Why subscribe?

This is a blog kept by Ugo Bardi. It is about Earth as a living being, a complex system kept in a stable condition by active forces generated by the ecosystem cycles that continuously react to perturbations. Being alive means to change: Earth continuously changes its parameters to remain alive. It is the heart of the “Gaia” concept: self regulation by means of feedback. The carbon cycle is the most important one. Carbon is a vital element of Earth’s ecosystem, having played this role for billions of years. In the form of carbon dioxide, CO2, it governs climate, temperature, and the metabolism of plants and animals. Too little CO2 may hamper plant life, but too much of it is a poison for the metabolism of the metazoa and it may push the ecosystem into the “hothouse” state, creating mass extinctions. It is a delicate balance that human activities have upset during the past few centuries and are upsetting even more during the last few decades. At the same time, other cycles are going on: the hydrological (water) cycle, the sulfur cycle, the geological cycles, and the human-created technological cycle. This blog provides you with vital information about what is happening and what we may expect to happen.

Subscribe to get full access to the newsletter and website. Never miss an update.