- published: 31 Jan 2016
- views: 1164
An adaptation in biology is a trait with a current functional role in the life history of an organism that is maintained and evolved by means of natural selection. An adaptation refers to both the current state of being adapted and to the dynamic evolutionary process that leads to the adaptation. Adaptations contribute to the fitness and survival of individuals. Organisms face a succession of environmental challenges as they grow and develop and are equipped with an adaptive plasticity as the phenotype of traits develop in response to the imposed conditions. The developmental norm of reaction for any given trait is essential to the correction of adaptation as it affords a kind of biological insurance or resilience to varying environments.
The significance of an adaptation can only be understood in relation to the total biology of the species.
Adaptation is, first of all, a process, rather than a physical part of a body. An internal parasite (such as a fluke) can illustrate the distinction: such a parasite may have a very simple bodily structure, but nevertheless the organism is highly adapted to its specific environment. From this we see that adaptation is not just a matter of visible traits: in such parasites critical adaptations take place in the life-cycle, which is often quite complex. However, as a practical term, adaptation is often used for the product: those features of a species which result from the process. Many aspects of an animal or plant can be correctly called adaptations, though there are always some features whose function is in doubt. By using the term adaptation for the evolutionary process, and adaptive trait for the bodily part or function (the product), the two senses of the word may be distinguished.
Six a.m., the sun is coming up
And I'm sitting on a bench in Westerpark with my fake carreras on
Well I'm feeling halfway spun, I'm singing with the bums
But there's a smile on my face man I got love for everyone
Cause when life gives me lemons
I make gin and tonics
And when things get fucked up
That's when I'm happiest
And I know what you're thinking
That it looks like I've been up for weeks
And I'm sweating and I'm shaking but I'm smiling cause I know it's gonna be okay
So I'll keep my slip flops on
You can keep your fucking job
And if you put me in a cubicle
I'll use it to hang my hammock up
And if ya kiss this frog
You ain't gonna get no prince
You'll probably just get something
You need a prescription to fix
So when life gives you lemons
Just make gin and tonics
And when things get fucked up