ABSTRACT
One of the most striking features of Nature is the existence of living organisms adapted for surviving in almost any ecosystem, even the most inhospitable: from abyssal depths to mountain heights, from volcanic vents to polar regions. The magnificence of this fact becomes more evident when we consider that the life environment is continuously changing. This motivates certain life forms to become extinct whereas other beings evolve and preponderate due to their adaptation to the new scenario. It is very remarkable that living beings do not exert a conscious effort for evolving (actually, it would be rather awkward to talk about consciousness in amoebas or earthworms); much on the contrary, the driving force for change is controlled by supraorganic mechanisms such as natural evolution.
