Nature's Holism

By Laurence Evans

In the association of the bee and the flower is a very advanced reflection of the process of evolution through natural selection. Nature's Holism explores the coevolution of long associated species arriving at a holistic view of nature where the compatibility between species is significant.

In nature there are two interacting forces. There is the numerical increase in numbers of a species, termed a force of "perpetuity". Increasing numbers of a single species have an inevitable impact on the environment. However, as each species survives within an ecological context, there is a feedback from the ecosystem as numbers increase, requiring a necessary compatibility with the ecosystem. "Fitness" is therefore defined, not only by quantitative representation of genes in the next generation (perpetuity), but also the qualitative condition of compatibility with the habitat or ecosystem that provided the conditions and resources for this success.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Aug 10, 1999
• ISBN: 9781462091379

Laurence Evans

Laurence Evans is a shrimp farmer in South Africa. Born in Zambia in 1960, he moved with his parents to South Africa in 1970. He studied marine biology at the University of Cape Town and then started a career in aquaculture. As a keen ecologist and as aspiring science writer, "Nature's Holism is his first effort. In 1982 and 1983, he spent six months in the wilderness of northen Zambia, riding on horseback and studying bird life and ecology. While here, he "found" the expression of "compatibilty and perpetuity" in nature. He then set out to explain the compatibilty that he saw in nature. This book is the result.

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NATURE’S HOLISM

Holism, Ecology & Evolution

1999, by

Laurence Evans

toExcel

San Jose New York Lincoln Shanghai

Nature’s Holism

All Rights Reserved. Copyright © 1999 by Laurence Evans

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Contents

PREFACE

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

Background:

What is Nature’s Holism about?

Perpetuity:

Compatibility:

Ecotechnology in brief:

Biodiversity Studies?

CHAPTER 2 PERPETUITY AND COMPATIBILITY:

Mutual dependence:

Yin & Yang:

Holism: 1. Ecotechnology:

CHAPTER 3 BACKGROUND IDEAS:

Context:

Patterns & Models:

Teleology:

Expressions of holism:

Personal note:

A synopsis of Nature’s Holism:

CHAPTER 4 EVOLUTION:

A Brief History of Life As The Book of Time:

Time & evolution:

Evolution: A Quick Overview:

Table of The Geological Time Scale:

CHAPTER 5 GEMS:

A Brief Introduction:

1. Thomas Hobbes:

2. General J.C. Smuts:

3. Charles Darwin:

4. Immanuel Kant:

5. Creationism:

6. Interaction of Lovelock’s Gaia and Holism:

7. Law, Rules, & Regularities:

8. Theories:

9. Paradigm Traps:

10. Prisoner’s Dilemma:

CHAPTER 6 CHAOS, COMPLEXITY & ECOSYSTEMS

A. Summary:

B. Approximations of Reality:

C. Chaos:

D. Complexity:

CHAPTER 7 THE CONCEPT, once bitten, twice shy:

A. Summary:

B. Introduction:

C. Ecology and Ecosystems:

D. The Coin: the Theory of Co-operation

E. Genetics & Inheritance

F. Genetics, Ecology & Evolution:

G. Paradigms of Biological Science:

H. Argument

I. The Window of Opportunity in Nature:

J. Further Model Development 1. Theoretical Development

K. Interpretation of the Paleontological Record in the Light of the Modified Energetic Lotka Volterre Model:

L. Positive Holism:

CHAPTER 8 HUMAN EVOLUTION:

A. Summary:

B. Sources:

C. Dating Tools:

D. Human Evolution:

E. Behaviour and Morality:

F. Primate Evolution:

G. The Road to Civilisation: 1. Modern Cultures:

CHAPTER 9 Religion:

1. Islam:

2. Rise & Demise of Natural Christian Theology:

Glossary

PREFACE

I have written Nature’s Holism to express a simple process that I see in nature. This is that mutual dependence between species is an inherent part of many associations. Interdepence of some sort has evolved through natural selection over a long period of time. I try to break through our habitual perceptions to show you a new way of looking at life and nature. It is important in this study that you do not go past a word that you do not fully understand. Use a good English dictionary and the glossary at the back of this book. The best example of what I am talking about is the association of the bee and the flower, but nature has many other expressions of this process.

This is an adventure of a different sort, through which I aim to bring about some change in our relationship with nature. I hope to engender a greater respect for life and slow the decline in biodiversity. Readers of this book should attain a better understanding of the source of peace and a greater love of and respect for nature. These are high ideals, but this is a small seed with great potential. I hope I have done the idea of holism justice.

There are sure to be many errors in this book. I may be wrong in many areas, but I believe the fundamental principles of compatibility and perpetuity expressed in this book will stand the test of time. That is my hope and challenge to all.

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Background:

Nature’s Holism (or ecotaoism) provides an ecological model as an alternative to the competitive theory of evolution. By examining how species associated within the same habitat evolve (coevolution), I will show you a holistic view of nature and ecosystems, where interdependence between long-associated species within an ecosystem is dominant. You will find holistic ideas expressed by the great philosopher Thomas Hobbes and the famous politician General J.C. Smuts. You will find that Charles Darwin emphasised interdependence and coevolution in nature, noting that Competition should be most severe between allied forms, which fill nearly the same place (niche) in the economy of nature (ecosystem). He continues with his corollary of the highest importance: That the structure of every organic being (organism) is related (holism), in the most essential yet often hidden manner, to that of all other organic beings, with which it comes into competition. We will also look at what Immanuel Kant said about teleology.

This book also compares its new view of ecosystems to other modern ideas, such as Gaia and Prisoner’s Dilemma. In the end, you should understand the new view of natural habitats and communities. A search of similar ideas expressed by humanity leads one to the yin and yang of Chinese Taoism. Thoughts about evolution must impact upon scholars in all religious faiths, including Islam, Judaism and Christianity. Enjoy the adventure.

