Humankind is one of the most fascinating species in how far off it seems we are from other walks of life. Not literally I guess, because of the whole evolution thing, but humankind just seems to live differently compared to every other species that lives with us on this planet.

Whether or not you choose to believe humankind is the dominant race, there's one unmistakable fact that we are intelligent seemingly beyond what we need to be. It’s hard to describe, while keeping it short, just how much humankind has changed the natural order of the game of life, but I’ll give it a shot with just a dozen words.

Trains, Planes, and Cars. Hospitals and Vaccinations. Genetically Modified Foods and Pesticides. Industrialization and Cell Phones. Now don’t get me wrong, all of these things (and so much more) are incredible feats of humankind making life much easier, efficient or more appealing.

And when you look in wonder at how far human civilization has pushed the standard of living, you can also look back and see what life was like, and basically still is like, for every other species on Earth. No special luxuries just a game of survival.

I know I said humankind was much different than other life forms we know of, but we are also so similar to them in our basic need to eat, sleep, reproduce, and survive.

So, have you ever wondered why humans are so smart and live the way we do as opposed to some other species? There's a really interesting article about why humans are so intelligent from the Washington Post titled, “How helpless babies helped make humans so smart”.

It explains human intelligence as a result of theorized evolution. So now we have this intelligence, but what did we do with it? I mean other species are intelligent too so how did we get here and not them?

I think one of the qualities that humans emphasized more than other species was selfishness. Other species just want to survive, but I feel humans had a selfish need for more… more land, more knowledge, more possessions and money, more success and ultimately just the selfish desire to be superior.

Humankind has capitalized on their brains and abilities and achieved selfishness beyond survival. But, in this newfound need have we lost track of our need for survival.

Humankind has come a long way from primitive living, but along the way we have disgraced the very reason for which we can live, our planet. Planet Earth, the only planet that has been discovered thus far that can sustain life. Thanks to being in a habitable zone in our solar system, having a magnetic field and a rich atmosphere Earth has been a home to which humankind can thrive. Our planet provides all the natural resources that all forms of life use to survive.

Although humans in search of more abandoned the natural order of the world, finding more alternatives, nonrenewable alternatives for building what we considered our world. But, it’s not our world, not even close.

We haven’t been here the longest, aren’t even close to being invisible, and what's worse is that we could potentially destroy this world for all species living here. It’d be different if we didn't know what we were doing, but we do! We know exactly what we are doing when we are destroying ecosystems and the wildlife that live there. We know exactly what happens when pesticides and other human trash and pollution ends up in our rivers and then oceans.

We know exactly what we are doing when we burn fossil fuels everyday we drive to work. Science has shown the effects our burning fossil fuels and the resulting carbon emissions are having.

We read about it but turn a blind eye because it’s much easier to fill up landfills and the oceans with trash. It's much easier to reap the benefits and let earth and other species face the consequences. It's much easier to take our cars to work rather than a bicycle, the subway, or a bus. However, when I look outside at the endless highways and cars, rundown buildings and fast food places on every street I don't see a beautiful world, or one in which I take pride in living.

I'm not saying there isn't man made beauty I just think the footprint left by humankind is far less beautiful than the footprint left by Mother Earth before us.

When you go to Yellowstone National Park, the Grand Canyon, Niagara Falls, or even hiking at your local state park do you enjoy them more looking out the window on the drive up along the interstate? I know when I look at all the cars passing I think about where they are all going, and one thing they all have in common is that they are racing towards death.

Living life in the fast lane for now until it runs out. Maybe life won't run out in their life time, maybe they'll pass away long before the end humankind as we know it. So what does it matter to them whether or not we destroy the earth…. but what about their future generations of children? Not having children? Maybe the end of human existence will just be us not reproducing.

Regardless, we've seen extinction of species in our lifetime so who's to say it can’t and won't happen to humans. Well if we don't take care of our planet it likely could happen in the future. But maybe humans will work their way back up the evolution chain. Or who knows maybe NASA can find another habitable planet like earth and then after we fail here on earth we can move to another planet to slowly destroy.

Or just don't think about it. Because it won’t happen in your lifetime and after all humankind was built on selfishness.