“Don’t try to outclimb a squirrel. See if you can keep her near the ground while I think what to do.”

Kintisch explores whether coastal wetlands will be able to outclimb rising seas.

He can outclimb other sprinters and make up time in other places.”

It lies apparently dead for months together, but when roused it can, as the naturalist tells us, “outclimb the monkey, outswim the fish, outleap the zebra, outwrestle the athlete, and crush the tiger.”

Because jobs and promotion opportunities are scarce, many workers are worried that someone who is more connected and available could outclimb them on the corporate ladder, says Peggy Klaus, an executive coach in Berkeley, Calif. “Even if you have a career that is pretty solid,” she says, there is the feeling that advancement requires being plugged in at all times.