What is Nature’s Holism about?

Nature’s Holism is an idea expressed within the context of modern science. It is an environmental principle based on ecology and evolution. An investigation of existing principles, has shown that the ancient Chinese Taoist forces of yin and yang are similar to the idea that I present. From this context, the term ecotaoism was coined. An observation of ecological processes within an evolutionary context reveals co-evolutionary processes epitomised by the bee and the flower. One condition necessary for such co-evolution is long association. The bee and the flower have evolved an intricate interdependence. Charles Darwin witnessed this and commented: Competition should be most severe between allied forms, which fill nearly the same place in the economy of nature; and its corollary of the highest importance: That the structure of every organic being (organism) is related, in the most essential yet often hidden manner, to that of all other organic beings, with which it comes into competition. By examining how two associated species evolve (co-evolution), one arrives at a holistic view of nature where interdependence between long-associated species within an ecosystem is dominant.

In Nature’s Holism, we explore the evolution of interdependence within ecosystems. This involves the individual and its living (biotic) environment. Two fundamental premises are that the individual cannot live independently of the biotic environment and that the actions of individuals have an impact upon the environment. This puts two requirements on any living creature.

•   A creature has an instinct to perpetuate its kind.

•   An individual cannot destroy the habitat upon which it depends for survival, so there is a necessary compatibility.

Perpetuity:

Perpetuity is an easily recognised idea. This is the continual and natural drive or impulse for survival and the perpetuation of the individual. Survival and perpetuity reflect an aspect of natural selection. An animal with a good design survives and perpetuates. This appears a very obvious statement, but is important in nature. A large number of individuals produced in an effort to perpetuate,

produces a force that has an impact upon the environment. Look at any living creature and you will find:

•   Most behaviour is directed in some way towards self perpetuation and so perpetuation of the species.

•   An organism’s physical form is geared towards self—perpetuation. An individual, such as a worker ant, may not perpetuate, but the organism with which it shares a genetic identity does.

•   Social interactions define which individuals will contribute their genes to the next generation. This is not always true, especially in humans, but applies to many wild animals.

•   Physiological processes are instinctively regulated to optimise survival and perpetuation. Simple examples are hunger and thirst.

•   Evolutionary processes generally lead to greater energetic efficiencies, so enhancing survival potential. In science this is known as the red queen hypothesis.

Compatibility:

This book is devoted to compatibility. Evolutionary processes lead naturally to interactions and behaviour that provide a degree of compatibility between long-associated organisms. A compatible animal exhibits behaviour reducing its effect upon the habitat upon which it depends for survival. In ecological terms, the organism occupies a niche within the ecosystem. If measured as a relative value, increased efficiency would be found. Yin and yang are the symbols from the ancient Chinese philosophy called Taoism (Clarke, 1993). Compatibility is similar to yin and perpetuity is similar to yang.

Ecotechnology in brief:

When nature and humanity do not overpower each other, this is called real humanity (Chuang-tzu, translated by Cleary, 1991).

We need to re-evaluate the role of nature in our existence as an ecological imperative. We are products of natural selection. Holistic mechanisms and principles form the preliminaries of ecological engineering. A new term, ecotechnology, which is related to holism should emerge here. What I mean by holism is that nature forms co-ordinated units or integrals through the evolutionary process. Today we call these ecosystems. Natural selection is the process of differential survival and reproduction of organisms because of their differing genetic constitutions being subject to environmental forces. It leads to adaptive evolutionary change.

Ecotechnology requires refining and adapting technological applications so that they are compatible when applied within ecosystems. Ecosystem coherence and stability have evolved with the associated parts. Stability for such self-organising systems is dynamic. The adoption of a new behavioural purpose—the application of the ideas of perpetuity and compatibility in the interaction with all life forms—will confer behavioural stability and predictability to humanity. This would enhance our survival potential in the long term through the process of natural selection and evolution. This behavioural change would be a unique event in the history of life as it would be a conscious endeavour and would be a departure from humanities’ characteristic destructive effect upon nature. Here we are dealing with the physical evolution of humanity. Our spiritual and religious comprehension are not the concern of this article. As a first step to understanding our role in nature we need to appreciate the magnitude of TIME compared with the short duration of our lives. Even the appearance of humanity as a species is a very recent event compared to the history of life.

Biodiversity Studies?

Edward De Bono (1993) explained a method to ensure better understanding: To perceive a new idea, we have to speculate, imagine, or hypothesize it first. That is why the best scientists now realise that science is as much poetry as data analysis. Ernst Mayr (1991), an evolutionist and ornithologist expressed the same idea when discussing Charles Darwin’s scientific method: He realised that one cannot make observations unless one has some hypothesis on the basis of which to make the appropriate observations. Consequently, I have introduced the concept of perpetuity and compatibility at the beginning of this book and use the subsequent text to help people to understand the context, nature and implications of the concept. You need to read the book with the basic idea or postulate in mind to bring the subject matter into the necessary context and alignment to follow the discourse. By the end of this book you should be able to see the harmony that exists in natural systems. You will also understand why humans are now not a part of this holistic nature.

