The collective activity of various life forms on Earth, including bacteria, plants, and animals, has completely changed our native celestial body. For example, the production of photosynthesis by plants and the release of large amounts of oxygen turned the place into a completely different place, that is, their joint action resulted in a planetary scale.
Scientists think that such an impact on the biosphere has “revived” the earth itself, and if so, could it have its own “mind”? – This is the question that specialists are trying to answer, who have expanded their thought experiment (imaginary lottery of hypothesis) in a paper published in the International Journal of Astrobiology.
The new study is based on concepts such as Gaia’s hypothesis that the biosphere interacts closely with non-living systems (air, water, land) to maintain compatibility with planet life. This also applies to technologically underdeveloped non-terrestrial species.
This is evidenced by the fact that the roots of the trees are connected to each other by underground mycorrhizal networks of fungi. If there is a lack of nutrients in one part of the forest, it is supplied with the necessary resources through this network, ie it collectively “animals”.
According to the authors, today our civilization is an “immature technosphere” – man-made systems and technology that directly affect (negatively) the planet and are unsustainable. This means that we use fossil fuels to get energy, which destroys the oceans and atmosphere. In order to survive as a species, we must work together on Earth to incorporate our shared consciousness.
Scientists have divided into 4 steps to show how the “planetary mind” can change our future:
Immature Biosphere – Early earth on which microbes already existed, although vegetation had not yet formed. Consequently, nothing could cause the above-mentioned large-scale changes.
Developed Biosphere – 2.5 billion -540 million years ago Earth, where stable continents and vegetation already existed, photosynthesis took place, and the atmosphere contained a layer of oxygen and ozone, ie the biosphere affected the viability of the planet.
Immature technosphere – the present earth, with communication systems, transport, electricity, computers and other technology. Such a technosphere leads to self-destruction.
Developed technosphere – Earth, where technological systems are used to the benefit of the planet in a way that does not harm the biosphere, but evolves with it.
“The multimillion-dollar question is what the ‘planetary mind’ looks like and what it means in practice, because we do not yet know how to move up the ladder of the developed technosphere,” the authors say.
Each part of such a complex system must interact with others in such a way that global processes depend on it. Examining this issue will help us not only to understand the future of the earth but also to pave the way for extraterrestrial civilizations.
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