Quote:
Originally Posted by sjh
the problem with the gaia hypothesis is that it attributes personifies what is little more than a giant system of living creature with no long term plan or goal.. The idea goes so far as to assign a gender to it. that aside, the gaia concept/religious belief does promote a globally responsible lifestyle.
most biologists would propose that all living systems reproduce until they reach an upper limit imposed by the effects of stress on the environment. Disease, fighting, starvation are some of the results. Humans are in one of three states, growing to the point of disaster, in a state of disaster, or using intelligence to find a steady state.
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Although there are those that would consider the GH a religion my view is that the ‘system’ makes since.
Why does it make since? Because everything on this planet has basically the same cycle. Take a rock for example; it has a beginning and an end, although the cycle may take several billion years to complete the cycle. Then take organic matter, also a beginning and an end, just much, much faster. Finally take the earth as a whole and apply the same principle that the earth had a beginning and will eventually have an end.
If everything on this planet and in the known solar system has the same basic cycle how can anyone dispute that there isn’t cause and affect? Hence my point that humans are causing global warming and the affect is that the earth is taking measures to correct the problem.
As far as the earth being a conscious living being that is a topic best left to philosophers and theologians.
What is fact is that humans are the ultimate narcissists in that we believe that we are the beginning and the end of all reality when in actuality we are just a tiny blimp on the earth’s time radar.