Edward O. Wilson (1992) provided a biological context for this study as a new discipline called biodiversity studies. He defines this as the systematic study of the full array of organic diversity and the origin of that diversity, together with methods by which it can be maintained and used for the benefit of humanity. The enterprise of biodiversity studies is thus both scientific, a branch of pure biology, and applied, a branch of biotechnology and the social sciences. This book is concerned with the health of the dynamic, living part of earth and our relationship with other life forms. A document, Evolution, Science, and Society: a white paper on behalf of the field of evolutionary biology states that Evolutionary biology is the discipline that (1) describes the history of life and (2) investigates the processes that account for this history. It seeks to explain the diversity of life: the variety of organisms and their characteristics, and their changes over time. As such, biodiversity studies can be said to be part of the discipline of evolutionary biology. As a subdiscipline of evolutionary biology this study falls within evolutionary ecology. This white paper identifies a priority research area to be development and testing of predictive theories of the coevolution of interacting species. The focus of this book is on a coevolutionary mechanism.

CHAPTER 2

PERPETUITY AND COMPATIBILITY:

Mutual dependence:

In nature there is evidence of cooperation and interdependence that I have called Ecotaoism. There is a continual coevolution of associated interactors. Two components contribute to the mechanism, as inseparable parts of a single concept such as are the two sides of a single coin in space. Perpetuity is the easily recognised side of this idea. This is the continual and natural drive or impulse for survival and the perpetuation of the individual. The product or output, acting as a ‘force’, resulting from perpetuity is life forms into the living interactive realm. This drive forms part of the process of natural selection. In perpetuating, they produce many offspring. Every individual is different from the other, because of inherited (genetic) variation. These differences lead to fitness differences—differences in the likelihood to survive and reproduce (Endler, 1985). Natural selection sounds like a tautology, as those that survive are the fittest (Beck, 1991). Biologists have avoided this argument by defining fitness as the relative goodness of some design. They apply design standards to traits to establish their relative quality. Fitness is not then equivalent to survival, but to good design. Survival and perpetuity reflect an aspect of natural selection, which is the consequence of good design.

Ernst Mayr (1993), a renowned evolutionist, describes perpetuity as the perpetual existence of a reproductive surplus. Mayr said that the basic theory that species multiply as well as evolve is uncontested. This condition of change is a characteristic of life not found in physics. It is one main cause of the complexity of nature that is so different to the deterministic outcomes of physics.

Another leading figure in evolutionary science recognises perpetuity thus: The summum bonum of Charles Darwin’s world is survival and persistence, not progress and improvement (Keller & LLoyd).

I have devoted this book to compatibility, the controversial side of this idea. A mathematical model, the modified energetic Lotka-Volterre model (MELV model), displays the mechanism leading to compatibility later in this book. Evolutionary processes lead naturally to interactions and behaviour that provide a degree of compatibility between long-associated organisms. A compatible animal exhibits behaviour reducing its effect upon the habitat upon which it depends for survival. If measured as a relative value, greater efficiency would be found. Natural ecosystems (such as a coral reef habitat) reflect compatibility in the interdependence of associated organisms. The bee and the flower have developed this compatibility to the sublime stage of interdependence and reciprocity, representing a highly developed form of this idea.

The first domestication of the horse approximately 4,000 BC in the steppes just north of the black sea (Diamond, 1991) benefited both humans and the horse, enhancing the survival of each. This represents the formation of a compatible interaction. For many thousands of years before this Neanderthal people and then early humans hunted horses as prey.

An even better example of a mutually dependent relationship is to be found between one-humped dromedary camels and desert nomads such as those in Afghanistan. Domestication of this animal began in southern Arabia about 5000 years ago (Palmer et al, 1994). Afghan nomads live in close association with these animals, travelling with their flocks to new grazing grounds. These camels are incredibly well adapted to desert conditions. Without them, human existence in the desert would not have been possible. Humans could only conquer the desert through the domestication of this animal. Camels have a natural ability to scent water, but where the water is in wells, people have to provide this water. When fodder is scarce, the drovers feed them, and supply salt essential to their health. Probably, the need for salt by these animals first led to their domestication, through the supply of salted fish. Today there are no naturally wild dromedaries.

As a natural desert mammal, the camel has many features that make it well suited to desert life. It has splayed feet to negotiate desert sands. The fatty energy reserve in the hump is a unique adaptation to the desert heat. A 500 kg camel can have 200 kg of fat in its hump as a food reserve. As the camel needs to keep cool, it cannot store this fat all over the body, as a polar bear or seal would, as this would act as an insulation retaining heat. A fat hump is the solution that has evolved, providing up to six months of energy! Camels reduce water loss by passing concentrated urine and dry dung. It drinks massive volumes of water that it holds in the stomach and can go without water for about one to three weeks depending upon the temperature. Under heat stress it will dehydrate, losing 30-40 percent of its body weight and allow its body temperature to rise to 40.5 degrees Celsius before a sweating mechanism comes into action. At night its body temperature cools to as low as 34 degrees Celsius, dissipating heat collected in the day. This serves to reduce water loss.

All these features of the camel formed in the millions of years of evolution before domestication. Introducing a definition of the terms is useful adaptation and evolution as these are fundamental to the understanding of this book. An adapted animal originally meant one suited to some particular purpose or context in nature (Burian, 1994). To adapt something, say a tool, you modify it for a different use or purpose. Evolution commonly refers to the change of species over time (Richards, 1994). As we can see in our own relatives, there is some difference between each individual. In evolutionary terminology they call this difference simply variation. Much variation is genetically based and so inherited. Variation, under the vagaries of nature, leads to differential survival, changing the population’s gene frequencies, a process called natural selection (Beck, 1991). How genetics, variation and inheritance are related is discussed in their own chapter, which you can turn to now, if necessary. Over massive time spans natural forces from a diverse and complex environment act upon this variation from individual to individual and generation to generation. A camel living in a very harsh environment has to adapt to extreme heat and shortages of water. Variation between individual camels in each generation leads to some better able to handle heat and water shortages. Others may die of heat stress or dehydration, so that only the adapted survive to reproduce. Even of the survivors, some will be more successful at breeding than others. Offspring inherit the adaptations (noun) that conferred survival and made the animal better adapted to the environment. In subsequent generations, further variation between individuals leads to a repetition of the cycle of adaptation (adjective). Adaptation is thus an evolutionary process in its usage as an adjective and a feature of organisms as a noun.

