--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think that humans are also set up to…" description: "\"I think that humans are also set up to survive. We're not as small as rats, but we make up for that by being intelligent enough to make our own hiding ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d33/annalee-newitz-8659_be-good_i-think-that-humans-are-also-set-up-to-s_1912773.jpg" --- # I think that humans are also set up to survive. We're not… ![“I think that humans are also set up to survive. We're not as small as rats, but we make up for that by being intelligent enough to make our own hiding places and to adapt to new habitats, even if they are changing very quickly. We have an enormous population, and can afford to lose billions of…” quote by Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d33/annalee-newitz-8659_be-good_i-think-that-humans-are-also-set-up-to-s_1912773.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d33/annalee-newitz-8659_be-good_i-think-that-humans-are-also-set-up-to-s_1912773.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d33/annalee-newitz-8659_be-good_i-think-that-humans-are-also-set-up-to-s_1912773.jpg) > “I think that humans are also set up to survive. We're not as small as rats, but we make up for that by being intelligent enough to make our own hiding places and to adapt to new habitats, even if they are changing very quickly. We have an enormous population, and can afford to lose billions of people without suffering very much as a species. Indeed, some would say losing five billion people would be good for the planet - I disagree with them, but can't deny that we would do just fine if there were two billion of us or even one billion.” [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human adaptability and intelligence allow survival despite massive loss, but ethical concerns arise from treating population reduction as beneficial. **In simple terms:** Humans can survive huge losses, yet moral issues remain. Key Takeaway Balance survival instincts with ethical responsibility. Themes environment population ethics survival technology Mood reflective concerned analytical Type ethical environmental When to use this quote - urban planning - climate policy - public health - resource management Key Concepts anthropology ecology philosophy risk assessment Questions to Reflect On - Is it ethical to consider population decline beneficial? - What responsibilities do we have to protect vulnerable lives? A Different Perspective It ignores individual suffering and social costs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Habitat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/habitat/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Nature of man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [In order to survive in a very small tribe, you needed to know how to do lots of things for yourself: how to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/in-order-to-survive-in-a-very-small-tribe-you-needed-to-know-how-to/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [I think small animals can escape from many kinds of natural disaster more easily. There are just more places for them to hide, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/i-think-small-animals-can-escape-from-many-kinds-of-natural-disaster/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) > [We have converted huge swaths of land and ocean into human habitats where we live and grow food and harvest energy. But there's been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/we-have-converted-huge-swaths-of-land-and-ocean-into-human-habitats/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) > [“To think of humans as freedom-loving, you must be ready to view nearly all of history as a mistake.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-gray/to-think-of-humans-as-freedom-loving-you-must-be-ready-to-view-nearly/) [John Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-gray/) > [I think humans are fascinating in general. We're so weird. We do so many quirky things, and we don't even know it. There's just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yvonne-strahovski/i-think-humans-are-fascinating-in-general-we-re-so-weird-we-do-so/) [Yvonne Strahovski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yvonne-strahovski/) > [I think almost everything about humans and human civilization is explained better by evolution than anything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naval-ravikant/i-think-almost-everything-about-humans-and-human-civilization-is/) [Naval Ravikant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naval-ravikant/) > [I think us humans are just so cruel to each other. We just want to keep judging each other on our looks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-liu/i-think-us-humans-are-just-so-cruel-to-each-other-we-just-want-to/) [Amber Liu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-liu/) > [I think humans will reach Mars, and I would like to see it happen in my lifetime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buzz-aldrin/i-think-humans-will-reach-mars-and-i-would-like-to-see-it-happen-in/) [Buzz Aldrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buzz-aldrin/) > [I think humans are driven by othering people, by defining themselves by who they are not and who is different from them. Human beings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hozier/i-think-humans-are-driven-by-othering-people-by-defining-themselves/) [Hozier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hozier/) > [“I think you’re wrong,” she said. “I don’t think humans were supposed to die out during the Infection. And I think those of us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lissa-bryan/i-think-you-re-wrong-she-said-i-don-t-think-humans-were-supposed-to/) [Lissa Bryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lissa-bryan/) > [I don't think that humans are, in our nature, we're evil or anything like that. But I do think there's a demon in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordan-peele/i-don-t-think-that-humans-are-in-our-nature-we-re-evil-or-anything/) [Jordan