Chapter 5 The New Gaia Theory

No one regards this "chicken or the egg" issue seriously. Because "chicken and eggs" are life forms with long history of evolution, asking which comes first is itself pointless.

The same goes with the earth. Comfortable temperature did not create the ocean nor did the ocean brought about comfortable temperature. Comfortable temperature and existence of ocean were made possible only after the long history of evolution and intertwinement. It can also be said that the existence of ocean and comfortable temperature are the very evidences of the living earth.

In other words, earth maintains its life by keeping its body temperature through circulation of the ocean waters as its blood. Needless to say, ocean, like blood, is important in transferring nutrition. Water, in form of rain, will be poured onto the land where its function as solvent is utilized to dissolve various substances among the soil. It would then run through the vessels of the earth ( = rivers) carrying various suspended matters and organisms until it reaches the ocean. Marine organisms would then consume those as their nourishment.

Some marine organisms would then be fed to life forms on land. Some would voluntarily go upstream, like salmon, to become the nourishment for the organisms on land. When those land organisms die, they will return to soil and then be washed again by the rain.

Oceans, rivers, and the water that runs through those act as the circulatory system for the earth.

By the way, general definition of organisms is "a body that performs reproduction and metabolism". As we have seen, there is no doubt that the earth is performing metabolism. If we regard earth as vital, how can we explain the another definition "reproduction"?

Translated by Rie Ishida