"The Ages of Gaia" by James Lovelock

What is the Gaia Hypothesis? Stated simply, the idea is that we may have discovered a living being bigger, more ancient, and more complex than anything from our wildest dreams. That being, called Gaia, is the Earth.

More precisely: that about one billion years after it's formation, our planet was occupied by a meta-life form which began an ongoing process of transforming this planet into its own substance. All the life forms of the planet are part of Gaia. In a way analogous to the myriad different cell colonies which make up our organs and bodies, the life forms of earth in their diversity coevolve and contribute interactively to produce and sustain the optimal conditions for the growth and prosperity not of themselves, but of the larger whole, Gaia. That the very makeup of the atmosphere, seas, and terrestrial crust is the result of radical interventions carried out by Gaia through the evolving diversity of living creatures.

Encountering the Earth from space, a witness would know immediately that the planet was alive. The atmosphere would give it away. The atmospheric compositions of our sister planets, venus and mars, are: 95-96% carbon dioxide, 3-4% nitrogen, with traces of oxygen, argon and methane. The earth's atmosphere at present is 79% nitrogen, 21% oxygen with traces of carbon dioxide, methane and argon. The difference is Gaia, which transforms the outer layer of the planet into environments suitable to its further growth. For example, bacteria and photosynthetic algae began some 2.8 billions of years ago extracting the carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen into the atmosphere, setting the stage for larger and more energetic creatures powered by combustion, including, ultimately, ourselves.

That is how James Lovelock discovered Gaia; from outer space.In the 1960's, during the space race which followed the launching of Sputnik, he was asked by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Nasa to help design experiments to detect life on Mars.The Viking lander gathered and tested some Martian soil for life with no results. Lovelock had predicted as much, by analyzing the atmosphere of Mars: it is in a dead equilibrium. By contrast, the atmosphere of Earth is in a "far from equilib rium" state- meaning that there was some other complex process going on which maintained such an unlikely balance. It occurred to him that if the Viking lander had landed on the frozen waste of antarctica, it might not have found any trace of life on Earth either. But a sure giveaway would be a complete atmospheric analysis... which the Viking lander was not equipped to do. Lovelock's approach was not popular at Nasa because Nasa needed a good reason to land on Mars, and the best was to look for life. Viking found nothing on Mars, but Lovelock had seen the Earth from the perspective of an ET looking for evidence of life. And he began thinking that what he was seeing was not so much a planet adorned with diverse life forms, but a planet transfigured and transformed by a self-evolving and self-regulating living system.By the nature of its activity it seemed to qualify as a living being. He named that being Gaia, after the Greek goddess which drew the living world forth from Chaos.

"The name of the living planet, Gaia, is not a synonym for the biosphere-that part of the Earth where living things are seen normally to exist. Still less is Gaia the same as the biota, which is simply the collection of all individual living organisms. The biota and the biosphere taken together form a part but not all of Gaia. Just as the shell is part of the snail, so the rocks, the air, and the oceans are part of Gaia. Gaia, as we shall see, has continuity with the past back to the origins of life, and in the future as long as life persists. Gaia, as a total planetary being, has properties that are not necesarily discernable by just knowing individual species or populations of organisms living together...Specifically, 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."

Even the shifting of the tectonic plates, resulting in the changing shapes of the continents, may result from the massive limestone deposits left in the earth by bioforms eons ago.

"You may find it hard to swallow the notion that anything as large and apparently inanimate as the Earth is alive. Surely, you may say, the Earth is almost wholly rock, and nearly all incandescent with heat. The difficulty can be lessened if you let the image of a giant redwood tree enter your mind.The tree undoubtedly is alive, yet 99% of it is dead.The great tree is an ancient spire of dead wood,made of lignin and cellulose by the ancestors of the thin layer of living cells which constitute its bark. How like the Earth, and more so when we realize that many of the atoms of the rocks far down into the magma were once part of the ancestral life of which we all have come."

The root question of Gaia's critics, and a central point in his theory concerns the difference between a planetary environment which might only be the aggregate result of myriad independent life forms coevolving and sharing the same host, and one which is ultimately created by life forms deployed, so to speak, to accomplish the purpose of the larger being. Is the idea of Gaia only a romantic and dramatized description of the terrestrial biosphere and its effects, or is there a planetary being, whose life cycle must be counted in the billions of years, which spawns these evolving life forms to suit the purpose of its being. Do our kidney cells ask each other these sorts of questions? While your white blood cells thrive and reproduce, going about their business,they are indisputably serving the life of the larger body which you use, though whatever consciousness they experience in their realm is certainly far from that which you, the larger being, the whole, experience.

