NationMaster - Encyclopedia: James Lovelock

Dr. James Ephraim Lovelock, CH, CBE, FRS (born 26 July 1919) is an independent scientist, author, researcher, environmentalist, and futurologist who lives in Cornwall, in the south west of Great Britain. He is known for proposing the Gaia hypothesis, in which he postulates that the Earth functions as a kind of superorganism. The Order of the Companions of Honour is a British and Commonwealth Order. ... The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions; in decreasing order of seniority, these are Knight Grand Cross or Dame Grand Cross (GBE) Knight Commander... For other uses, see Royal Society (disambiguation). ... is the 207th day of the year (208th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1919 (MCMXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar). ... Futurology or futures studies (called futurism in the United States) is the study of the medium to long-term future, by extrapolating present technological, economic or social trends, or by attempting to predict future trends. ... For other uses, see Cornwall (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Gaia. ... A group of organisms, such as an insect colony, that functions as a social unit. ...

Image File history File links James_Lovelock. ... Image File history File links James_Lovelock. ...

Biography

Lovelock was born in Letchworth Garden City. He studied chemistry at the University of Manchester before taking up a Medical Research Council post at the Institute for Medical Research in London^[1]. Letchworth Garden City, more commonly Letchworth, is a town in Hertfordshire, England. ... For other uses, see Chemistry (disambiguation). ... Affiliations Russell Group, EUA, N8 Group, NWUA, Worldwide Universities Network (WUN) Website http://www. ... Current MRC logo The Medical Research Council (MRC) is a UK organisation dedicated to promot[ing] the balanced development of medical and related biological research in the UK. // The MRC is one of seven Research Councils and is answerable to, although politically independent from, the Office of Science and Innovation...

In 1948, Lovelock received a Ph.D. in medicine at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Within the United States he has conducted research at Yale, Baylor College of Medicine, and Harvard University^[1]. Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated Ph. ... Categories: Stub | University of London | Schools of Medicine | Health in London ... Yale redirects here. ... Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) is ranked among the top Schools of medicine in the United States. ... Harvard redirects here. ...

Career

A lifelong inventor, Lovelock has created and developed many scientific instruments, some of which have been adopted by NASA in its programme of planetary exploration. It was while working for NASA that Lovelock developed the Gaia Hypothesis, for which he is most widely known. Image File history File links Question_book-3. ... The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) (IPA [ËˆnÃ¦sÉ™]) is an agency of the United States government, responsible for the nations public space program. ...

In early 1961, Lovelock was engaged by NASA to develop sensitive instruments for the analysis of extraterrestrial atmospheres and planetary surfaces. The Viking program that visited Mars in the late-1970s was motivated in part to determining whether Mars supported life, and many of the sensors and experiments that were ultimately deployed aimed to resolve this issue. Viking mission profile. ... Adjectives: Martian Atmosphere Surface pressure: 0. ... The 1970s decade refers to the years from 1970 to 1979, also called The Seventies. ...

During work towards this program, Lovelock became interested in the composition of the Martian atmosphere, reasoning that many life forms on Mars would be obliged to make use of it (and, thus, alter it). However, the atmosphere was found to be in a stable condition close to its chemical equilibrium, with very little oxygen, methane, or hydrogen, but with an overwhelming abundance of carbon dioxide. Adjectives: Martian Atmosphere Surface pressure: 0. ... Apparatus for carrying out acid-base titration. ... General Name, symbol, number oxygen, O, 8 Chemical series nonmetals, chalcogens Group, period, block 16, 2, p Appearance colorless (gas) pale blue (liquid) Standard atomic weight 15. ... Methane is a chemical compound with the molecular formula . ... This article is about the chemistry of hydrogen. ... Carbon dioxide is a chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom. ...

To Lovelock, the stark contrast between the Martian atmosphere and chemically-dynamic mixture of that of our Earth's biosphere was strongly indicative of the absence of life on the planet^[2]. However, when they were finally launched to Mars, the Viking probes still searched for life there. To date no evidence for either extant or extinct life has been found (although interest has recently revived with the discovery of unexpected methane in the atmosphere). This article is about Earth as a planet. ... In biology, extant taxon is commonly used in discussions of living and fossil species. ... In biology and ecology, extinction is the ceasing of existence of a species or group of species. ...

Lovelock invented the Electron Capture Detector, which ultimately assisted in discoveries about the persistence of CFCs and their role in stratospheric ozone depletion^[3]^[4]^[5]. The electron capture detector is based on the emission of electrons from a foil containing radioactive nickel-63. ... For other uses, see CFC (disambiguation). ... Atmosphere diagram showing stratosphere. ... Global monthly average total ozone amount Ozone depletion describes two distinct, but related observations: a slow, steady decline of about 4 percent per decade in the total amount of ozone in Earths stratosphere since around 1980; and a much larger, but seasonal, decrease in stratospheric ozone over Earths...

Lovelock was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1974. For other uses, see Royal Society (disambiguation). ...

