Does nature always have a way to acclimatize and fix itself?

euser1984 · 26-10-2017 12:40pm #1

If that's the case are humans more powerful at the "moment" than nature in that sense?

Fathom · 26-10-2017 4:06pm

Reflect upon geologic time and human evolution. Bipedalism, one human defining trait, evolved about 4 million years ago. Complex symbolic expression (elaborate cultural diversity) emerged about 100,000 years ago. Comparatively speaking, these were just blinks of the eye in geologic time. Did "nature" have to "acclimatize" or otherwise have time to establish equilibrium in accord to human existence and potential impacts?

Capt'n Midnight · 28-10-2017 11:06am

euser1984 wrote: »

If that's the case are humans more powerful at the "moment" than nature in that sense?

two words, "Huronian glaciation"

but easier to remember the later , similar but far shorter "snowball earth"

our planet came very close to becoming a large icy moon , until volcanic activity hundreds of millions of years later caused the climate to heat up enough to melt the ice. Had we been further away from the sun or had plate tectonics been different or our atmosphere been thinner (like if we had a smaller moon or smaller magnetic field or less asteroids in the late heavy bombardment) , then we would not be here today.

Fathom · 30-10-2017 4:41pm

Interesting comment on Snowball Earth 2.4 to 2.1 billion years ago in New Scientist.

Fathom · 01-11-2017 9:08pm

Dynamic equilibrium example from University of Surrey.

igCorcaigh · 10-11-2017 11:57pm

Just my 2¢:

Complex systems tend to drift from one stable state to another, under forcing. The intermediate stage can be brief and chaotic.

These movements are called phase changes. So, water can exist in multiple stable phases: ice, liquid water, water vapour.

I'm not sure what you mean by nature, but in the context of climate change, we can describe how the global climatic system shifts under a forcing effect of ghg induced warming.

The system will eventually shift back to the previous stable phase, once the forcing has been removed, but that may take a very long time.

Rubecula · 11-11-2017 6:24am

The biomass on the planet formsthe entire biossphere, and simply put, this is pretty much static, ie one species becomes dominant so othe species have to become lesser to allow for the expansion of the first.

As the humen population increases it is very likely that other species (both plant and animals) will become extinct. This not good for anything. including us.....

Does nature always have a way to acclimatize and fix itself?

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