why humans survived, in that we always seem to explore even when our needs are met

Kind of romanticizing it, aren't we?

The "explore even though needs are met" drive seems to be almost completely a male phenomenon- there has never been (as far as we know) a large exploration/colonization undertaking made up of and/or led by women.

I ascribe to the theories that exploration was less "a uniquely human trait that allowed us to survive" and more the result of resource scarcity and/or systems where one or a few men controlled all the resources (including mates).

Basically, for most of human history women had little incentive to leave and risk their health/safety when the means of raising a family weren't hard to come by, and many males who weren't born into or able to acquire resources through social stratification, had more incentive to leave and try somewhere else if they wanted to start a family.

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