Introduction

A culture is made up of the energy systems, the objective and specific artifacts, the organizations of social and political relations, the modes of thought, the ideologies, and total range of customary behaviors that are transmitted from one generation to another by a social group and that enable it to maintain life in a particular habitat. The adaptation achieved by a population of mammals is the result of genetic mutation. In man, however, adaptation is achieved by means of culture. The point of view that is taken in this book is that human adaptation is the result of the energy systems that are harnessed by a group and the organizations of social relations in the group that make it possible to use its energy systems effectively. Adaptation is a process, a relationship between an item of behavior and its source; it is also an abstract principle that refers to the sweep of institutions that are changing in a particular direction.