For humans, suitable life conditions are associated with joy and comfort. However, this particular stance on life is not universally shared. An example of deviation from what is considered to be the norm of living is extremophiles. These organisms are capable of surviving in the utmost hostile habitats, for example, poison, acid, and toxic waste (“Life’s extreme environments,” n.d). In addition, they exhibit an ability to thrive in extreme temperatures, be it glaciers or hot springs.
The existence of life in extreme environments was not always an obvious fact for scientists. However, due to continuous research, planet Earth was discovered to have several unique ecological niches and biotopes that were previously thought impossible to exist (Merino et al., 2019). The human race has spent plenty of time and resources attempting to find life on other planets; however, so far, the results are scarce. This lack of results creates the environment of doubt that surrounds the rhetoric regarding life in space, the same way that doubts abounded when discussing life in extreme conditions. Despite these doubts, evidence of life prevailing in nature’s extremities has been found, which gives humans hope to find life beyond planet Earth.
The knowledge and experience that the scientists have gathered during the research of extremophiles could change the way scientists view people’s understanding of life. Multiple factors contribute to the way people perceive life around them. Not the least important one of them is their adaptability. The example of extremophiles shows that an organism’s adaptability could be taken to practically impossible extremes. Due to this fact, scientists may begin to perceive this quality as people’s number one priority in life and their understanding of it.
References
Life’s extreme environments (n.d.). Web.
Merino, N., Aronson, H. S., Bojanova, D. P., Feyhl-Buska, J., Wong, M. L., Zhang, S., & Giovannelli, D. (2019). Living at the extremes: extremophiles and the limits of life in a planetary context. Frontiers in Microbiology, 10, 780.