In evolutionary biology, adaptation then becomes the evolutionary modification of a character or feature of an organism through Darwinian natural selection, leading to efficiency in a particular environment. As living animals our bodies may also adapt physiologically to environmental extremes such as heat and cold. Even this capacity to adapt is inherited. Natural selection is the mechanism of evolution proposed by Charles Darwin in the 1850’s. Nature selects upon the natural variation found between individuals of a species, so that at the extreme, some reproduce, while others die out. This variation is genetically based, so the offspring display the features of their parents and are again tested by the vagaries of nature. Sexual reproduction allows the mixing of the genes of two successful individuals and the elimination of harmful mutations that may accumulate. This slow shift of features contributing to survival is evolution and becomes very significant over large spans of time.

Yin & Yang:

Compatibility is a natural process based upon a logical mechanism. In this book we investigate the consequences of this process and compatibility for humanity and other life forms. Compatibility and perpetuity are similar in character and nature to the ancient Chinese philosophers’ idea of yin and yang (Capra, 1982). Dynamic interplay of these two polar forces generates all manifestations of reality in Chinese Taoism. Neither force acts in isolation. They represent the constraints to the system or the limits for the cycles of change. Yin and yang are extreme poles of a single whole and the natural order is in a state of dynamic balance between these two constraints. Our Western minds trained in duality such as right and wrong or positive and negative may have difficulty perceiving a polarity or mutuality. Yin is contractive, responsive and conservative, while yang is expansive, aggressive, and demanding. The same two groups of qualities could apply to the duality of compatibility and perpetuity. Such dual systems cannot be in absolute rest. Capra observes that yin corresponds to responsive, consolidating, cooperative activity and yang to aggressive, expanding, competitive activity. He also notes that yin action concerns the environment, as does compatibility and yang action involves the individual, as does perpetuity. Compatibility is similar to yin and perpetuity is similar to yang.

Yin and yang are the symbols from the ancient Chinese philosophy called Taoism. Taoism arose as an alternative to Confucianism around 300 B.C. Confucianism stressed a well disciplined society with attention to ceremony, tradition, duty, morality, and public service. Taoism emphasised a retreat from social obligations and a simple meditative life close to nature. Similar to the term holism of perpetuity and compatibility, the word Tao used to mean reality as a whole, made up of individual ways. The Tao (Way) defines the role, characteristics and behaviour that make each thing in the universe what it is. Chinese landscape paintings from the 1200’s reflect the Taoist sensitivity to nature. Taoists sought knowledge by studying nature, leading to various sciences such as alchemy, astronomy and medicine.

Confucianism emphasised good moral character and outlined definite rules of conduct. Confucius was born in 551 B.C. and his teachings dealt with the needs of society. Eventually Taoism influenced these beliefs, so that in the 200’s and 100’s, a person’s ability to live in harmony with nature became important. In nature, the sun, with its outpouring of energy is seen as the repository of yang (Walker, 1992). Those that pursue the practise of attaining the Tao enter a deeply spiritual world, as reflected in the Hua Hu Ching of Lao Tzu (Walker, 1992).

Another idea with a holistic slant is systems theory. According to this method of investigation, living systems form multilevel structures, with each level consisting of subsystems that are wholes containing parts, and parts with respect to the larger wholes (Capra, 1982). Arthur Koestler has coined the word ‘holons’ for these subsystems, which are both wholes and parts, and he has emphasised that each holon has two opposite tendencies: an integrative tendency to function as part of the larger whole (compatibility), and a self-assertive tendency to preserve its individual autonomy (perpetuity). Biological or social systems require the individuality of ‘holons’ to maintain the stratified order, but holons must also submit to the demands of the whole order to make the system viable. These two tendencies are opposite but complementary. In a healthy system—an individual, a society, or an ecosystem—there is a balance between integration and self-assertion. This balance is not static but consists of a dynamic interplay between the two complementary tendencies, which makes the whole system flexible and open to change (Capra, 1982).

Holism:

1. Ecotechnology:

Absolute truth is like a mirage: it tends to disappear when you approach it (Leakey & Lewin, 1992).

People have applied the term Holism in many contexts. A dictionary definition of holism is the theory that certain wholes are to be regarded as greater than the sum of their parts (Tulloch, 1993). Holism is the study of life, the

interactions of life forms and the forces and mechanisms that create the organisation, interdependence and complexity of living systems. Holistic mechanisms and principles form the preliminaries of ecological engineering. A new term related to holism should emerge here, and that is ecotechnology. Ecotechnology requires technological applications that are compatible with ecosystems. Under such a definition, many forms of technology will be recognised as diseases instead of technological solutions. For example, more natural methods should replace the chemical spraying of crops to kill pests. The many applications of crop spraying will become obsolete technology when looked at under the context of ecotechnology. Crop spraying aircraft, backpacks, pressure hoses and irrigation systems all fall outside the field of ecotechnology.

A trend toward an ecotechnological approach is already well advanced. More than 50 countries are members of the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM), with its Standards Document. Individuals only conform to these standards, while inspection and regulation are the responsibility of groups within the respective member countries. In Britain there are already three main sets of standards for organic agriculture (Lampkin, 1992). The most widely used is the Soil Association’s Symbol scheme (founded in 1946) that are also followed by the Irish Organic Farmer’s and Grower’s Association. There are also the Bio-Dynamic Agricultural Association and the Organic Farmer’s and Growers Ltd. marketing cooperative with their own standards. Other standards for other applications are also established and in use. They have tried to unify such standards through the formation of the British Organic Standards Committee (BOSC), formed in 1981 and the United Kingdom Register of Organic Food Standards (UKROFS), established in 1987 and published in May 1989.

