11 results found.
... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 133: JAN-FEB 2001 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Superorganisms: From Simplicity To Complexity Superorganisms are biological entities made up of large numbers of simpler entities that have banded together to perform functions they cannot do as individuals. Termite mounds are often mentioned as superoganisms. But here we examine colonies of organisms that are much simpler and much smaller than termites. What entices the anomalist to attend to superorganisms? Here are two of the several questions superorganisms raise. How do superorganisms evolve properties that its constituent individuals do not possess, such as mobility, unique sensors, and even a modicum of intelligence. Since superorganisms do not reproduce as superorganisms, how can natural selection operate on these superorganisms? Salps. Books dealing with the unexplained sometimes include a photograph of a huge marine creature identified as a sea monster. This famous photo is real and so is the monster in it. But this creature is not reptilian; it is really a salp, a colonial tunicate. Tunicates are tiny, primitive marine organisms usually classified as invertebrates. Some species of tunicates have somehow acquired the habit of aggregating in immense numbers to create long, hollow, snake-like tubes called "salpa." Salps may reach lengths of 45 feet, with diameters of 3 feet. No wonder they are falsely identified as sea monsters. Structurally, the tunicates comprising the salp are embedded in a gelatinous wall facing inward. Each possesses a siphon that pumps nutrient-carrying sea water. Working in unison, the tunicates create ...
Terms matched: 1 - Score: 264 - 15 May 2017 - URL: /sf133/sf133p08.htm
... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 120: Nov-Dec 1998 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Gaia as a super-superorganism The Gaia hypothesis states that the earth's environment is maintained suitable for life by life itself. Our climate, atmospheric oxygen level, ocean composition, and similar vital conditions are kept livable by life's waste products, such as the oxygen emissions of plants. That something like Gaia is required is seen in the extreme disequilibrium of the earth's atmosphere compared to the near-equilibrium of the atmospheres of apparently lifeless Venus and Mars. For example, our atmosphere's 21% oxygen, a highly reactive gas, is many orders of magnitude higher than one would expect on a lifeless planet. Furthermore, life-friendly conditions have been maintained for billions of years despite large changes in the sun's output and the traumas of asteroid impacts. T.M . Lenton, writing in Nature, asks a salient question: How has planetary self-regulation (Gaia) been established and maintained by evolution and natural selection which operate on the level of individuals? In other words, evolution tells us that organisms should evolve so as to leave the most progeny not so as to regulate the atmosphere. Lenton answers that there must be feedback loops from the planetary environment that steer the evolution of individuals in the "proper" direction. Lenton goes on to explore some of these many feedback mechanisms; one obscure loop involves the production of dimethyl sulfide by marine phytoplankton. Truly, it ...
Terms matched: 1 - Score: 95 - 15 May 2017 - URL: /sf120/sf120p08.htm
... also nonlinear, which means that chaotic, unpredictable action may occur. Davies implies that such action can be "creative," almost as if they possessed free will! His final example is that of the network with large numbers of interacting sites or nodes. With random inputs, large networks do exhibit self-organization. Network theory is now very popular in the field of artificial intelligence. (Remember the computer Hal in 2001?) Davies's conclusion: ". .. Neo-Darwinism, combined with the mathematical principles emerging from network theory and related topics, will, I am convinced, explain the 'miracle' of life satisfactorily." (Davies, Paul; "The Creative Cosmos," New Scientist, p. 41, December 17, 1987.) The superorganism. One week later, O. Sattaur expanded on the Gaia concept. He quotes J. Lovelock's definition: ". .. the physical and chemical condition of the surface of the Earth, of the atmosphere and of the oceans has been, and is, actively made fit and comfortable by the presence of life itself...in contrast to the conventional wisdom which held that life adapted to planetary conditions as it, and they, evolved their separate ways." Mainstream science has shown scant love for the Gaia concept, probably because of its holistic nature. The idea of the earth being greater than the sum of its organic and inorganic parts -- a superorganism -- is foreign to reductionistic science. In Gaia, our planet is a giant, self- ...
Terms matched: 1 - Score: 25 - 15 May 2017 - URL: /sf056/sf056g16.htm
... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 20: Mar-Apr 1982 Issue Contents Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues This Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects A TALE OF TWO ECOSYSTEMS -- OR MAYBE MANY MORE Comment. It was quite fortuitous that the following two pieces, found on the same day, fit together so nicely. (Nature is fortuitous!) A group of scientists studying termites have isolated over 100 species of protozoa and bacteria living cooperatively inside the termites gut. Some of the bacteria even live inside the protozoa and other bacteria forming ecosystems of several symbiotic levels within each termite. Each termite itself is part of a complex social "superorganism," the termite colony. That termites had bugs in-side them has long been known; but the new-found complexity and interdependency of life systems within life systems is remarkable. The researchers believe that the life forms inside the termite work together to create the uniform internal environment needed by all inhabitants, just as the termites themselves cooperate to maintain a favorable environment inside their hill. (Anonymous; "And Littler Bugs Inside 'Em," Scientific American, 246:78, February 1982.) The termites, though, are only part of a much larger ecosystem, the earth itself. J.E . Lovelock, in his Gaia, A New Look at Life On Earth, has observed that our planet's environment has actually changed little down the eons despite solar variations. Lovelock's hypo thesis is that all terrestrial life -- animals, plants, termites, etc -- work sym biotically ...
