BIOLOGY: WEEK 5





Geological dating has provided evidence that the remains of a fossilized jawbone belonging to Graecopithecus predate the oldest potential hominin found in Africa.  This has led scientists to believe that hominins may have been from Europe.  Although this theory may be true, more fossils must be found in order to confirm the fact that Graecopithecus was indeed an early hominin.  Early human fossil record is so poor that there are still many holes in the timeline of the evolution of our species.  The prevailing current theory is that the early journey of man arose from the continent of Africa.  However, as time goes on, the discovery of more fossils will slowly reveal a clearer story of our early ancestors.







Gaia theory has definitely caught the attention of a wide range of audience, including the scientific community.  Gaia proposes that the earth functions as a living organism that manipulates the physical and chemical environment to maintain a self regulating, symbiotic system. Although it had been mocked by the scientific community and labeled as nonsensical, the rest of the world embraced Gaia theory.  There were Gaia groups, Gaia church services, a Gaia atlas, Gaia herbs and Gaia retreats.  Gaia enthusiasts were growing by the numbers!  I think that it is admirable that James Lovelock was courageous enough to propose such a theory that pushed the boundaries of established science.  It was even more admirable that he withstood the pressure of fellow scientists who turned on him.  The widespread public appreciation of Gaia theory leads me to believe that we have an inherent longing for the magical component of life that science has sought to dismember and discredit.













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Comments

  1. UnknownJune 9, 2018 at 1:08 PM

    Gaia! Yes, it does seem to have a less accepted stance in the scientific community, but the evidence is there for sure! And I think it's much easier for us as TCM practitioners to ascertain this concept since we work with such a holistic view of the body as a whole. It's like the microsystem in a macrosystem. We are a microsystem in the macrosystem of the earth which can then be looked at as the Earth as part of a macrosystem of the planets that surround our sun and then as our galaxy as part of the universe and so on and so forth. Also side note, I love all of the pictures you include into your writeups, they are a great addition :D

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