Such systems-orientated (holistic) practical use of ecological knowledge is essential to the future of humanity and is largely already being realised and applied by environmentalists and organic farmers. An example is the work done in America by Daniel Chiras (1994): Environmental Science, Action for a sustainable future. Potential applications are numerous. In Australia, they are now investigating the killing of pests and weeds with steam as a replacement for herbicides and some insecticides. In the USA, they burn weeds with a flame cultivator, while scorched corn carries on growing (Klinkenborg & Richardson, 1995). Sustainable agriculture is a new science and technology that emphasises a few basic principles:

[1a] A reduced dependence upon fertilisers, insecticides, herbicides and

[1b] reduce the use of non-renewable resources such as fossil fuels;

[2]   Techniques of improving the soil tilth—the soil’s texture, nutrients and ability to hold water;

[3]   Reducing soil erosion;

[4]   Reduction of the environmental damage and social costs that came with the fertiliser and chemical use and enormous yields of conventional farming;

[5]   Learning how to coexist and cooperate with natural systems to improve yields, reduce insect pests and weeds and establish a truly viable farming technology.

As an example, cover crops (vetch, peas, clover) planted between grapevines return nitrogen to the soil (nitrogen fixation), provides a habitat for insect predators, reducing the need for insecticides, hinders weed growth and therefore the need for herbicides and reduces soil erosion (Klinkenborg & Richardson, 1995). Simple and sensible applications can have broad consequences, a principle of the yin and yang of Taoism. The basis of good farming is a healthy, living soil, with fungi, bacteria and earthworms.

Objectives of such farming would be to enhance biological cycles, and maintain biological diversity through habitat preservation as an integral part of organic farming practises. Various practises are classed as recommended, permitted, restricted and prohibited, in accord with the principles of holistic farming.

They could study and grow traditional medicines at home, reducing the costs of medicines. Advances in this field are already found in books such as The Nature Doctor, (1989) by Dr. H.C.A.Vogel.

2. Niche:

J.C. Smuts in his book, Holism and Evolution (1926), defines holism as the term, here coined, for this fundamental factor (process, mechanism) (which is) operative towards the creation of wholes in the universe. Further, Holism is a real operative factor, a vera causa. He sums up the essence of holism as, the whole is in the parts and the parts are in the whole." Ponder the life of a wild duck and note how it is adapted and suited to its combination of an aquatic and aerial environment. The duck’s webbed feet serve the purpose of propelling the creature forwards through water, while, in contrast, the talons of the eagle serve to hold prey. Without water a duck’s feet would have no meaning. A duck needs water for its full description. Together they form a beautiful serene whole, an ecological whole in which many other creatures form a part. In

a complex ecological environment the parts form the whole and cannot be separated from it. A whole is only complete with the presence of the natural parts. Creatures have evolved through all time with the whole; a duck is dependent upon water and the whole habitat for its full expression.

Ecologists call the role of the creature, the niche of the creature. An ecological niche requires a multidimensional description of an organism’s total environment and way of life. This includes physical factors such as temperature and moisture, biological factors such as food resources, parasites and predators and behaviour, including social organisation and diurnal activities (Lewontin, 1978). Although we can imagine many niches the only niches are occupied niches (Cohen & Stuart, 1994).

People retreat to nature, for recreation, recognising some type of harmony and peace there that brings peace of mind. In nature, we find relaxation, peace, aesthetic qualities and a serenity that humanity cannot recreate in a city. There is a spiritual quality to nature that is not easily defined. An observer of animals in nature soon recognises the interdependence and balance that exists.

Many have recognised this idea of the niche of an organism: The crocodile isolated from his environment was not the same animal (Savory, 1988). The place of a living individual (human, animal, or plant) can be evaluated meaningfully only when it is seen in its integrative, collective, ecological context (Peet, 1992). Every species depends on other species for food and for providing its habitat (Diamond, 1991). A species is what it is where it is (Rolston, 1992). An environment is what a creature knows—and knows in a certain way. The creature is, in this way, part of its environment, though one could as truly say that the environment is part of it (Cooper, 1992). It is quite impossible to think of an organism without an environment (Begon et al, 1986). This close link with the environment is found in all creatures, even humans. Place yourself for a while in the cold without protection and soon an instinctive response will take over—from the depths of your belly a shivering response will begin, generating heat to stay warm.

If we remove a significant component of an ecosystem, such as a predator, an imbalance or a shift in the dynamics of the system will occur. The predatory starfish, Piaster, predates upon several species in its rocky shore habitat, maintaining a balance in their populations. When removed from the environment, some prey species disappear and one becomes dominant (Smith, 1974). Alternatively, if a stable component of an ecosystem changes, a species adapted to the environment may display maladaptive responses.

The Rhinoceros is found in and adapted to the hot African Savannah. Rhinoceros milk has an energy (calorific) value of 500 kcal/kg, which is low if compared to the reindeer (2773 kcal/kg) (Louw, 1993). A young rhino depends upon this dilute milk to replace fluids lost by evaporative water loss during the hot African summers. If we move the rhino to a cold climate, the young rhino will still need to drink the same volume of milk as in the hot climate to get the necessary nutrition. It may either starve to death if thirst stimulates feeding instead of hunger, or urinate excessively. Physiologically, the rhino is not adapted to this new environment. In this way, living creatures are a part of holistic systems that cannot be divided into independent parts (Peet, 1992). We can only understand a creature’s properties in relation to the ecosystem or whole.

