What book is Gaia?
Gaia is a fictional planet described in the book Foundation’s Edge (1982) and referred to in Foundation and Earth (1986) by Isaac Asimov. The name is derived from the Gaia hypothesis, which is itself eponymous to Gaia, the Earth Goddess.
What is the basic idea of the Gaia hypothesis?
The Gaia hypothesis, named after the ancient Greek goddess of Earth, posits that Earth and its biological systems behave as a huge single entity. This entity has closely controlled self-regulatory negative feedback loops that keep the conditions on the planet within boundaries that are favorable to life.
What is James Lovelock’s Gaia?
Lovelock’s Gaia theory states that, for much of the past 3.8 billion years, a holistic feedback system has played out in the biosphere, with life forms regulating temperature and proportions of gases in the atmosphere to life’s advantage.
What did James Lovelock do?
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 …
Why is the Gaia theory important?
The Gaia Theory has greater significance for some aspects within ecology than others. Firstly, the Gaia theory develops the idea of interdependence within an ecosystem to a global level with the idea that the biotic and abiotic life interacts via feedback mechanisms, which enable life on earth.
What is the Gaia effect?
The Gaia hypothesis (/ˈɡaɪ. ə/), also known as the Gaia theory, Gaia paradigm, or the Gaia principle, proposes that living organisms interact with their inorganic surroundings on Earth to form a synergistic and self-regulating, complex system that helps to maintain and perpetuate the conditions for life on the planet.
What is the meaning of Gaia?
Earth
Gaia was the Greek goddess of Earth, mother of all life, similar to the Roman Terra Mater (mother Earth) reclining with a cornucopia, or the Andean Pachamama, the Hindu, Prithvi, “the Vast One,” or the Hopi Kokyangwuti, Spider Grandmother, who with Sun god Tawa created Earth and its creatures.
How old is Gaia?
Her exact age is unknown, but she is assumed to be the same age or slightly older than Ryne, who is likely no older than 15.
Who is the author of the book Gaia?
Gaia means Earth or the goddess of Earth. In this book she is discussed through the Gaia hypothesis or her more formal science name; geophysiology. Gaia: A New Look at Life on Earth (1979) is written by James Lovelock who is an inventor, scientists and turned 101 years old this year (2020)!
What does Gaia a new look at life on Earth argue?
Gaia: A New Look at Life on Earth is the first accessible synthesis of what is now known as earth system science. Lovelock lays out an argument that the Earth’s oceans, atmosphere and biosphere constitute a single living organism, named Gaia.
Why did James Lovelock write the book Gaia?
Lovelock poses here the experiences and reflections that made him create Gaia, the hypothesis that the biosphere is a system that acts to maintain the chemical conditions and temperature of the atmosphere and the seas needed to support life on Earth.
How many stars does the book Gaia get?
A book of great importance, introducing the entity Gaia. You come away from the book with a recognition of who you are; namely, an off-spring of Mother Earth. Five stars when first published, but four stars now because of scientific additions and subtractions.