James lovelocks gaia hypothesis archive ouverte hal. Gaia a new look at life on earth james lovelock oxford landmark science. It is running a fever born of increased atmospheric greenhouse gases. A concept to define the necessary changes to human settlement and dwelling at the global scale, to adapt to global warming. Gaia has been a fruitful hypothesis generator, and has prompted many intriguing conjectures about how biological processes might contribute to planetaryscale regulation of atmospheric chemistry and climate. If one it is at all interested in saving gaia, and humanity, it is time to listen to him. The idea that life on earth regulates the physical and. Basic evolutionary theory disproves this almost completely survival of the fittest what does lynn margulis say makes dawkins views on evolution and the gaia hypothesis compatible. In this classic work that continues to inspire its many readers, jim lovelock puts forward his idea that life on earth functions as a single organism. Lovelock proposes radical theories that contrast markedly with traditional green thinking as well as forecasting in stark detail what may occur if action is not taken. But according to james lovelock, the theory s originator, that organism is now sick. The gaia hypothesis has since been supported by a number of scientific experiments and provided a number of useful predictions.
The gaia hypothesis posits that the earth is alivea self regulating organism in its own right. Dr lovelock flatly told the guardian that 80% of human life on earth would perish by 2100. While this concept has its origins in the work of american oceanographer alfred c. We feel that we belong here as if this planet were indeed our home. The revenge of gaia is a scientific book by esteemed scientist james lovelock which discusses the effect human activity is having on the planet and what if anything can be done to halt the damage we have already caused. The book describes how the living earth may work, today, and in ages past, based on the latest research of lovelock and others. James lovelock explains gaia hypothesis on the sacred balance. A new look at life on earth, 1979 the beginnings of the gaia hypothesis came not from a study of earth, but from the search for alien life. In the 1960s james lovelock considered that the earth was like a living organism, itself engaged in a selfregulation to support its own survival. The gaia hypothesis james lovelock 1979 earth is a super organism it is alive like one single organism name is from greek earth godess gaia one step further than mother earth lovelock is a reputable scientist with a hypothesis that it pretty far out proposed as a testable scientific hypothesis. Along with nasa colleague dian hitchcock, lovelock found that the current state of mars atmosphere was in what appeared to be a state of equilibrium. Introductory as i write, two viking spacecraft are circling our fellow planet mars, awaiting landfall instructions from the earth. The key insight of gaia theory is that the entire earth functions as a single living superorganism. Gaia theory the gaia hypothesis is not, as many claim, that the earth is a single organism.
A new look at life on earth, the revenge of gaia, the vanishing face of gaia, and a rough ride to the future. Welcome to the personal website of james lovelock, originator of gaia theory, inventor of the electron capture detector which made possible the detection of cfcs and other atmospheric nanopollutants and of the microwave oven. Conceived by james lovelock, inventor of the gaia theory, this illustrated essay collection brings together an allstar lineup of thinkers and scientists to offer essential understanding about who we are, how we live, and where we might be going. While controversial at first, various forms of this idea became accepted to some degree by many within the scientific community. Oxygen is a reactive compound, and should eventually combine with gases and. The gaia hypothesis a, also known as the gaia theory or the gaia principle, proposes. Beautiful minds james lovelock the gaia hypothesis gaia.
Gaia is theorized to be a living entity that is greater than the sum of all the living and nonliving aspects of the earth. Lovelock s gaia theory states that, for much of the past 3. It claims that all of the organic and inorganic components of. The gaia hypothesis has since been supported by a number of scientific experiments20 and provided a number of useful. James lovelock called his first proposal the gaia hypothesis. James lovelock english chemist, doctor, and author.
The notion that the biosphere exerts important controls on the atmosphere and other parts of the earth system has increasingly gained acceptance among earth and ecosystem scientists. This may seem an odd statement after all that i have said about the way 20th century humans became almost a planetary disease organism. Aug 17, 2000 james lovelock, gaias grand old man the scientist who first theorized that our planet is a biological organism, not merely a rock, discusses life on earth and the possibilities for its future. Stephen miller, 1989 all quotes from james lovelock, taken from the ages of gaia.
It is an idea which deeply startles us, and in the process, may help us as a species to make the necessary jump to planetary awareness. James lovelock is a worldrenowned scientist and inventor whose work on detecting cfcs chlorofluorocarbons in our environment led him to develop a new theory about our planet. The ages of gaia a biography of our living earth by james lovelock 255 pages, paperback, w. The man who achieved global fame for his theory that the whole earth is a single organism now believes that we can only hope that the earth will take care of itself in the face of completely unpredictable. Lovelock states that the initial formulation was based on observation, but still lacked a scientific explanation. His gaia hypothesis, as it has become known, was defined by lovelock according to the following idea. How james lovelock introduced gaia to an unsuspecting world. The man who achieved global fame for his theory that the whole earth is a single organism now believes that we can only hope that the earth will take care of itself in the face of completely. He is best known for proposing the gaia hypothesis, which postulates that the earth functions as a selfregulating system with a phd in medicine, lovelock began his career performing cryopreservation experiments on rodents, including successfully thawing frozen specimens. Gaia a new look at life on earth by j e lovelock, publ. Earth will adjust to these stresses, but the human race faces a severe test.
