degrees of temperature more or less, a
slight variation in the composition of the air, the precise
These certainly IMO rule out any existence
on the savanna, where there is huge range in
temperatures (between midday and midnight)
-- quite apart from the problem of what such
hominids might have eaten.
Paul.
.
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- Adaptability of man
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- Re: Adaptability of man
- From: Paul Crowley
- Re: Adaptability of man
- From: William Morse
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