Survival of the Fittest

In T.S. Eliot’s essay, “Definition of Culture”, he states, “the truly great poet makes his

language a great language”, and this claim is justified. With diverse countries signifying different endowments such as cooking and sport, there are always specifics that snap into mind when thinking about a particular nation. But how do these realms acquire their representations? In Darwin’s Theory of Evolution, competition is one of the five key observations and inferences. Competition has sought reason to continue, grow, and develop. Without it, we would either be stagnant or dead. T.S Eliot’s phrase uses the word language, but when we replace that word with any talent, the statement is still correct. At a larger perspective, everything and anything we do, we attempt to represent ourselves in the best possible manner, to make our own country be the best. Italian food has enslaved taste buds around the globe for centuries, with its zesty tomato sauces, those clever things they do with wheat flour and desserts that are basically vehicles for cream. It’s all so simple. Get some noodles, olive oil, garlic, and maybe a tomato or a slice of bacon. Bon Appétit, you have a party on a plate. From the cheesy risottos to the crisp fried meats, Italian cuisine is a compendium of crowd-pleasing comfort food. Many people have welcomed it into their homes, especially novice cooks. Therein lies the real genius -- Italian food has become everyman's food. Does this mean it is the “best?” Maybe not to some people, but for others, the restaurant Rao’s, in New York is definitely a reason. Frank Pelligrino is the owner of Rao's and critics say you would have better luck getting invited to dinner at the White House than getting a proper reservation at this Italian joint, and this is because tables at Rao’s are not so much reserved as controlled. They’re paid for an entire year in advance, so to speak, like season tickets, and just like you can’t sit in the owners’ box at Yankee Stadium via any sort of public market, you can't really get into Rao's either. A table for four at 8 p.m. every Tuesday, say, will cost you between $1,000 and $25,000 annually, depending on who you are — and that's just for the table, not including food. No other restaurant has such classy representation of food, so Italian cuisine must be at the top of the food chain. Two hours, 31 minutes, and 51 seconds after the Boston marathon began on Monday July 21 2011, its male and female champions had already finished. A few minutes later, race-watchers noticed something. The first, second, and third-place men were all Kenyan. So were the first, second, and third-place women. It was yet another amazing showing for Kenyan runners, and yet another reason to ask: how? Two