After studying the operation of the Earth's sulfur cycle^[6], Lovelock and his colleagues developed the CLAW hypothesis as a possible example of biological control of the Earth's climate^[7]. Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... The CLAW hypothesis proposes a feedback loop that operates between ocean ecosystems and the Earths climate[1]. The hypothesis specifically proposes that particular phytoplankton that produce dimethyl sulfide are responsive to variations in climate forcing, and that these responses lead to a negative feedback loop that acts to stabilise...

In 1990, Lovelock was awarded the first Dr A.H. Heineken Prize for the Environment by the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences. The Dr. A.H. Heineken Prizes, named in honor of Alfred Heineken Fondsen, former Chairman of Heineken Holdings, are a series of awards bestowed by the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW). ...

An independent scientist, inventor, and author, Lovelock works out of a barn-turned-laboratory in Cornwall.

In 2003, he was appointed a Companion of Honour (CH) by Queen Elizabeth II. The Order of the Companions of Honour is a British and Commonwealth Order. ... Elizabeth II in an official portrait as Queen of Canada (on the occasion of her Golden Jubilee in 2002, wearing the Sovereigns badges of the Order of Canada and the Order of Military Merit) Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary) (born 21 April 1926), styled HM The...

Lovelock is currently president of the Marine Biological Association (MBA). Various species of reef fish in the Hawaiian Islands. ...

Gaia

While the Gaia Hypothesis was readily accepted by many in the environmentalist community, it has not been fully accepted within the scientific community. Among its more famous critics are Richard Dawkins and Ford Doolittle. The Gaia hypothesis, a hypothesis put forward to explain a number of paradoxes about life and the earth was first formulated in the 1960s, by the independent research scientist James Lovelock. ... Bold textHello ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Clinton Richard Dawkins, FRS (born March 26, 1941) is a British ethologist, evolutionary biologist and popular science writer who holds the Charles Simonyi Chair for the Public Understanding of Science at the University of Oxford. ... W. Ford Doolittle Dr. W. Ford Doolittle (born 1942 in Urbana, Illinois) is a biochemist. ...

Critics point out that since natural selection operates on individuals, it is not obvious how planetary-scale homeostasis can evolve. Lovelock responded to these criticisms with models such as Daisyworld, which illustrates how individual-level effects can translate to planetary homeostasis. However, as Earth Systems Science is still in its infancy, it is not yet clear how well Daisyworld applies to the full complexity of the Earth's biosphere and climate. For other uses, see Natural selection (disambiguation). ... Homeostasis is the property of either an open system or a closed system, especially a living organism, which regulates its internal environment so as to maintain a stable, constant condition. ... Part of the one-tenth scale model of Bourton-on-the-Water at Bourton-on-the-Water, Gloucestershire, England A scale model of the Singapore City Centre. ... Daisyworld, a computer simulation, is a hypothetical world orbiting a sun whose temperature is slowly increasing in the simulation. ... Earth science (also known as geoscience, the geosciences or the Earth Sciences), is an all-embracing term for the sciences related to the planet Earth. ... For other uses, see Biosphere (disambiguation). ...

Nuclear power

Lovelock has become concerned about the threat of global warming from the greenhouse effect. In 2004 he caused a media sensation when he broke with many fellow environmentalists by pronouncing that "only nuclear power can now halt global warming". In his view, nuclear energy is the only realistic alternative to fossil fuels that has the capacity to both fulfill the large scale energy needs of mankind while also reducing greenhouse emissions. He is an open member of Environmentalists for Nuclear Energy. Global warming refers to the increase in the average temperature of the Earths near-surface air and oceans in recent decades and its projected continuation. ... Wikinews has related news: Scientists warn thawing Siberia may trigger global meltdown A schematic representation of the exchanges of energy between outer space, the Earths atmosphere, and the Earth surface. ... This article is about applications of nuclear fission reactors as power sources. ... This article concerns the energy stored in the nuclei of atoms; for the use of nuclear fission as a power source, see Nuclear power. ... Fossil fuels or mineral fuels are fossil source fuels, this is, hydrocarbons found within the top layer of the earthâ€™s crust. ... Environmentalists for Nuclear Energy (EFN) is a pro-nuclear power non-profit organization. ...

In 2005, against the backdrop of renewed UK government interest in nuclear power, Lovelock again publicly announced his support for nuclear energy, stating, "I am a Green, and I entreat my friends in the movement to drop their wrongheaded objection to nuclear energy"^[8].

Although Lovelock's interventions in the public debate on nuclear power are recent, his views on it are longstanding. In his 1988 book The Ages of Gaia he states:

On 30 May 2006, Lovelock told the Australian Lateline television program: "Modern nuclear power stations are useless for making bombs". This is because the Plutonium-239 from a nuclear reactor power plant is contaminated with a significant amount of Pu-240, so it is not weapons-grade. It is easier to enrich Uranium than than to separate the Pu-240 from the Pu-239. Lateline (news) is a current affairs television program in Australia. ... General Name, Symbol, Number plutonium, Pu, 94 Chemical series actinides Group, Period, Block ?, 7, f Appearance silvery white Atomic mass (244) g/mol Electron configuration [Rn] 5f6 7s2 Electrons per shell 2, 8, 18, 32, 24, 8, 2 Physical properties Phase solid Density (near r. ... These pie-graphs showing the relative proportions of uranium-238 (blue) and uranium-235 (red) at different levels of enrichment. ... General Name, symbol, number uranium, U, 92 Chemical series actinides Group, period, block n/a, 7, f Appearance silvery gray metallic; corrodes to a spalling black oxide coat in air Standard atomic weight 238. ...

