Which of the following describes how anthropologists describe the primary way humans adapt to and manipulate their physical and social environments, in light of the human evolutionary past?

Question: Which of the following describes how anthropologists describe the primary way humans adapt to and manipulate their physical and social environments, in light of the human evolutionary past?

The answer is cultural adaptation has mostly replaced genetic adaptation.

Anthropologists believe that humans have a long history of adapting to their physical and social environments through culture. Culture is the shared knowledge, beliefs, and practices of a group of people. It includes things like language, religion, art, and technology. Culture provides humans with a way to understand and control their environment.

In the past, humans also adapted to their environment through genetic adaptation. Genetic adaptation is the process of natural selection, where individuals with traits that are better suited to the environment are more likely to survive and reproduce. However, genetic adaptation is a slow process. It takes many generations for natural selection to produce significant changes in a population.

Cultural adaptation is much faster than genetic adaptation. This is because culture can be transmitted from one generation to the next through learning. Humans can learn new ways to adapt to their environment without having to wait for natural selection to produce the necessary changes.

For example, humans have learned to build shelters, grow crops, and domesticate animals. These cultural adaptations have allowed humans to live in a wide variety of environments, from the Arctic to the tropics.

In recent years, there has been a growing debate about the relative importance of cultural adaptation and genetic adaptation. Some anthropologists argue that cultural adaptation is the primary way that humans adapt to their environment. Others argue that genetic adaptation is still important, especially in small-scale societies that are isolated from the rest of the world.

However, most anthropologists agree that cultural adaptation is the primary way that humans adapt to their environment in the modern world. This is because the pace of technological change is so rapid that it is difficult for natural selection to keep up. As a result, humans must rely on culture to adapt to the ever-changing environment.