Gaia hypothesis, model of the earth in which its living and nonliving parts are viewed as a complex interacting system that can be thought of as a single organism. One of the most unpredicted outcomes of the space program was the gaia hypothesis, the theory the biosphere itself works to regulate the temperature and chemical content of the earths atmosphere. James lovelock is the originator of the gaia hypothesis now gaia theory. The gaia hypothesis formulated by james lovelock in the late 1960s presents the notion that our planet is a single selfmanaging organism which regulates the conditions necessary for life. Long ago the greeks, thinking this way, gave to the earth the name gaia. Beautiful minds james lovelock the gaia hypothesis. The weak gaia theory is pretty much just saying that the earth and the organisms within it are an interconnected system with feedback loops and therefore capable of selfregulating up to a point. James lovelocks web site the international homepage. Apr 30, 2008 david suzuki talks with james lovelock about the origins of his gaia hypothesis, which suggests that the earth is one organism. Gaia theory model and metaphor for the 21st century. The author of more than 200 scientific papers, he was elected a fellow of the royal society in 1974.
The theory asserts that living organisms and their inorganic surroundings have evolved together as a single living system that greatly affects the chemistry and conditions of earths surface. According to gaia theory, life is a planetarywide phenomenon that alters the environment on a planetary scale. Bruno comby, environmentalists for nuclear energy, cc bysa the relevance of our. Apr 27, 2008 named after the greek earth goddess, gaia, the theory was developed in the 1960s by scientist dr james lovelock. James lovelock, gaia theory, and the rejection of factvalue dualism article pdf available december 2011 with 1,424 reads how we measure reads. Gaia, the grand idea 5 gaia is the earth seen as a single physiological system, an entity that is alive at least to the extent that, like other living organisms, its chemistry and temperature are selfregulated at a state favourable for life. Go nuclear, save the planet james lovelock, father of the gaia theory, says green opposition to atomic power, as seen in the high court last week, is crazy times on line, 18 february, 2007 we should be scared stiff renowned scientist james lovelock thinks mainland europe will soon be desert and millions of people will start moving north. Kirchner department of earth and planetary science, university of california, berkeley, ca 947204767, u. Earlier work in connection with the nasa planetary exploration program had suggested that atmospheric compositional evidence could provide prima facie evidence for the existence of life on a planet. James ephraim lovelock, ch cbe frs born 26 july 1919 is an independent scientist, environmentalist, and futurist.
From the documentary series the sacred balance, produced by. While there were a number of precursors to gaia theory, the first scientific form of this idea was proposed as the gaia hypothesis by james lovelock, a u. James lovelock, independent scientist, environmentalist, and futurist james lovelock is the originator of the gaia hypothesis now gaia theory. At the time, lovelock was working for nasa, looking at methods of detecting life on. Sep 12, 20 the weak gaia theory is pretty much just saying that the earth and the organisms within it are an interconnected system with feedback loops and therefore capable of selfregulating up to a point. Lovelock 1991 the topdown view of the earth as a single system, one that i call gaia. Life is a planetarylevel phenomenon and the earth has been alive for at least 3,000 million years. The concept of the gaia hypothesis originates from the 1960s when british scientist and independent researcher james lovelock began his work with nasa on developing methods to detect life on mars. Pdf james lovelock, gaia theory, and the rejection of. James lovelock will go down in history as the scientist who changed our view of the earth from a barren rock covered with a thin coating of life.
The word ecology is used by western scientists to refer to the branch of biology that examines interactions determining the distribution and abundance of living beings. In contrast to conventional belief that living matter is passive in the face of. We are the intelligent elite among animal life on earth and whatever our mistakes, earth needs us. In the revenge of gaia, bestselling author james lovelock father of climate studies and originator of the influential gaia theory which views the entire earth as. The ages of gaia explains lovelock s theory that the earth is a living organism. Gaia hypothesis village as lovelock at the time bowerchalke, wiltshire, uk.
Outlines jim lovelock s original theory that life on earth functions as a single organism, a hypothesis which has generated great debate in scientific circles. We have begun to add a new series of scientific papers by prof lovelock coauthors onto the website. Much as the gaia theory considers our earth as an integrated whole of living systems, the earth and i. A critical analysis in the 1960s, james lovelock, a british atmospheric chemist, was engaged in research commissioned by the national aeronautic and space administration nasa in the united states. James lovelock, who coined the term gaia hypothesis shockingly predicted this merger, or even a takeover or elimination of humanity by robots, two years ago more momentarily. Lovelock describes cyborgs as the selfsufficient, selfaware descendants of todays robots and artificial intelligence systems. James lovelock developed the gaia theory in the 1960s while working with nasa. Redfield in the mid1950s, it was english scientist and inventor james lovelock that gave. Just as when the sperm merges with the egg, new life was. Sir james lovelock, scientist and investigator, on his gloomiest climate change book so far. Named after the greek earth goddess, gaia, the theory was developed in the 1960s by scientist dr james lovelock. The gaia theory was developed in the late 1960s by dr. Cyborgs will replace humans and remake the world, james. The gaia hypothesis and earth system science the following is an excerpt from scientists on gaia by stephen schneider and penelope boston mit press.