Terms matched: 1 - Score: 15 - 15 May 2017 - URL: /sf020/sf020p06.htm
... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 120: Nov-Dec 1998 Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues Last Issue Next Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Contents Archaeology The pigeon-snaring mounds of tonga Pyramid stones not "cementitious" Where did they come from? Astronomy Bye-bye mercury, and maybe mars The force is with them Biology Why some like it hot Dog doctors Acoustical "vision" underwater Gaia as a super-superorganism Geology Spod logs Miles of floating forest Geophysics Bouncing ball lightning A BRIGHT FLYING OBJECT AND ANOTHER ENIGMATIC CRATER Psychology Are ufo abductions akin to ndes? Precognitive dreams Physics More quantum weirdness Mathematics The first digit phenomenon ...
Terms matched: 1 - Score: 15 - 15 May 2017 - URL: /sf120/index.htm
... " The largest and most successful colonies produce -- somehow -- a larger-than-normal individual, almost always a male, that is fuelled with extra fat and possesses a yen to travel. He is disinclined to mate with the resident queen, preferring to leave the colony for amorous adventure elsewhere. Thus, intercolony gene flow is established. (Gee, Henry; "It's a Mole-Rat, Jim, But Not As We Know It," Nature, 380:584, 1996. O'Riain, M. Justin, et al; "A Dispersive Morph in the Naked Mole-Rat," Nature, 380:619, 1996) Comment. Of course, the naked-mole-rat colony, even when thought of as a "superorganism," cannot perceive the future consequences of inbreeding. The invention of a "dispersive morph," according to evolutionists, has to come from a sequence of random mutations that over time create a special individual, specially fuelled and with abnormal proclivities. Those mole-rat colonies not favored with this sequence of mutations were (are?) eliminated by natural selection. This all seems a lot to ask of a random process. Reference. To learn more about naked mole-rats and some of their close relatives, see our catalogs: Biological Anomalies: Mammals I and II. These books are described here . Naked mole-rat colonies are highly cooperative. Here, an excavating team digs a tunnel using an endless-chain technique. Mole rats below move backwards pushing dirt back and ...
Terms matched: 1 - Score: 14 - 15 May 2017 - URL: /sf106/sf106p05.htm
... Science Frontiers ONLINE No. 133: Jan-Feb 2001 Other pages Home Page Science Frontiers Online All Issues Last Issue Next Issue Sourcebook Project Sourcebook Subjects Contents Archaeology The Roads of Easter Island The Ubiquitous Bird-and-Fish Motif Astronomy The Finger of God Invisible Suns and Maybe See-Through Planets Too What's Up There? Biology Couvade Chemistry Statistical Astrology Animal Miscellany Superorganisms: From Simplicity to Complexity Geology Strange Red Slime in Mine Western Oregon not Firmly Anchored to North America Geophysics Rochester Residents See Mirage of Canadian Shore 65 Miles Distant Strange Snow Sculpures Ribbons in the Sky Psychology New Proteins Rewrite Memories Unlocking Hidden Talents What do Blind People Dream? ...
Terms matched: 1 - Score: 14 - 15 May 2017 - URL: /sf133/index.htm
... and J. Valentine, of the University of California, are now pointing out how a whole colony of "hopeful monsters" might be created en masse by an attack of viruses carrying new genetic blueprints. (And remember how Richard Goldschmidt got the same treatment as Fred Hoyle for suggesting "hopeful monsters" decades ago? (Anonymous; "Gene-Swapping Breaks Barriers in Evolutionary Theory," New Scientist, p. 19, February 1985. Also see: National Academy of Sciences, Proceedings, 81:5482, 1984.) Comment. We don't want to get carried away, but it just may be that all life forms are interconnected informationwise by viruses, diseases, symbiotic relationships, and similar "channels." Gaia-wise, there could just be a single superorganism in the universe that is exploring and experimenting, and we are one of its experiments!. From Science Frontiers #39, MAY-JUN 1985 . 1985-2000 William R. Corliss ...
