Chapter Review (pg. 6-29) A: Human migration across the globe was the complete spread of the human species over much of the earth’s surface. The species began in eastern Africa; most types of humans come from this region, in the present day countries of Tazmania, Kenya, and Uganda. Main discoveries, especially fire and the use of animal skins for clothing-both of which allowed people to live in colder climates-facilitated the spread of Paleolithic groups. The first people moved out of Africa about 750,000 years ago.
“Industrial agriculture characteristically proceeds by single solutions to single problems: If you want the most money from your land this year, grow the crops for which the market price is highest.” - Wendell Berry Many people question whether or not the morality of treating animals in a humane way outweighs the morality of cheaper food for a nation where 1 in 6 people are facing hunger, and/or starving in any way. Back in the day, a while after World War II, industrial agriculture was applauded as a technological success that permitted an ever growing population to practically feed themselves. Now, many farmers and scientists see it as a blind alley, rather made for factory work.
Agriculture played a pivotal role in the evolution of human life, as well as revolutionize the globe to what it is today. Jared Diamond wrote a book that is called "Guns, Germs and Steel". In the book, he explains why some societies are materially successful than others. He attributes societal success to geography, immunity to germs, food production, the domestication of animals, and use of steel. Other parts of the globe, such as Europe While on a trip in New Guinea, one of the politicians named Yali, asked the question, "Why is it that you white people developed so much cargo and brought it to New Guinea, but we black people had little cargo of our own?", which made him write a book about it.
“Thou shouldst eat to live; not live to eat”, is a famous quote by the well known philosopher Socrates, who believed this is the perspective we should take when we are eating food. Unfortunately, the times have changed and so has the way we eat. We no longer have to go hunting for our food, or grow crops to receive all of our fruits and vegetables. Because we have become a society that has grown into the new world of technology, there would be no need to rely on ourselves for what we need-- we can simply gather our resources from other people. In the book, “The Omnivore’s Dilemma”, written by Michael Pollan, takes us on a journey full of concerns of the “Food Industrial Complex”.
In “Is Humanity a Special Threat?” author Greg Easterbrook states his thoughts about the Prince William Sound site oil spill, saying that in 10 years the William sound site will look as if it had never been affected by the destructive oil spill. In 1992, Easterbrook recalls himself aboard the research vessel Arctic Dream, in the waters of Prince William Sound. What he found amazed him. Author Easterbrook recalls the scene saying, “it was just 3 years later, and already the sound was so close to its former state, it was impossible to determine where the spill had occurred without resorting to navigation charts.”
This was the beginning to the destruction of the environment because the farmers did not consider the affects that over farming would cause. A major problem that over farming has caused is an increase in population, then the over farming isn’t enough, which them causes farmers to produce more and we go back and forth in a never ending roller coaster ride between increase in food supply and increase in population. The world has yet to meet our carrying capacity, and when we do the world will have a major population decline. The other major problem that over farming has caused is the destruction of our environment. The more food we produce,
The procedure of how food is made does not come into concern, only the results do. That is how large industrial farms are accepted, because they provide proficiently. The outcome of industrial farms outweighs the negative impacts, at least to industrial farmers. Pollan responds to Berry’s statement by agreeing with him on the issue of the current industrial model being acceptable to some consumers, only due to the fact that
The Worst Mistake In History As far back as archaeologists can recall, hunting and gathering has been the main source of food for humankind. As populations started to grow many families found it hard to get their hands on food, which led to the rise of agriculture. In the article,“The Worst Mistake in the History of Humankind,” by Jared Diamond, he explains how agriculture, although viewed as progress for modern civilizations, was indeed the worst decision humankind has ever made. In the article, Diamond argues that although agriculture was an effective way to increase people 's food supply, it came with many downfalls as well.
From living in a world full of hunters and gatherers to the world full of farmers. I agree with Diamond for starting "worst mistake’ in human history?" because Agriculture damaged a lot of us rather than helping us. Hunting had a lot of benefits rather than harming us. The archaeologists emphasized how hunters had a better diet than the farmers.
The graph in document 1, a food/population report by the UN, shows a direct relationship between a growing population and the amount of food supply. This rapid increase is made possible by Norman Borlaug's genetically modified crops that made more food on less land and were able to fight off plant diseases. Document 2, a speech given by a president Truman to the struggling citizens, says that many people in a food crisis are in misery and would do anything to escape it. This is fuel for the Green Revolution and its colossal effects on human’s food supply. Document 7 contradicts this thesis because it states that the people who experienced its effects thought it was a contamination to their culture and natural way of life.
Value of a human life Value of human life can differ because of multiple things. According to some articles some people are worth more than others depending on their occupations. Logically this is correct but morally it is wrong. Although society has morals it does not deally with these tragedies morally. Society should compensate for lost loved ones equally.
The agricultural revolution impacted the way human’s interacted with the environment dramatically. One way was by the domestication of plants and animals causing them to depend on humans. The surplus of food led to a larger population which resulted in even more overgrazing of the land. The switch from hunting and gathering to agriculture also allowed desertification and soil erosion to occur as well. Some chose to settle down because it seemed to be more profitable, more efficient to where they’ll be less likely to not starve, etc.
Author Richard Connell brought about several good points and questions about human behavior when he wrote his short story, “The Most Dangerous Game”. The quote “Literature is the question minus the answer”, really connects to this story because this story brings up questions, but never definitively answers them. The author brings up questions about the actual story, who is the winner? Is there even a real winner? Not only does he leave these unanswered but he also arises many questions and thoughts about human nature while doing so.
So making a bad decision is never fun. I’d like to think that most of us prefer not to make them but can’t help to sometimes because we think a bad decision isn’t that bad. It might even be a good one in the right mind set. The point of this paper being to reflect on a pass choice looking at it with the elements of critical thinking. My bad decision is one I think most are guilty of, waiting until the last minute on something important.
Gone are the days when I would be eating fast food on a frequent basis. These days, I have a healthy salad for lunch and try to avoid anything too greasy after work. I believe gardening would have similar impacts on anyone else who has had an unhealthy lifestyle. Gardening is a great way to teach kids about responsibility.