Ecosystem coherence and stability have evolved with the associated parts. Stability for such self-organising systems is utterly dynamic. The system has properties or characteristics not to be found in a study of the parts. A study of brain cells will not lead to a discovery of consciousness for example. Yet, billions of neurons interact to coordinate complex behaviour patterns (Lewin, 1993).

The interdependence among species, which confers stability, is very complex. With the extinction of harpy eagles, pumas and jaguars from the forests on Panama’s Barro Colorado Island, their prey, both predators such as peccaries, monkeys, and coatimundis (racoon family), and medium-sized seed eaters such as agoutis and pacas (giant rodents) started to increase in numbers. This developed into a population explosion. Excessive predation upon little antbirds and their eggs then drove them extinct. Further, the coatis, agoutis, and pacas feed on large seeds that fall from the rain forest canopy, so the forest tree composition shifted from tree species producing large seeds to tree species with small seeds! (Diamond, 1991) (Wilson, 1992). Those animals that influence the entire physical structure of a habitat are called keystone species (Wilson, 1992).

3. Atomic Nature:

At this stage it appears that holism does not entail the fundamental interactions of physical phenomena—the atoms and like that the physicist studies (Nicolis, 1989). These are part of an earlier evolution of matter. One theory, proposed by Ed Tyson and further developed by Alan Guth at MIT, is the inflationary model. In it, a repulsive force is opposing the gravitational force and expanding the universe within 10-35 seconds after the Big Bang of creation to about 30 cm in diameter. The repulsive force then split into the four forces

known today (gravitational, electromagnetic, weak nuclear and strong nuclear). This theory accounts for the observed homogeneity and isotropy of our universe (Casti, 1989).

Matter, instead of being dispersive, diffusive, and structureless, effects through its inner activities and forces structural groupings and combinations that are valuable, not merely to humans, but in the order of the universe. But for its dynamic, structural, creative character matter could not have been the mother of the universe (Smuts, 1926). Perhaps different levels require different laws, so biological holism may not encompass atomic holism. However, there are some striking parallels between the ideas derived in physics and those proposed for holism. These suggest the possibility of an undiscovered universal force or natural mechanism that causes a natural tendency towards organisation (enthalpy) instead of chaos, disorder or randomness (entropy), thus Holism. Feynman (1992) states, that it is interesting that every law or principle that we know for ‘dead’ things, and that we can test on the great phenomenon of life, works just as well there. There is no evidence yet that what goes on in living creatures is necessarily different, as far as the physical laws are concerned, from what goes on in nonliving things, although the life may be more complicated.

A big difference is that organic forms evolve with time. Astronomers can study the formation of stars and solar systems, such as the Orion Nebula, but there is no living interdependence at this level and nothing struggling to survive (Reston, 1995). John Barrow has discussed The Origin of the Universe (1994). He explains, The job of cosmologists is to pin down the expansion history of the universe—to determine how the galaxies formed; why they cluster as they do; why the expansion proceeds at the rate that it does—and to explain the shape of the universe and the balance of matter and radiation existing within it. The choice of words avoids the term evolution.

Davies (Professor of mathematical physics) and Gribbin (astrophysicist) state (1991), there is a strong holistic flavour to the quantum description of the universe. Fritjof Capra (1982) similarly states, the conception of the universe as an interconnected web of relations is one of two major themes that recur throughout modern physics. The other is the realisation that the cosmic web is intrinsically dynamic. The dynamic aspect of matter arises in quantum theory because of the wave nature of subatomic particles, and is even more central in the relativity theory, which has shown us that the being of matter cannot be separated from its activity. The properties of its basic patterns, the subatomic particles, can be understood only in a dynamic context, in terms of movement, interaction, and transformation. In modern physics, particles are no longer isolated entities, in fact not particles at all, but have wavelike properties. Both force and matter are now seen to have their common origin in the dynamic patterns that we call particles. These energy patterns of the subatomic world form the stable nuclear, atomic and molecular structures, which build up matter and give it its macroscopic solid aspect, thus making us believe that it is made of some material substance (Capra, 1982). Subatomic particles are not separate entities but interrelated energy patterns in an ongoing dynamic process (Capra, 1982). Here we again see the elements of yin (matter) and yang (force).

This dynamism reveals the presence of yin and yang interactions in the nonliving physical universe, confirming that the dynamics that are found in the evolution of life through natural selection, have their source in a force that the Chinese called Tao and is found at the very origin of creation: There is something obscure which is complete before heaven and earth arose; tranquil, quiet, standing alone without change, moving around without peril. It could be the mother of everything. I don’t know its name, and call it Tao (Watts, 1975). This principle, although to be found in the complex mathematics of Einstein, or Newton’s description of gravity, is quite simple. Barrow (1994) explains as an astrophysicist, If you place a cloud of dust particles in space, they will begin to feel a mutual gravitational attraction; the cloud will gradually contract (yin). The only circumstances that will prevent this is some sort of explosion (yang) that drives the particles apart. They cannot remain in an unchanging state unless another force intervenes to oppose gravity. In the absence of that opposing force, the gravitational attraction between a static distribution of stars and galaxies will cause them to fall in upon themselves. Our universe is presently expanding and the Taoist says, "All things have each their own different principle, whereas Tao brings the principles of all into single agreement (Watts, 1975).

