about 250 words

Sarah Lambert

sel15@geneseo.edu

Student, INTD 105-19

The War On Campus: A Battle Between Man And Nature

By Sarah Lambert

  Since humans appeared on this planet, the advancement of technology has had a significant impact on the nature and environment around us. We have developed the advancements to build sky scrapers and cruise ships as well as materials–acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, for example– to print objects in three dimensions. It has become common today to dismiss the idea that man and nature may coexist. I believe, however, that not only do we coexist, we have all become unified with nature.

    I noticed, as I walked around campus this afternoon, the significant difference between the firm, hardened cement I walked on and the green, grassy areas along side it.

    The cement that my worn out flip-flops slapped down upon remained unchanging under my feet. On the edge of the cement, the boundary where the natural and the artificial converge, the grass grows with persistence. Though it may be cut, it still tries to overcome the artificial barrier that has been poured and set in its path.

    If we look close enough, this boundary becomes a battleground. As the cement stands firm, the grass exerts energy daily, trying even harder to overcome its opponent. This cement was something that humans created. However, it’s derived from nature itself. The crushed rocks cemented into place have likely been here longer than we have, we just found them a new purpose. The closer you look, however, the more obvious it becomes that it isn’t truly a battle between man and nature. Rather, it is just further evidence of how we have become even closer to nature, using it for our own devices.