Recent scientific work, such as in the field of complex systems, have begun to give us the impression that this opposition of terms, the larger caused by its constituents, or the costituents created by the larger, may be one of those oppositions which are the constructs of our own minds, and must be dropped if we are to understand the truth, which is neither the one nor the other, but more difficult to comprehend and more fascinating to behold. Perhaps there is awareness appropriate at every level.Perhaps that is a property of life.

And what might be the nature of its evolution, this planetary being called Gaia? Anthropocentrists to the last, we might assume that the production of the human species is a great step upward for Gaia, a sort of rapidly evolving brain tissue. Or that she prepares the earth as a cradle and crucible of consciousness evolving. Other analogies come to mind: are we part of her arsenal of interplanetary spores?

And what might constitute a life cycle for such a being- might it be as strange as that of the slime mold? What stage would Gaia be in now? Is our species part of her maturity or an incubation period? Is Gaia herself somehow part of a larger living being, perhaps on a galactic scale? If so how do the cells of this larger being remain in communication? Will we eventually be able to experience something of the awareness which Gaia has?

Lovelock points out that Gaia, being ancient and resourceful enough to have carried out these successive changes of the planet in spite of asteroid collisions and other setbacks, is herself probably not endangered by the relatively momentary depradations of the human species, as it befouls and cripples the bio-dynamics of its environment. Rather,the danger is to the human rac

A fabulous look at why the planet Earth is alive and how she helps sustain life. Without Life existing on Earth Gaia would not exist, and if Gaia did not present the proper conditions, nothing on planet earth would be alive. Mr Lovelock does a great job of presenting the information to us and gives us a great deal about which to comtemplate!

Imagine living in Europe during the Dark Ages, when everyone thought the world was flat, and having someone demonstrate to you that the world is a sphere. In our modern version of the Dark Ages of the environment we are under the delusion that our Earth is lump of rock inhabited by life. Lovelock shows that the Earth is a living, self-regulating system comprised of all of life tightly coupled with its environment. He traces the 3.5 billion year life of the Earth as a living entity in an easy and enjoyable to read fashion. If we as a species are fortunate enough to survive the next 1000 years it will be because this book was recognized as the most important ever written in the 20th century. For you Gaia theory buffs out there: The Gaia theory dawned on Lovelock when he was having a conversation with Carl Sagan and some other colleagues.

I co-edited this important literary document with Dr. Thomas F. Staley, Director of the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center, where the vast Stuart Gilbert collection was acquired in the early 1990s. Gilbert was a British citizen, who, after retiring from his work as a judge in Burma, married a French woman and moved to Paris in the early 1920s to pursue more intellectual pursuits. Once in Paris, he became an intimate part of the literary circle surrounding James Joyce, and wrote the first book on Joyce ("James Joyce's Ulysses"), before falling out of favor with him. His dyspeptic journal, at turns scandalous and illuminating, gives an inside account of life in the Parisian literary circles where Joyce lived and worked, and is prefaced by an introductory essay by Dr. Staley, one of the leading scholars of literary modernism. It should be useful to the many students and scholars interested in better appreciating Joyce, European modernism generally, or simply the joys of Paris in the twenties.

Randolph Lewis rrlewis@hotmail.com

This book gives the reader a much better understanding of Joyce and his writings . It fills in many gaps in this 'larger then life' authors career . The many previously unpublished letters to his friend and literary collaborator , Stuart Gilbert , allow one to see the author is his own light . The rare photos , provide the reader with an intriguing glimpse of this colorful author .

A must have book for the serious James Joyce scholar .

Best Hikes in CMR is a great book for parents and kids to utilize for day hikes in the area. We found the most critical piece was that their ratings of difficutly and timeframes to complete are accurate. Also has many hikes in area's that are not the typical "tourist" hikes. The only negative was the limited maps that went along with the trail descriptions. Would be great if the author could point us to better maps or have a web site with them.

The series is a must-have for hiking with children. I use the CT-MA-RI book to scope out which trails would be good for hiking with my 5 year old son. We have done about 8 of the 79 so far. Each one had accurate descriptions and good indicators for difficulty. Highly recommended.

This is a very good biography of George Washington during the French and Indian War years. It is written well, enjoyable and easy to read.
One of the things I especially appreciated was the writer explaining just how George Washington became involved with the colonial goverment, so that he was ever asked to be involved in the political situation of the time. Not many books make this clear.
The book not only covers George Washington, but also hits upon the politics of the time and many other important people involved during this exciting historical period.
I am glad I read the book and I recommend it to others. This is an especially good book for those with little knowledge of George Washington's involvement with the British government and the politics of the French and Indian War.

