Dynamic and Control of Nature

“Balance of Natur

e” “Chaos!”

The Devine Power: Genesis

BBA Part1_3 (Gajaseni, 2009)BBA Part1_3 (Gajaseni, 2009) 44

Dynamic of the Physical Earth: Plate Tectonic

Is the geological evolution still continuing?

BBA Part1_3 (Gajaseni, 2009)BBA Part1_3 (Gajaseni, 2009) 55

Dynamic of Biological

EarthHow do they live How do they live together on the together on the

planet?planet?

Natural selection

66

Man-made environmentMan-made environmentBiotic environmentBiotic environment

Physical environmentPhysical environment

Local Region Country GlobalDistance Distance FutureFuture

Intermediate Intermediate FutureFuture

PresentPresent

Ultimate goal???

Spatio-temporalSpatio-temporal dynamic of dynamic of

the environment!the environment!

77

Solar capital Energy budgetEnergy in = Energy out

Earth capital

Water budget

Water up = Water down

Environmental dynamic

at various spatio-temporal scales!

The Gaia hypothesis (Lovelock,

1979)

‘The biosphere is a self-regulating entity with the capacity to keep

the Earth healthy by controlling the

chemical and physical

environment.’

Can we “falsify” the

Gaia hypothesis by

“scientific method”?

Yes, no,

or

unlikely!

Comparative study of the atmosphere of

the Earth, Venus and Mar

• 2 2Low CO and high O and N of the Earth VS. the reverse on Venuu and uuu

• uuu uuu uu uu uuu uuuuu uuuuuuuuuu022• uuuuuu uuuuuuuuu uu uuuuuuuuuuu uuuu uuuu uuuu: the builtup

2ofO and 2reduction of CO• uuuuuuu uuuuuuuu uuuuu uuu uuuuuuuuuu uu uuu uuuuu uuuuuuuu

- re wi thout l i fe Ni trogenFi xers

Comparative study of the at mosphere

of the Earth, Venus and Mar (continue)• Without chemical transformation by

biotic community, soils and waters w ould be so acidic that only few organi -sms now on the Earth could survive

-no life support• A variety of specialized microorganis

ms keep the vital compounds movin g between organic and inorganic sta

tes,• Without “buffering capacities” by th

e biotic community, physical factors fluctuation and conditions on the Ear

-th would be similar to Venus very ho t, with no oxygen in the atmosphere.

Gaia is Gaia is ““non-sense”!non-sense”!

Domination of the Earth by human mind or

“Noosphere!”

Vernadsky, 1945

What would be the best survival

strategy? Non believer– business as usual

– if the hypothesis i s false - fine no p

roblem– if the hypothesis i

-s true face the j udgement day

Believer– Respect the Mother E

arth– Protect the Earth’s n

-orm biodiversity– if the hypothesis is fals

-e fine no problem– if the hypothesis is true

- the Mother Earth mi ght “buffer” the imp acts of global change

-s -Life support-Life support!

Hierarchy of Nature

Ecol ogi cal hi erarchy

Biological hierarchy

-Chemical phy sical hierarc

hy

Each level possess control mechanism! Deviation at higher level will be less! therefore, Higher level sets constrain to lower levels!

Controls in Ecological Hierarchy

Resilience vs. Resistance

Resilience: The ability of a system to

return to its original

position after disturbance.

Resistance: The ability of a system to

resist disturbance. “Which one we are very familiar with?”

Control of Ecosystem b y Organisms

Top down vs. Bottom u p controls

Top down = predation

Bottom up = nu trients,

photosynthesis

Feedback Controls: Positive and negative

Input Output

System

Input Output

System

1ry Sub-system

2ry Sub-system

OutputGoal

System

ControllerInput

Sub-system being controlled

Control specification

Redundancy in functional

components

• Different components with similar function

• These components can compensate for one another

• Providing alternative pathways for energy flow and material cycling

• Achieve controlled response without feedback

Conclusion

‘Because of the functional

redundancy in ecosystem, therefore,

decreasing in biotic

components will have no effect on control of

the ecosystem!’

Right or Wrong?

Greenhouse gassesdisrupt energy balance!What would be the

consequences?