4. Paradigms:

Perpetuity and compatibility as an idea has immense potential making it a religious thesis, a metaphysical proposal, a change in the emphasis of Darwin’s evolutionary process of natural selection, a sociological principle, an ethical tool in peace management, or a tool for the management of complex life-systems (ecosystems, businesses, agriculture). It is the key tool for environmental science. As Edward O. Wilson stated, to halt the destruction of the world’s biodiversity, we need biology, anthropology, economics, agriculture, government and law to

find a common voice. For me this new proposal of a holistic mechanism has taken on the dimension of a revolutionary paradigm (from the Greek paradeigma meaning pattern). We humans, whether we are Caucasian, Chinese, African or Asian, suffer from a long recognised fault: For as Leo Tolstoy poignantly recognised, even (especially) brilliant scientists can seldom accept the simplest and most obvious truths if they be such as to contradict principles learned as children, taught as professors, and revered throughout life as sacred ancestral treasures (Ford, 1989, New Physics). New ideas may elicit ferocious resistance from traditional quarters: ideas that require people to reorganise their picture of the world provoke hostility (Gleick, 1987). Worded another way, One suspects that there are ideas of a similar groundless status by today’s standards that will in the future take their place within the accepted ‘scientific’ picture of reality (Barrow, 1988). In yet another context, perceptions are basically hypotheses and…science thus consists of chains of hypotheses. Everything, in short, is unavoidably filtered through the neurological limitations of our brains and the experiences (first or second hand) stored within them. Unfortunately, from a scientific standpoint, this also has the effect that we reject or overlook information, which seems at the time to be irrelevant, without even being aware of it (Rosen, 1988). Because we are bound by what we know, it is difficult to imagine what we don’t know (Hickman & Silva, 1988). The ‘Holism and Evolution’ of Smuts could be one such idea. Another is the philosophy of Scientology. As stated in the Taoist text, Hua Hu Ching, Language cannot capture the melody of a song; to understand it, you must hear it with your own ears (Walker, 1992).

We can call holism a new myth; a modern myth, based on science and the wider perspective this science has provided us. Every human society has felt the need to generate a body of myth, an explanation of how the society came to be and its place in the world…a sacred narrative explaining how the world or humans came to be in their present form (Leakey & Lewin, 1992). Myths have been with us from ancient times, perhaps from the beginning of language. Language is a defining feature of human intelligence (Calvin, 1994) and the greatest human invention, yet linguists cannot trace any protolanguage much beyond 7000 years ago (Ross, 1991). In many primitive cultures, the Shaman or medicine man relates the societies’ myths. These form one aspect of the culture. They provide the social framework, giving coherence and direction to the people’s lives so that man, woman and child know what is expected from them. Without written language, myths often form the repository of the culture’s sacred history and, as such, are based on fact. They are mythic fact (Halifax, 1979).

The Mehinaku of Brazil has a myth to explain why men and women differ and why they perform separate functions. Men originally did the women’s roles, taking care of children, breast feeding babies, preparing flour from the manioc (starch diet like bread), and weaving hammocks. Women did the men’s roles of hunting, fishing, and clearing fields. Women had a sacred ceremonial house, where if a man dared enter, he would be gang raped by all of the women of the village. During rituals the women used a sacred flute. One day the men learned how to frighten the women and stole their flute spirits. From that time they switched roles and the men hunt, fish and farm. (Singer & Woodhead, 1988).

Interestingly, our most primitive living relative, the bonobo (pygmy chimpanzee, P. paniscus) lives in social groups where the females are dominant. The more specialised chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) has this relation reversed, with dominant males. We are so closely related to chimpanzees that 99 percent of our polypeptides are identical. Our earliest ancestor—that also led to the chimpanzee lineage—may have had a social order where females were dominant.

Australian Aborigines have a myth recalling their origins: For some time the woman and (two) men lived on the plants that he (Baiame, the sky king) had shown them. Then came a great drought, and the plants were scarce and then no more. And the woman and men were famished. One of the men killed a kangaroo rat. He began to eat this and the woman joined him, but the other man would not eat, though he was starving (Advance 120. 1993). We know that our diets have changed and that meat eating is a recent adaptation.

Based on science, the holistic myth is not sacred, but depends on the rigour of science for its veracity. It contains no superstition, though even this is relative perception, for where one sees Jinns, another sees ignorance; where one finds worship another finds blasphemy. Society is undergoing enormous changes because of the progress of science. Our cultural myth concerning life has to change to meet these changes. You will understand what I mean by term ‘myth’ by considering the north and south of the earth. People have a mental idea of the earth and so say, ‘up north’ and ‘down south’, never ‘down north’ or ‘up south’. Similarly, we casually say that the sun rises, but this is an archaic and incorrect perception. Seen from space, there is no such thing. The conventions of our reality specify these perceptions, yet our planet moving through space around the sun has no such orientation. The orientation is a universal mental idea accepted as reality.

Mayr expresses the above sentiment succinctly: A new discovery in science, such as the double-helix structure of DNA, is usually accepted almost immediately. If the assumed discovery turns out to be based on an error or a misinterpretation, it quickly disappears from the literature. By contrast, resistance to the introduction of new theories, particularly those that are based on new ideas, is much stronger and broader based. He notes that Isaac Newton’s theory that gravitation causes motion of the planets required eighty years for universal acceptance. They adopted Alfred Wegener’s theory of continental drift, published in 1912, fifty years later, following the theory of plate tectonics. Most Jews, Christians and Muslims still reject the fact of evolution today, and may even face the threat of death if he proposes it!

This whole book is a mental construct or an art form of ideas. Each chapter sheds some light on the other. The result, I hope, is to shift your paradigm or world view. A holistic account requires a different emphasis. A holistic idea requires one to mobilise a large entity (theory, paradigm, conceptual scheme, conceptual framework or theoretical language or world view, to borrow some terms from current literature). This requires that the reader be familiar with the principles of the whole theory (Burian, 1984). This narrative’s purpose is to develop familiarity with the holistic terrain, laying some foundations for a holistic world view.