This is by far the best biography of the early years of the life of George Washington I have ever read. Lewis gives us not only a brilliant introduction to young Colonel George Washington, but also a vivid analysis of the period of the French and Indian War, including the people, places, and circumstances of the conflict.

The book first gives a background on an adolecent Washington and his boyhood adventures as a surveyor in western Virginia. We learn how he grew up admiring the wealth and lifestyle of his aristocratic neighbors, the Fairfaxes, and how he began a long journey to emmulate them and to be a part of their privileged world. However, Washington's own ambitions pull him in other directions as he becomes deeply involved in the brewing storm of events that would culminate with the conflict with the French and Indians over posession of the Ohio Country and the Trans-Allegheny region. We follow Washington as he attempts to make a name for himself with the Governor of the Virginia colony by accepting a mission to deliver a message to the French army marching south from Lake Erie to the Forks of the Ohio River. This single event pushes Washington from the "shadows of an ordinary life" onto the stage of history. We see as Washington botches his attempt to protect the Forks from a French invasion at Fort Necessity and his anger at his own failure to not only obtain a royal commision in the British army, but to even obtain a victory in battle. Lewis details Washington's involvment in the war from Braddock's disasterous campaign against Fort Dusquene in 1755 to his ultimate anti-climactic success at the end of the long and muddy Forbes' Road in 1758, after which Washington retires from public service to return to the simple life of a farmer forever.

I also enjoyed Lewis' attention to the background of the struggle that served as the forge of experience for young G. W. Here we are exposed to the details and origins of the problems with not only the French, but particularly the Indians living in the Ohio Country and the singularly important role they played and the failure of Washington, or any other whitemen, to grasp that importance. This is evident in both Washington's and Braddock's terrible defeats in the early war years. Lewis gives us fascinating accounts of Washington's peers, his allies, enemies. These are men like Ohio Company scout Christopher Gist, The Seneca chief Tannacharison (Half-King), friend and neighbor George Fairfax, and others. In the end Washington would emerge older and experienced from a bloody conflict prepared to take on an even greater leadership role in another later fight in the not too distant future. A great book that I highly recommend.

This is a great book for someone interested in learning about the Harlem Renaissance. The author presents vital information in an accessible way, and illustrates the diversity and complexity that is American Art.

This is a very nice looking book that not only provides context about the Harlem Renaissance and the proliferation of Black artists during the 20's and 30's, but it also includes many reproductions of some of the period's most representative works. From the cover photo which is a copy William Johnson's "Boy in a Vest," to the James VanDerZee's striking black and white photography, to the sculptures of Meta Warwick, the reader is treated to many examples of the visual arts. There are also essays and poems by the Countee Cullen and other writers of the time. This is a good introduction to the period and is suitable for children and young adults. And old adults too for that matter!

Nagel, professor of Islamic theology at Göttingen, writes from outside Islam and in the rationalist-historical tradition to explicate what Muslims have believed, using a style often found in western theological studies of Christianity that are based in history rather than faith. He has intentionally refrained "from rashly pointing out parallels or similarities between Islam and Christianity, because this tends to be misleading.... It is more important and helpful to recognize-and accept-the different nature of the other faith." He methodically examines the nature and meaning of the Qur'an; the nature of faith; concepts of salvation; the literary traditions of hadith and kalam; the role of rationalism in the major schools of Islamic thought; revelation, philosophy, gnosis, orthodoxy and, as he moves from the classical to the modern era, ideology. The book concludes with a relatively brief annotated list of further readings. Useful for the serious non-specialist reader.

The History Of Islamic Theology: From Muhammad To The Present is a thoughtful, informative, careflly presented and scholarly tracing of the evolution of Islamic doctrine from its origins down to the present day. Written by Islamic theology and history expert Tilman Nagel (University of Gottingen, Germany), The History Of Islamic Theology has been superbly translated from the original German into English by Thomas Thornton. While the primary focus is on the early development of Islam in the ninth through twelfth centuries, Nagel also reveals the many ways in which Muslims from around the world have carried the precepts and doctrines of Islam into contemporary times. A strongly recommended addition to Islamic Studies supplemental reading lists and academic reference collections, The History Of Islamic Theology is also available in a hard cover edition (1558762027,).

It takes courage (some would say audacity) to write a book that plays on the title of C. S. Lewis's most famous work, Mere Christianity. But Longenecker has succeeded in writing a work of Catholic apologetics that pays homage to Mere Christianity and explains Catholic doctrine with verve and joy.