Terms matched: 1 - Score: 13 - 15 May 2017 - URL: /sf039/sf039p09.htm
... the possibility of nannobacteria: life forms that are smaller than 0.4 micron, perhaps even as small as 0.01 micron. Nannobacteria are not completely accepted as bona fide organisms. However, electron microscopes are imaging "somethings" that are very tiny and ubiquitous. We now shift speculation to life forms much larger than blue whales or even that 2,000-meter-wide box huckleberry mentioned in SF#82/170. In fact, we will transcend even Gaia; that is, earth-asanorganism (SF#56/339); and ask whether entire universes might be alive in the sense that they are governed by natural selection, can transmit hereditary information, and adapt themselves to new situations. The evidence for such large-scale living systems or super-superorganisms is widely pooh-poohed by biologists because it does not meet their definition of life; i.e ., metabolism, reproduction, etc. But perhaps they are missing something by thinking too small. In this vein, M.G . Bjomerud has opined: ". .. there is no reason to expect that super-organisms would meet criteria based on observations of individual organisms. Isn't it time to consider the possibility that the boundary between life and non-life may be diffuse, non-stationary over time, and dependent on scale?" (Bjomerud, M.G .; "Live Universes," Nature, 385:109, 1997.) Comments. The concept of oscillating universes that mutate to better adapt themselves -- a sort of ...
Terms matched: 1 - Score: 13 - 15 May 2017 - URL: /sf111/sf111p05.htm
... customers should add $2 for each order under $30. Foreign customers should add $12.00 per book for airmail mail. Preface from the Book Sorry, out of print Sorry, out of print Science Frontiers II More Anomalies And Curiosities Of Nature Same format as Science Frontiers (Vol. 1) Paperback: 338 pages ISBN: 091555447X $21.95 U.S . customers should add $2 for each order under $30. Foreign customers should add $12.00 per book for airmail mail. Contents Preface List of Project Publications Chapter 1. ARCHEOLOGY Ancient Engineering Works Small Artifacts Epigraphy and Art Diffusion and Culture Chapter 2. ASTRONOMY Planets and Moons Solar System Debris Stars Cosmology Chapter 3. BIOLOGY Humans Other Mammals Birds Reptiles Amphibians Fish Arthropods Invertebrates Plants and Fungi Microorganisms Superorganisms Genetics Origin of Life Evolution Chapter 4. GEOLOGY Topography Stratigraphy Inner Earth Geological Miscellany Chapter 5. GEOPHYSICS Luminous Phenomena Weather Phenomena Hydrological Phenomena Exotic Seismic Signals Anomalous Sounds Atmospheric Optics Chapter 6. PSYCHOLOGY Dissociation Phenomena Hallucinations Mind-Body Phenomena Hidden Knowledge Information Processing Psychokinesis Chapter 7. CHEMISTRY, PHYSICS MATH, ESOTERICA Chemistry Physics Mathematics Esoterica The primary intent of this book is entertainment. Do not look for profundities! All I claim here is an edited collection of naturally occurring anomalies and curiosities that I have winnowed mainly from scientific journals and magazines published between 1976 and 1993. With this eclectic sampling I hope to demonstrate that nature is amusing, beguiling, sometimes bizarre, and, most important, liberating. "Liberating?" Yes! If there is anything profound between these covers, it is the ...
Terms matched: 1 - Score: 13 - 10 Oct 2021 - URL: /thebook.htm
... through questioning the phenomena presented", Science Books and Films 356 pages, paperback, $18.95, 417 illus., subject index, 1994. 1500+ references, LC 93-92800 ISBN 0-915554-28-3 , 8.5 x 11 Science Frontiers II: More Anomalies and Curiosities Of Nature Sorry, Out of print An indexed compilation of the first 86 issues of our newsletter Science Frontiers ( details ). Chapter 1. Archeology: * Ancient Engineering Works * Small Artifacts * Epigraphy and Art * Diffusion and Culture Chapter 2. Astronomy: * Planets and Moons * Solar System Debris * Stars * Cosmology Chapter 3. Biology: * Humans * Other Mammals * Birds * Reptiles * Amphibians * Fish * Arthropods * Invertebrates * Plants and Fungi * Microorganisms * Superorganisms * Genetics * Origin of Life * Evolution Chapter 4. Geology: * Topography * Stratigraphy * Inner Earth * Geological Miscellany Chapter 5. Geophysics: * Luminous Phenomena * Weather Phenomena * Hydrological Phenomena * Exotic Seismic Signals * Anomalous Sounds * Atmospheric Optics Chapter 6. Psychology: * Dissociation Phenomena * Hallucinations * Mind-Body Phenomena * Hidden Knowledge * Information Processing * Psychokinesis Chapter 7. Chemistry, Physics, Math, Esoterica: * Chemistry * Physics * Mathematics * Esoterica 338 pages, paperback, $21.95, ISBN 0-91555-47-X 8.5 x 11 Sourcebooks The first publications of the Sourcebook Project appeared in the early 1970s. These were loose-leaf notebooks called "Sourcebooks." Here were reproduced articles and excerpts of articles dealing with anomalous phenomena ...
Terms matched: 1 - Score: 5 - 10 Oct 2021 - URL: /sourcebk.htm