Peele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordan-peele/) > [There are three choices in life and sport - either you do it, you don't do it or you think about it. Most humans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kessel/there-are-three-choices-in-life-and-sport-either-you-do-it-you-don-t/) [John Kessel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kessel/) > [I think humans in general, make associations and feel the need to group things together to have a better understanding of them. Though I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristan-prettyman/i-think-humans-in-general-make-associations-and-feel-the-need-to/) [Tristan Prettyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristan-prettyman/) > [I think as humans we're nostalgic creatures and that's what we do. We go back to things that have a semblance of something comforting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-scott/i-think-as-humans-we-re-nostalgic-creatures-and-that-s-what-we-do-we/) [Jeremy Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-scott/) > [I think that humans have a huge capacity to carry pain and sadness. There are things that haunt us our entire lives; we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/i-think-that-humans-have-a-huge-capacity-to-carry-pain-and-sadness/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) ## More by Annalee Newitz > [“She wasn’t sure which motivation made better fuel for innovation: naïve but ethical beliefs, or the need to survive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/she-wasn-t-sure-which-motivation-made-better-fuel-for-innovation-na/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) > [Humans are a great survivor species but our survival will be pretty grim if all of the plants and animals we depend on die…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/humans-are-a-great-survivor-species-but-our-survival-will-be-pretty/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) > [Amphibians are dying out like crazy, and frogs and salamanders may be largely extinct by the end of the twenty-first century. Imagine an animal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/amphibians-are-dying-out-like-crazy-and-frogs-and-salamanders-may-be/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) > [“It didn’t just boost your concentration. It made you enjoy work. You couldn’t wait to get back to the keyboard, the breadboard, the gesture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/it-didn-t-just-boost-your-concentration-it-made-you-enjoy-work-you/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) > [Survivor species tend to have huge populations, so they can afford to lose many individuals and still survive as a species. They also tend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/survivor-species-tend-to-have-huge-populations-so-they-can-afford-to/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) > [In fact, the early demographer Thomas Malthus believes that the only way the human population would ever check itself was by running headlong into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/in-fact-the-early-demographer-thomas-malthus-believes-that-the-only/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) > [“ For all the robots who question their programming. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/for-all-the-robots-who-question-their-programming/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) > [Obviously it depends on how you define a word like "evolution," because of course we have been evolving - both biologically and culturally -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/obviously-it-depends-on-how-you-define-a-word-like-evolution-because/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) > [I try to be realistic and pragmatic. I have a lot of hope for humanity as a species, but obviously as individuals we can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/i-try-to-be-realistic-and-pragmatic-i-have-a-lot-of-hope-for-humanity/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) > [The fact is that humans have been shaping the genetics of what they eat for thousands of years. Genetic engineering simply speeds up the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/the-fact-is-that-humans-have-been-shaping-the-genetics-of-what-they/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) > [In terms of fiction, there are a number of writers who are thinking about the future of the environment whose work complements mine. Kim…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/in-terms-of-fiction-there-are-a-number-of-writers-who-are-thinking/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) > [“As UC Berkeley economics professor Brad DeLong put it to me: You get famine if the price of food spikes far beyond that of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/as-uc-berkeley-economics-professor-brad-delong-put-it-to-me-you-get/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) > [“Plus, it was made by Zaxy, the company behind Smartifex, Brillicent, and other popular work enhancement drugs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/plus-it-was-made-by-zaxy-the-company-behind-smartifex-brillicent-and/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) > [That said, a lot of people buy products with "green" in the brand name, but make no attempt to understand what it would really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/that-said-a-lot-of-people-buy-products-with-green-in-the-brand-name/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) > [“Every master loves to fuck a slave. It is a law of nature, or maybe culture.