It has never been a given that humans would survive on Earth. We have likely faced extinction several times in our evolutionary past, according to genetic analysis. The ease with which the novel coronavirus has swept around the planet reminds us that there are no guarantees. And yet we are a species to be reckoned with.
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How did we get here? It turns out that our evolutionary story is not a linear progression from ape ancestor to human. Each fossil discovery is a knot in a messy tangle of evolution that led to Homo sapiens. Our large brains helped to solve the complex test of primitive survival, and interpersonal relationships and altruism may have given us a strong advantage over other hominins. And such development is far from over: modern humans continue to adapt to our changing world, even if we often feel that we have somehow bested natural selection.
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If we make the right decisions now, the next era on Earth might be named the Sapiezoic, or “wise life.” Such a time would be characterized by sustainable prosperity and peace afforded to all people and fueled by that distinct tenacious creativity that is undeniably human.
