Re: [l/m 6/29/94] What is "natural?" Distilled Wisdom (24/28) XYZ


R. Lander wrote:
Eugene Miya wrote:

In article <1156478918.346069.324210@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>,
R. Lander <r_lander60@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Eugene Miya wrote:
'What is natural?' implies something made by natural as opposed to
artificial processes. There is something here. Polyethelene is
not a substance that is mined from the earth. It is clearly artificial,
man-made. It does have advantages, and clear environmental problems.
But yes, it is made from "natural" atoms. Man is a part of nature.
The issue is the scale (economies) of some of these substances.
See "biodegradability" in the dictionary.

Man was originally part of nature,

Man still is a part of the natural universe/world.
Don't get too wrapped up in language.
Draw Venn diagrams if you have to.

Well, being a "part" of it and living by its rules are two different
things. It should be self-evident that we've crossed too many lines to
call ourselves "natural" (as a group). The fact that the question is
asked begs the most obvious answer. Nature didn't need to be managed by
professionals before people started taking more than they gave back.

Most of our whole economy is based on takings when you study it. Trace
the life-cycle of a typical product and see how little of it gets
recycled back into nature. That's improving but we'll never be nearly
as efficient as nature was. You could say oil is being recycled but
it's going back into the atmosphere where it doesn't belong. There's
too much evidence of us not being natural at all.

R. Lander

Man may leave a seemingly indelible hi-tech mark on our environment,
however the Earth will survive, eventually healing itself! Whether the
healed Earth will be suitable for human habitation will more than
likely change our definition of natural wilderness at that time. Though
none of us will be around to read or write down that new definition.

So it seems to me that what we mean by natural, is what is humanly
habitable with normal life support systems. This for example would
exclude living under the sea, or in outer space, both of which require
extraordinary life support systems for us as humans, though quite
natural life exists in the current oceans, and who knows what we may
eventually find in space. This would also exclude areas that have
become so polluted that they are uninhabitable!

When we speak of pollution, we could be speaking of a toxic chemical
dump, or that jet airplane flying over head of which we hear a faint
roar. Maybe we speak of the even higher ISS or the myriad of satellites
that fly across every square inch of the Earth's surface, taking
pictures of our very small world! However who of us have not marveled
at that bright speck moving across the night sky, and does it ruin our
natural wilderness experience!

Wilderness are those areas which are naturally habitable, but for
various reasons, the majority of mankind have not chosen to inhabit,
leaving it for the other wild land animals in which to dwell without
mans intrusion or intervention. By this definition, land used for
ranching operations or other human endeavors are not wilderness, no
matter how remote. Also as an extension of land excluded from human
habitation, we also include the sea were there are wild animals, and
set aside from fishing or other resourse tapping endeavors.

By this definition there are many natural areas available for human
habitation, though very few true wilderness areas remain. Man has made
his mark pretty much world wide. You can go to the top of the highest
mountains, and find air bottles! Remote seal colonies are on harsh
windswept islands where you find whaling and seal hunting camps! Very
few spots can be found where man has not stepped and left his foot
print, even if it is not modern man! The marks may be footprints
frozen in 200,000 year old mud! HYY

.

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