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/every-master-loves-to-fuck-a-slave-it-is-a-law-of-nature-or-maybe/) [Annalee Newitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) [Explore all 78 Annalee Newitz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/) ## More Be good quotes > [Passion is what you need to be good, an unforgiving passion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-easton/passion-is-what-you-need-to-be-good-an-unforgiving-passion/) [David Easton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-easton/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [Peace is the result of love, and if love were easy we'd all be good at it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colman-mccarthy/peace-is-the-result-of-love-and-if-love-were-easy-we-d-all-be-good-at/) [Colman McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colman-mccarthy/) > [Therefore, I see whatever exists as good, death is to me like life, sin like holiness, wisdom like foolishness, everything has to be as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/therefore-i-see-whatever-exists-as-good-death-is-to-me-like-life-sin/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Most of us want to live in harmony and peace and be good to others. Right now, however, the world is in a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hany-abu-assad/most-of-us-want-to-live-in-harmony-and-peace-and-be-good-to-others/) [Hany Abu-Assad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hany-abu-assad/) > [I've never had any desire to be good. I don't like goodness particularly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hanif-kureishi/i-ve-never-had-any-desire-to-be-good-i-don-t-like-goodness/) [Hanif Kureishi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hanif-kureishi/) > [To become a classical ballerina, you have to move to New York when you're 12 or 11 and that becomes your life. I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-garner/to-become-a-classical-ballerina-you-have-to-move-to-new-york-when-you/) [Jennifer Garner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-garner/) > [The producers felt that 24 would be good for the audience, to really get to know who these 12 and 12 are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-abdul/the-producers-felt-that-24-would-be-good-for-the-audience-to-really/) [Paula Abdul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-abdul/) > [All will concede that in order to have good neighbors, we must also be good neighbors. That applies in every field of human endeavor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/all-will-concede-that-in-order-to-have-good-neighbors-we-must-also-be/) [Harry S. Truman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-s-truman/) > [Everybody wants to be good, but not many are prepared to make the sacrifices it takes to be great.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-arden/everybody-wants-to-be-good-but-not-many-are-prepared-to-make-the/) [Paul Arden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-arden/) > [There's such cultural rot taking place, such a disintegration throughout our culture. Values, morality, you name it. Standards have been relaxed, and people are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/there-s-such-cultural-rot-taking-place-such-a-disintegration/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [The difference in being good at some thing and being great at something is usually found in the little things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-anderson/the-difference-in-being-good-at-some-thing-and-being-great-at/) Randy Anderson > [It doesn't matter if your lead character is good or bad. He just has to be interesting, and he has to be good at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-chase/it-doesn-t-matter-if-your-lead-character-is-good-or-bad-he-just-has/) [David Chase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-chase/) > [What's good for the very rich might not be good for anybody but them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-jackson/what-s-good-for-the-very-rich-might-not-be-good-for-anybody-but-them/) [Jesse Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-jackson/) > [“Living in the middle of beauty like this, we've no call to have puny ideas about God. Why do you suppose His world is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-marshall/living-in-the-middle-of-beauty-like-this-we-ve-no-call-to-have-puny/) [Catherine Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-marshall/) Browse all 1,747 Be good quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think that humans are also set up to survive. We're not as small as rats, but we make up for that by being intelligent enough to make our own hiding places and to adapt to new habitats, even if they are changing very quickly. We have an enormous population, and can afford to lose billions of people without suffering very much as a species. Indeed, some would say losing five billion people would be good for the planet - I disagree with them, but can't deny that we would do just fine if there were two billion of us or even one billion.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Annalee Newitz" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/i-think-that-humans-are-also-set-up-to-survive-we-re-not-as-small-as/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Be good" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/i-think-that-humans-are-also-set-up-to-survive-we-re-not-as-small-as/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d33/annalee-newitz-8659_be-good_i-think-that-humans-are-also-set-up-to-s_1912773.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d33/annalee-newitz-8659_be-good_i-think-that-humans-are-also-set-up-to-s_1912773.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d33/annalee-newitz-8659_be-good_i-think-that-humans-are-also-set-up-to-s_1912773.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I think that humans are also set up to survive. We're not as small as rats, but we make up for that by being…” — Annalee Newitz", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Annalee Newitz", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annalee-newitz/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I think that humans are also...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/i-think-that-humans-are-also-set-up-to-survive-we-re-not-as-small-as/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annalee-newitz/i-think-that-humans-are-also-set-up-to-survive-we-re-not-as-small-as/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```