Gaia hypothesis

Gaia hypothesis
/gay"euh/
a model of the earth as a self-regulating organism, advanced as an alternative to a mechanistic model.
[1970-75; < Gk gaîa earth; see GAEA]

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Model of the Earth in which its living and nonliving parts are viewed as a complex interacting system that can be thought of as a single organism.

Developed с 1972 largely by British chemist James E. Lovelock and U.S. biologist Lynn Margulis, the Gaia hypothesis is named for the Greek Earth goddess. It postulates that all living things have a regulatory effect on the Earth's environment that promotes life overall; the Earth is homeostatic in support of life-sustaining conditions. The theory is highly controversial.

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Universalium. 2010.

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