Longenecker is no stranger to both Fundamentalism and Evangelicalism. He attended Bob Jones University, and while studying there became acquainted with the writings of C. S. Lewis. Longenecker eventually moved to England, attended Oxford, and became an Anglican priest. Years later, after much study and consideration, he entered the Catholic Church and has been writing about Catholicism and apologetics ever since.

The goal of More Christianity, Longenecker states, is "to help non-Catholic Christians who are interested in historic Christianity to understand the modern Catholic Church more easily." Clearly he has written his book with the curious, well-read Evangelical in mind - the sort of informed Protestant who relishes reading C. S. Lewis and has questions about the Catholic Church. "Now at the dawn of the twenty-first century," Longenecker argues, "that simple Gospel that Lewis branded 'mere Christianity' and that Evangelicals call the 'old, old story' is more fully and universally presented in the Catholic Church than anywhere else."

Longenecker understands that Mere Christianity was not meant to be promote a minimalist Christianity, as some critics suggest. "Lewis's Mere Christianity is good as far as it goes, and as a first step in Christian apologetics it probably has no equal. To be fair, Lewis denied that his use of 'mere' in the title indicated the lowest common denominator." The major flaw of the famous book is its lacking ecclessiology. The problem, Longenecker argues, "is that Lewis and other well-meaning non-Catholics believe the fundamentals can exist as objective truth outside the dynamic life of the Church. . . . The basic truths of the Christian faith cannot be separated from the wholeness of the Church. Catholics believe those basic truths can be most fully known within the bosom of the Church."

After establishing these and other core premises, Longenecker works his way through the major issues separating Catholics from Evangelicals: eccelesiology, authority, the papacy, salvation, the sacraments, the Eucharist, the saints, and Mary. While not breaking any new apologetic ground, but he does a fine job of comparing Catholic doctrine with common Evangelical notions and misunderstandings. His chapter on the Real Presence is one of the best. He correctly observes, "I believe most Evangelicals deny the supernatural dimension of the Eucharist through an inherited misunderstanding of the Catholic position combined with a concession to the spirit of the age that is skeptical of anything supernatural. The way forward is to remind Evangelicals that they do actually believe in the supernatural; they do believe God is at work in the world in wonderful ways."

Longenecker's discussions of salvation and Marian beliefs would have benefited from a greater emphasis on grace as the supernatural life of God. Catholics agree that grace is divine favor, but go much farther and deeper than do Evangelicals in holding that grace is the Trinitarian life that truly infuses the soul. And the issue of confirmation is clouded by comparing the sacrament to "personal conversion." Unfortunately, this suggests that confirmation is about an individual decision, not the conferring of further supernatural grace and the gifts of the Holy Spirit upon the person - whether they are an adult, a teen, or a baby.

A balanced, engaging, and charitable work, More Christianity will go far in helping Evangelicals (and Catholics) better appreciate the riches and glories of the Catholic Church.

Note to fans of C.S. Lewis's Mere Christianity: There's more. In this book, Longenecker ventures a good part of the way into the minefield of the 'More'. The book emerged from his own story, of finding his way to Rome, on a path that started out fundamentalist/evangelical Mennonite-influenced and led to Canterbury and Anglicanism and, eventually, to Catholicism. Unlike a lot of conversion stories, though, this one refrains utterly from even the least disparagement of Protestantism. Not once coming across as superior or sneering at the values of Protestant Christianity (in this respect he seems to have perfected the benevolent manner of C.S. Lewis, the eternal kindly uncle of evangelical Christianity), Longenecker writes with both perspicacity and genuine affection for the days of family altar, revival meetings, and youth camps in Pennsylvania. The hymns and stories remembered from his youth and favorite Scriptures, all become, in this rendition, an overture to something else deeper and more dynamic, like a great opera that is ready with the stage set and just waiting for the curtain to rise.
Somehow in the search for and propagation of 'mere' Christianity, a lot of Christians seem to have forgotten to ask what else there is to the Christian experience: to Longenecker this is an almost unimaginable pity, like walking away from a banquet after just sampling the hors d'oeuvres. 'More Christianity' orients the seeker of the More to historical Christianity in its full expression, in particular, as found in the Roman Catholic Church, and fully addresses the stereotypes and misgivings that Protestants have about Rome, without resorting to strident theological polemics. Protestant readers who devoted to the truth, and are curious and really open to understanding the teachings of historical Christianity and who are ready to forsake some dogmatic misconceptions, will be surprised at how amicable and uncomplicated the way back to Rome could be after all. Definitely the best book of its kind.

