Question

(1) What climates are optimum for humans in the absence of adaptive behaviors? (2) How does behavior alter where humans can live? Discuss two behaviors that have allowed us to move into formerly inhospitable climates.

Answer 1

1) Humans are at an advantage over other animals due to the size of our brains. This allows us to adapt to different situations and environments, and to constantly look for ways in which our environment can be adapted to benefit us. However, in the absence of such adaptive behaviours, humans are best suited to live in the tropics. When humans are naked in water, we require a temperature of around 33° C to be comfortable. If we are dry on land, and at rest, we feel best when the temperature is around 27° C. This temperature is usually found in tropical regions.

2) However, as mentioned before, human behaviour can alter the places where humans can live. When we find ourselves in cold weather, we build houses and fire to keep us warm. We also wear clothes that protect our bodies from the environment. When we are in a hot weather, we try to employ water to cool ourselves down. We also create structures that can protect us from the sun and the heat.

Two examples of such behaviours would be housing and clothing. Housing in cold regions is often made of materials such as wood, which is protective and can be warmed up easily. In hot weather, housing is often made of cold materials, such as concrete or rock, which allows the inside of the house to be cooler than the outside. When it comes to clothing, people in cold weather often wear many layers of warm clothing, made of materials such as wool or fur. In cold weather, people wear light, breezy fabrics that allow for sweat to evaporate easily.

Answer 2

Step-by-step explanation:

1 ) Humans are essentially tropical animals. A person will start feeling cold if temperature drops below 25 degree Celsius. Normal core body temperature of 37 degree Celsius above which they develop uncomfortable feeling which on higher scale can be life threatening. Humans do possess an efficient internal temperature regulating system which maintain optimum body temperature during extreme climates (hot and cold).

2 ) Human body readily adapts to the change in environmental conditions and can acclimatize to both hot and cold climate. Such extremities of condition like cold or hot induce adaptive behavior in humans. Such an adaptive behavior can be through change in genetic pattern of an individual, developmental adjustment, acclimatization and unique cultural practice. Example of two such behaviors that allows us to inhospitable climate is as follows,

(a) Cold Climate response: People dwelling in cold conditions traditionally consume more of alcohol which helps them to keep increased blood flow to the body extremities or vital organs, thereby providing warmth. Additionally they use insulating cloth, home and fires. Such conditions also induces biological responses like increased metabolic rate, fat insulation of vital organs and long term change in blood flow pattern.

(b) Hot climate response: Adapting to the hot climate is as complex to that of cold climate. During hot weather, physiological response such as sweating and its evaporation due to humidity helps body to cool down. Sweating is the only mechanism that effectively helps in cooling the body temperature. Yet another adaptive change that is frequently observed among the people residing in hotter climate is their body structures, which are generally leaner or thin.