Our world view is radically incompatible with nature and not sustainable. Humanity has initiated a spate of destruction and extinctions, which if not curtailed, will be similar in effect to the event that caused the mass extinction of the dinosaurs (Wilson, 1992). Through the demonstration of the biological process of perpetuity and compatibility, I hope to shift perception of this ‘large entity’ enough for most readers to accept the new paradigm. If enough people accept the reality of the new paradigm, a separate ‘body politic’ may evolve—the consciously compatible human. Unfortunately, the requirements for this transformation are similar to the prerequisites for spirituality found in many religions. Spiritual transformation does not have a very successful track record.

What is the nature of a paradigm shift? A South African clown (86 years old in 1995) named (Gilyan) Francesco illustrates this beautifully. He was to act at a ‘black’ school, South African schools being racially segregated at this time. In the turbulence of the times the students were protesting. Such protests had often led to violence and even death, destruction such as the burning of school buildings and police intervention with tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse crowds. They could kill whites if in the wrong area, simply for being white skinned. These were dangerous times with violent intimidation, murder and strife common.

People advised Francisco not to act at the school of 2000 students, yet he insisted God was on his side and went.

A clown full of makeup and in colourful dress does not represent any of the traditional uniforms of race or authority. People, young and old identified with him completely, laughed with him and danced with him. He was like a solitary and temporary social revolution, able to change people’s conditioned behaviour through their identifying with this clown character. They were unable to relate him to any of the traditional figures of society such as traditional authorities, whites, police or army troops or with their own social condition of poverty and so the clown elevated them to another plane! Afterwards he emphasised that we need to give more love in life to solve problems and he had proved it! The conclusion is that the paradigm should be true to the person as a self-evident fact.

This book is to some extent a guided journey as much of what I say, others have said in better words than I can imagine or compose. As Mark Twain said, Adam was the only man who, when he said a good thing, knew that nobody had said it before him. (Winokur, 1988). However, the light of their individual statements has lacked the necessary synthesis providing a focus on the full implication, meaning and depth of their conceptions. Simple statements by various authors have a profound meaning in the context of the principles in this book. As Cardwell (1994) noted, Imitation means innovation, which, in turn often stimulates invention. Just as a willingness to adopt or imitate inventions made by others is not a sign of inferiority, so the adoption of others’ ideas as part of a larger structure, form part of a creative and progressive mind. We have built our whole civilisation upon knowledge found and established by others.

The early Greeks possessed imaginative inventiveness in abstract matters, which led to theories that persisted and developed through to today, such as the theory of atomism, attributed to Leucippus (440 BC) and Democritus (about 430 BC) (Russell, 1946). Forethought or foresight is a component of the awareness of time important to the development of humanity. Russell (1946) describes this prudence or forethought as distinguishing civilised man from the savage (Russell, 1946). A farsighted view was necessary for agriculture to arise and develop and so has been a characteristic of modern man. It was necessary so that man would strive for a future reward. This willingness is quite distinct from the instinctive behaviour of the industrious bee, or squirrels burying nuts.

The philosophical development of thought and ideas, such as by the early Greeks, and the more primal forethought necessary to survive through periods of scarcity, appears to have similar origins. They represent activities seeking to establish stability, order and constancy to life. Russell (1946) claims that throughout history there is a conflict between prudence and passion. Prudence requires a good memory, such an attribute preserved on Orphic tablets as an attribute of the afterlife: And lo, I am parched with the thirst and I perish. Give me quickly the cold water flowing forth from the Lake of Memory.

Holism is a theory (like atomism) recorded in early Greek literature of Heraclitus who lived around 500 BC. The essence of Holism is to be found in some of his statements: Couples are things whole and things not whole, what is drawn together and what is drawn asunder, the harmonious and the discordant. The one is made up of all things, and all things issue from the one. Some essential parameters of this holism are evident in the scattered remnants of his works. He taught evolutionary principles such as, nothing ever is, everything is becoming (Russell, 1946).

My book provides a simple synthesis. I consider it an ecological imperative that humanity accepts holism. Clearly humanity needs to reevaluate the role of nature in our existence as an ecological imperative. Appleyard (1992) who opposes such a view, states, I do not believe there is any meaning or consolation to be found in simple advocacy of harmony with nature. Others have recognised the ecological imperative such as a former soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev who said, Technology has not only failed to ease the conflict between man and nature, it has aggravated that conflict . The crisis of civilisation that we see today is a crisis of the naive belief in the omnipotence of humanity. We must change behaviour and models of consumption. Humanity must reject self-deification. Man is not a god who owns nature. Man is part of nature (Time No. 36, 1993). The paleoanthropologist, Richard Leakey similarly said, We are not stewards of the Earth, forever and a day. We are merely short-term tenants, and pretty unruly and destructive ones at that (Leakey & Lewin, 1992). People living in cities have to realise and remember their intimate dependence on nature. The last 200 years of humanity’s 200,000 years of existence, in which humanity has achieved so much change, progress and damage, is a mere instant compared with the roughly 150 million years of existence of the dinosaurs or the 4.6 billion years attributed to the earth’s age and geological history. If we wish humanity to last on earth for more than a mere moment, we need to change our ways.

At least, I outline and define a new behavioural purpose. The beauty of Holism is that it demands a scientifically based respect for nature. Its principles are not theologically based, so cannot conflict with religion. Also, no religion can justify the wholesale destruction of nature that is taking place at a rapid rate. No matter what the scriptures of the Jews, Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, Hindus, Scientologists and so forth follow, they do not promote the destruction of nature. From the religious fundamentalist, I request that he or she recognise that humans are naturally innovative. Humanity possesses the singular ability to create unique events and to destroy. Most, if not all religious groups have watched passively as we have destroyed nature, but eagerly adopted new technology. No religious scripture details how to build the great ships that we have today, nor