Siegelbaum has performed a valuable historical service by compiling these letters. Americans, and perhaps other Westerners, would do well to pay heed to what man wrought in that era, and its implications for our politically correct society of today. The outpourings of the hearts of Soviet citizens who were led to believe they were building the society of the future will, at times, make you want to cry. The responses from some of the Soviet leaders to their pleas make the blood run cold.

Stalinism as a Way of Life is collection of first hand accounts of the people who actually lived in Stalin's Russia. This book is wonderful if you are interested in the everyday life of the Russian people. Warning, if you get sick of everyone complaining because they have no shoes then this book is not for you. If you are more interested in the political aspects of the politburo then Getty's Road to Terror is better for you.

I think you should read. Hill of Fire. It is very good. I like the middle part. My favorite part is when the volcano erupts. I think you should read this book.

I thought this book was really good. If you read my report l think you should read the book. It is about a man and his boy. His father is a farmer and one day the boy comes out and helps his father. Then they hit the top of a volcano. Which is in the ground and it destroys everything. Then they rebuild everything.

Hill of Fire tells the true story of a Mexican farmer who encounters the beginnings of a volcano in his corn field. The vocabulary is very easy, and yet the author captures the mood of the sleepy village that was changed forever by El Monstruo. I recommend this book to teachers of grades 2 and 3 and to children who are just moving away from picture books.

A group of students and I just finished reading THE LIVES OF A CELL as part of a readings in biology seminar this spring. Once you read the first 3-4 chapters it becomes obvious that there is not a central theme (or is there) for the book.

Contents of this book are a compilation of reflective articles originally published in a medical journal. Chapter topics range all over the place, but they present many topics drawn from biological thought prominent through the mid-1970s -- everything from molecular biology to Gaia to sociobiology.

There is a wealth of material here appropriate for discussion among undergraduate students, professionals, and perhaps even science-directed high school students. Each of the 29 chapters are about 3-5 pages long, can be easily digested, and beg to be reflected upon and discussed.

As for the writing, other Amazon reviewers have referred to the writing in this book as being poetic. While I didn't see so much of that, I was struck by Thomas' ability to turn a phrase, make a point, and discuss complex biological ideas in a manner that is easily understood. The writing in the book is a definite plus.

There are also times in the book where I can imagine Thomas grinning as he wrote, or, perhaps giving the occasional wink! He must have had a wonderful sense of humor.

OK, back to the theme...if there is one...it seems to me that one common theme of several of the chapters has to do with communication -- oral, chemical, behavioral, and genetic. Other possible themes include the fact that humans are "not all that." That we are part of the global system, not running it. Another possibility includes the idea that everything can be an analogy of the way that a cell works -- organelles, membranes, cellular processes, products, and so forth.

This is excellent reading for anyone interested in ideas about life and living. Well written, occasionally humorous, and intruiging.

5 stars!

I first picked up a Lewis Thomas book at a garage sale. The question that's been plauging me ever since is, "why would anyone want to sell this book?" Thomas is now not only my favorite non-fiction writer, but my favorite writer, period. Why? His books are like conversations with an old friend: witty, interesting, and with many levels. I wouldn't reccommend this book if you really don't like science, but if you have even the slightest interest in science, you should have read "Lives of a Cell" already. Some of the essays can get rather technical, but I always found them to be at least understandable, and always enlightening. The essays are also short, so you can read them convieniently as the time presents itself. Overall, this book is funny, thought-provoking, and wonderful. What more could you ask for (except possibly another Lewis Thomas book)?

What can one say if you believe to have found the 'John Steinbeck' of science! I totally enjoyed his descriptive readings and perspectives of our magnificient world! Lewis Thomas has done an excellent job interpreting his thoughts on life through the language of science. He blends the two so delicately and precisely, that one starts to forget where the line between real life and scientific theory is drawn. Lewis Thomas found joy in science and it is illustrated in his essays. He manages to show the reader a peek at how a scientist like himself looks at the world.

I have chosen this book as one for all of my ninth grade Honors Biology students to read and report about. The book definitely makes the reader 'think'...you will not be able to just read one page after the other..one will need to keep a dictionary close by. Thomas uses quite alot of scientific terminology. It is definitely not for the lazy reader. It is for those individuals who read to learn more and enjoy the challenge of new vocabulary to broaden their own horizons in science or language itself. I enjoy giving my students a challenge and that is exactly what this book offers to the young mind.