GERMS IN SEAWATER

Sometimes concepts are overwhelming. One such idea is the hypothesis of Gaia, which James Lovelock put forward and supported by Lynn Margulis in the 1970’s, which I was aware of in passing but not impressed. The concept has several interpretations, some of which are controversial. Perhaps the most controversial one is that the Earth is composed of self-regulating systems that seek to maintain conditions optimal for life, which is obviously wrong in the sense that living matter is a passive inhabitant on earth and not a driving force. The fact that living matter has changed the Earth is undeniable; thus, not controversial. However, when scientists extended this concept to humankinds’ growing impact on climate, it is cause for panic in the self-serving minds of some people.

The proposal is that all living forms are part of one massive living being fancifully named Gaia by Lovelock. Others coined the term ‘biosphere’ to give a more meaningful physical description to this massive cumbersome “being” that these scientists describe. Thus, the proponents describe Gaia as a space extending several kilometers into the sea and earth and fewer kilometers into the atmosphere, creating a hollow sphere about 23 kilometers thick. Obviously, the physical limits are those that harbor living things as we known them. The implication is that all living things co-evolved, one influencing the other and the entire planet Earth as well.

Of course, the Earth resulted from the big bang and for the benefit of man; it did not evolve to benefit humankind, as some would have us believe. Equally true, the chemistry of the earth changed due to living matter. For example, scientists believe free unstable oxygen was essentially not found in the most ancient atmosphere, while carbon dioxide and water, which are stable molecules, were abundant. Photosynthesis evolved which produced oxygen from water. It is truly remarkable when we consider that it is now 20% of the entire world’s atmosphere and that it all came from photosynthetic process. We can compare this outcome to Mars for example, where scientists assume the atmosphere was unprotected by methane allowing the sun’s ultraviolet light to change all the water to hydrogen and oxygen, which was lost to space leaving a dry uninhabitable planet.

Some form of Gaia is here to stay and we have to learn to incorporate it into our thinking. The book, Acquiring Genomes: A Theory of the Origin of Species by Lynn Margulis and Dorion Sagan (2002), while a little stuffy and self-aggrandizing, gives a pretty good overview of the subject of Gaia and its current impact on science. However, I do not agree with her conclusion about many things, including her main theme about how advanced life acquired their genomes; she makes one statement that is certainly true. She stated that an interest in evolution creates an appreciation of a wide range of scientific disciplines ranging from cosmology, through geology to plant and animal physiology, which is what I assume E. O. Wilsons meant by the word consilience.

My interest in evolution stimulated me to question the limits of the random polymerization of RNA and DNA we find in our body cells. One thing led to another until I asked myself the above question. The results of an internet search for “viruses in sea water” staggered me. It clearly was an example of wandering though scientific literature that unexpectedly included Gaia. It turns out there is a ubiquitous mass of noninfectious viruses and bacteria in the seawater. There are ten million viruses in one drop of seawater. An extending  statement made in respect to microbes—germs—in seawater is as follows:

“They grow at rates many times faster than larger animals. As a result of their sheer numbers, and the rates at which they grow, they are responsible for transforming and shaping the distribution of life’s essential elements—and they help control climate on our planet. Without marine microbes, life as we know it could not persist.”  Rachel J. Parsons

Wow! Truly remarkable. 

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