Joyas Voladoras

In this insightful, well written article the life of hummingbirds are discussed at length. Particularly, hummingbird hearts. The article tells about their enormous ferocious metabolisms, and their race car heart rates. The article explains the volatile life of the bird when they stop to take a rest. If they rest for too long or go too long without eating, they could die. It makes me think about human life and how volatile our lives could really be if were not properly treated. The point the author made about the length of an organism's life compared to its heart rate really stood out to me. "Every creature on earth has approximately two billion heartbeats to spend in a lifetime. You can spend them slowly, like a tortoise, and live to be two hundred years old, or you can spend them fast, like a hummingbird, and live to be two years old". It also made me reflect on human life, about how long we live, and how people in shape live longer that those who don't. Then I was lead to the conclusion that every organism is alike in the sense that our hearts are somewhat the same. So the answer to what does it mean to be human isn't really about a physical aspect. Our bodies are very similar to animals, besides our superior opposable thumbs. So the distinguishable factor between humans and animals must be in our personality and mindset. Could it be our feelings and emotions? Doyle states that So much held in a heart in a lifetime. So much held in a heart in a day, an hour, a moment". Which suggests to me that what makes us human are our memories. The things in our heart are what make us who we are. They distinguish us from other organisms that cant express personality or their feelings.

What does it mean to be human?

Different people have different viewpoints on what it means to be human. I believe that to be human means to have certain characteristics. Humans should be self functioning living organisms, with the ability to do as they please and express their feelings. They are intelligent with the ability to shape their world.