In the 1960s, nasa set up its planetary exploration program with a mission to determine whether there was life on mars. Preventing its expected negative consequences on humans and not taking care of earth itself. James lovelock, in full james ephraim lovelock, born july 26, 1919, letchworth garden city, hertfordshire, england, english chemist, medical doctor, scientific instrument developer, and author best known for the creation and promulgation of the gaia hypothesis, an idea rooted in the notion that all life on earth is part of an entity that regulates earths surficial and atmospheric processes. For more than a century students of the evolution of the living and nonliving parts of the earth have known that life influences the physical and chemical characteristic of the planet.
While other scientists suggested elaborate tests involving space probes to check for microbes in martian soil, lovelock said to save the rocket fuel, we didnt even need to bother going there. Acceptance of the gaia theory has become so widespread that, in 2001, a thousand scientists at the european geophysical union meeting signed the declaration of amsterdam, starting with the statement the earth system behaves as a single, selfregulating system with physical, chemical, biological, and human components. Gottgensconservation biologyhans papers 2010tilman and downing 1994 nature. Yet the earth, in the biological sense, has a body sustained by complex physiological processes. Gaia is the belief that the earth is a selfregulating network of interdependent physical and biological systems. James lovelock originator of gaia theory and inventor of. A new look at life on earth it revolutionized the perspective of earth as a living being and. The world can be seen as a complex interacting system, behaving in some ways, like a single organism. Long ago the greeks, thinking this way, gave to the earth the name gaia or, for short, ge. Lovelock explains that the initial formulation was based on observation, but still lacked a scientific explanation.
Specifically, the studies were intended to develop a method for determining reliably whether or not biological life existed on mars. After its publication in james lovelocks book gaia. Lovelock s theory that life all clubs together for some sort of mutual advantage is inconceivable. The gaia hypothesis, first put forth in the mid1960s, and published in book form in 1975, has had a radical effect on scientific views of evolution and the environment fiercely debated by biologists. Jan 21, 2009 james lovelock, the man behind the gaia theory, thinks that climate change will wipe out most of us this century but there may be one way to save ourselves. Lovelock has developed this idea in a series of books, from gaia. We must learn to cope with it, he instead promotes a new approach called sustainable retreat. James lovelock, a british scientist and inventor, shortly after his work with nasa in determining that there was probably no life on mars. Lovelock first began thinking that the planet resembles a living entity in the 1960s, while working for a nasa project on how to detect life on mars. Written for nonscientists, gaia is a journey through time and space in search of evidence with which to support a new and radically different model of our planet. Trained as a field ecologist, stephan harding collaborates with james lovelock on gaian computer modelling. In proposing this theory, james lovelock sought to explain the many complex natural mechanisms that the earth has for regulating things such as climate and biological diversity. From gaia theory to deep ecology schumacher college.
At that instant the living things, the rocks, the air, and the oceans merged to form the new entity, gaia. After postulating there was a force for life on earth, in which all biology participates gaia this system may fight back, or limit the species which threatens to overwhelm nature. The practical science of planetary medicine lovelock, james. The gaia hypothesis some scientists argue that all living things have an equal importance because they all play a part in regulating the planet.
James lovelock the greatest environmentalist sustainable. While joining rudimentary gene components, such processes could enable microorganisms to reach metabolic autonomy andor to produce. The gaia hypothesis has since been supported by a number of scientific experiments 8 and provided a number of useful predictions, 9 and hence is properly referred to as the gaia theory. James lovelock and the gaia hypothesis new scientist. A new look at life on earth 1979 through to revenge of gaia 2006 and the vanishing face of gaia 2009.
James lovelock, next to a statue of gaia, the greek godess of the earth. Will tomorrow bring hordes of militant gaia activists enforcing some pseudoscientific idiocy on the community, crying there is no god but gaia and lovelock. James claims global warming is now past the tipping points and not avoidable. James lovelock called his first proposal the gaia hypothesis but has also used the term gaia theory. The idea of gaia may facilitate the task of converting destructive human activities to constructive and cooperative behavior. His research led to profound new insights about life on earth. The first mention of gaia was a brief paper by lovelock 1972 see also lovelock and margulis 1973 and margulis and lovelock 1974. Unit 5 gaia the gaia theory was proposed by british. Extending the domain of freedom, or why gaia is so. Scientists finally have an explanation for the gaia puzzle. Gaia theory is a compelling new way of understanding life on our planet. The gaia hypothesis says that the temperature, oxidation state, acidity, and certain aspects of the rocks and waters are kept constant, and that this homeostasis is maintained by active feedback processes operated automatically and unconsciously by the biota. We should be the heart and mind of the earth, not its malady.
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