Gaia: A New Look at Life on Earth (Oxford Landmark Science) Reprint Edition

Lovelock quite rightly is widely considered the originator or at the very least the primary popularizer and promotor of Gaia Theory. This book is a beautiful explanation and summary.I have believed for a long time now that his theory not only makes scientific sense but should by now in 2024 simply be Common Sense. It is all a giant living self-regulating system--this planet and all its life forms, too.We can get all caught up in arguments about what it means to say the earth is alive or has consciousness, etc. But the facts suggest it is so. Read this small book and be moved, impressed, amazed, delighted.Gaia Theory could be the Great Myth we humans live by, the great opportunity we have as sentient human beings. To honor Mother Earth and work with her instead of against her could be the answer we unconsciously seek now through religions and all the other mad human ego games and superstitions. I'm not at all sure we humans are wise enough as a species to grasp the opportunity we have but if we continue destroying the earth, she, Gaia, may very well cast us off and continue on without us.As for me, I will love her to whatever end befalls me. Get on board. There is plenty of room...

I read this when it first came out. Some critics made fun of Lovelock but he sure made sense to me. Now most of them are in agreement. He explains complex concepts in very clear language and some how captures the vital, dynamic, ever-changing interactive nature of all that is 'earth', all processes living in connection and response to each other. What indigenous people who live close to nature have always understood.

James Lovelock has created a powerful and interesting argument in this book that will keep scientists busy for centuries. He notices that there is an ability for the Earth to maintain relatively constant conditions in temperature, atmosphere, salinity and pH of the oceans, and reductions in pollutants that defies the simple observations of what "should" happen. From this, he concludes that there is a complex of physical, chemical and biological interrelationships that work like a living organism, which he defines as the Gaia Hypothesis. For defining that concept and providing some of the measurements to establish its premises, he deserves a 7 star rating.Unfortunately, the argument is expressed in overlong and convoluted fashion. He deliberately limits himself to a nonscientific explanation in this book. The scientific version of the argument is in The Ages of Gaia. Although the book is not long, it certainly could have been condensed into a longish article for Scientific American or The Atlantic Monthly. My second quibble is that the editor was nowhere in sight on the organization of the book. The key point is often buried in the third sentence of the last paragraph in a chapter. The argument in between wanders into all kinds of places where it doesn't need to go. For organization and editing, I give this book a one star rating.So the average is a 4 star rating. The writing itself is pleasant enough. Don't let the lack of organization and editing put you off, for it is worth your while to read this book. It will remind you of the benefits of the sort of sytems thinking that Peter Senge talks about in The Fifth Discipline.The other thing you will learn is the weakness of scientific work that fails to develop enough field data and to connect enough with other disciplines. I was struck by the same observations recently while visiting environmental scientists at the Smithsonian Institution. The basics in many of these areas have yet to be measured and evaluated. This book will point countless generations forward in understanding how our plant maintains its environment that permits life to flourish. Clearly, it is a stallbusting effort to replace "stalled" thinking about the history and future of the Earth. I found the key questions (such as why doesn't the ocean become more saline?) to be irresistible. I think you will, too. Enjoy and think!

An intriguing new look at our planet. Lovelock extols the need for a more holistic approach to science after its centuries of moving towards ever more specialization and reductionism. 'Gaia' is the metaphor for his top-down look at Earth - literally - and what makes it 'tick'. He makes the reader aware of the adaptability of life to whatever conditions prevail and the consequent near-impossibility of achieving lasting equilibrium (as of a dead planet). He describes the complex interaction of atmosphere and sea as well as the impact of life thereon both from organisms on land and in the sea, and he raises interesting questions about the nature of pollution. All this leads to his hypothesis (now known as the Gaia Theory) that Earth - through the life it spawned - is itself a self regulating living system, where planetary homeostasis is achieved and maintained by living organisms.In 'Living with Gaia' he discusses two mainstream views: man as Earth's steward and man as Earth's tragedy or even its scourge, but avoids a direct answer by emphasizing the cybernetic qualities of Gaia. All he says is, that man being a part of that system, but also with the ability to influence it significantly, may play a role in it - for better or worse.In contrast to Lovelock's later books 'The Revenge of Gaia' and 'Vanishing Gaia', which are dire warnings, 'Gaia' is simply the presentation of the original hypothesis, and in a very elegant way at that, to make it accessible to the non-scientist too.

This is not a new book or a new topic but the source of an essential concept. At this point, the notion that the planet Earth is a living, breathing bio-system seems obvious; but originally Lovelock's idea was not easily accepted. It took a NASA scientist exploring the possibility of intergalactic life forms to identify the mechanisms which render Earth habitable. From a planetary engineering point of view, life terraformed this planet and the biodiversity of life - from microcosmic phytoplankton to Blue whales - maintain the critical balance of the global ecosystem. Good read, easy to understand, should be required for all humans.