saliencies-deactivated20121214 asked: I enjoy reading your blog very much and wanted to ask your opinion on something: do you think the Earth has a homeostasis similar to the human body? Thanks~

Hey there,

You’re referring - generally - to the Gaia hypothesis, which basically makes the case that the Earth is a giant organism that depends on various systems to survive. And, like any complex organism, each system plays a role in its stability. Like clean blood, clean water circulates and nourishes. Etc.

Ideological-environmentalists argue that if any one one system collapses, then the entire organism (Earth) will also collapse. But, no scientist or field of research (that I know of) has taken the idea seriously. See here.

It’s an interesting hypothesis, and there’s a lot of serious chatter about the matter. There’s even talk about how Gaia theory conflicts with religion, for example.

I’m not sure how to answer your question, and I’m unclear what one could learn from my response. That said, my time is valuable, and I haven’t spent any of it reading, researching, or writing about the Gaia or similar hypotheses…

Cheers!

Michael