I wonder how many of us take time to appreciate the natural world, and our place in it? This past week I was in New Mexico, spending the better part of each night on top of a mountain, evaluating some new technology. What struck me each night was the drive to and from the mountain top. One the way up we would come across Oryx, Elk, Antelope, and of course Jack Rabbits. At the top, I would watch a couple of Peregrine Falcons as they soared and dove on their pray. These all share one thing in common; adaptation to their environment. They thrive where humans choose not to live because of the harshness of the landscape.
Adaptation, what a strange concept for mankind. Our written histories talk of man's adaptation to the world around him. It talks to our attempt to understand the basis for that world. It seems ironic that as we gain a greater understanding we choose to change the environment, rather than adapt better. Alas, that seems to be the nature of man, to control and change the world around him.
Speaking of adaptation, this seems the perfect time for the evolutionists! Clearly as we contaminate the environment with our waste shouldn't we be evolving through natural selection to live in that environment? Shouldn't the citizens of LA be developing nasal filtration systems, or the citizens of sub-Saharan Africa be evolving to be able to store larger amounts of water for periods of draught?
It is all so confusing for me. Did Darwin ever identify how many generations it takes for a species to evolve?
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