In response, Dr. Jim Green, a nuclear campaigner, said: "Lovelock's claim that nuclear power plants cannot be used for weapons production is false, irresponsible and dangerous. A typical nuclear power reactor produces about 300 kilograms of plutonium each year, enough for 30 nuclear weapons"^[9]. Technically however this is not a refutation of Lovelock's claim, as Lovelock did not deny that reactors produce plutonium, merely that it is in a form difficult to utilize for weapons production.

Climate and mass human mortality

Writing in the British newspaper The Independent in January 2006, Lovelock argues that, as a result of global warming, "billions of us will die and the few breeding pairs of people that survive will be in the Arctic where the climate remains tolerable" by the end of the 21st century^[10]. For other uses, see The Independent (disambiguation). ... Global warming refers to the increase in the average temperature of the Earths near-surface air and oceans in recent decades and its projected continuation. ... 20XX redirects here. ...

He claims that by the end of the century, the average temperature in temperate regions will increase by as much as 8°C and by up to 5°C in the tropics, leaving much of the world's land uninhabitable and unsuitable for farming, with polar cities needed. He suggests that "we have to keep in mind the awesome pace of change and realise how little time is left to act, and then each community and nation must find the best use of the resources they have to sustain civilisation for as long as they can"^[10].

He partially retreated from this position in a September 2007 address to the World Nuclear Association's Annual Symposium, suggesting that climate change would stabilise and prove survivable, and that the Earth itself is in "no danger" because it would stabilise in a new state. Life, however, might be forced to migrate en masse to remain in habitable climes^[11]. The World Nuclear Association (formerly the Uranium Institute) is a pro-nuclear power organisation which monitors and promotes the use of nuclear power. ...

Ocean Pipes proposal

In September 2007, Lovelock and Chris Rapley proposed the construction of ocean pipes "100 to 200 metres long, 10 metres in diameter and with a one-way flap valve at the lower end for pumping by wave movement" to pump water up from below the thermocline to "fertilize algae in the surface waters and encourage them to bloom"^[12]. The intention of this scheme is to accelerate the transfer of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to the ocean by increasing primary production and enhancing the export of organic carbon (as marine snow) to the deep ocean. The idea is theoretical, and the authors note that it "may fail, perhaps on engineering or economic grounds", and that "the impact on ocean acidification will need to be taken into account". Animated map exhibiting the worlds oceanic waters. ... The word pipe can refer to: The basic cylindrical pipe shape a tubular man-made channel, generally round in cross section, in steel or concrete for transporting or guiding a fluid substance see plumbing and pipeline transport used in construction as column, truss element or space frame in mechanical engineering... The thermocline is a layer within a body of water where the temperature changes rapidly with depth. ... Global oceanic and terrestrial photoautotroph abundance, from September 1997 to August 2000. ... In the deep ocean, marine snow is a continuous shower of mostly organic detritus falling from the upper layers of the water column. ... Change in sea surface pH caused by anthropogenic CO2 between the 1700s and the 1990s Ocean acidification is the name given to the ongoing decrease in the pH of the Earths oceans, caused by their uptake of anthropogenic carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. ...

The proposal attracted widespread media attention^[13]^[14]^[15]^[16], although also criticism^[17]^[18]^[19]. Commenting on the proposal, Corinne Le Quéré, a University of East Anglia researcher, said "It doesn’t make sense. There is absolutely no evidence that geoengineering options work or even go in the right direction. I’m astonished that they published this. Before any geoengineering is put to work a massive amount of research is needed – research which will take 20 to 30 years"^[13]. Other researchers have noted that "this scheme would bring water with high natural pCO₂ levels (associated with the nutrients) back to the surface, potentially causing exhalation of CO₂"^[19]. UEA redirects here. ... Planetary engineering is the application of technology for the purpose of influencing the global properties of a planet. ...

A similar scheme to that proposed by Lovelock and Rapley is already being developed by a commercial company^[20].

Books

The Revenge of Gaia: Why the Earth is Fighting Back - and How we Can Still Save Humanity (2006) is a book by James Lovelock. ...

References

^ ^a ^b Biography of James Lovelock, Association of Environmentalists For Nuclear Energy. Retrieved 30 October 2007.
^ Lovelock, J.E. (1968) A Physical Basis for Life Detection Experiments. Nature 207, 568-570.
^ Lovelock, J.E. (1971). Atmospheric Fluorine Compounds as Indicators of Air Movements. Nature 230, 379.
^ Lovelock, J.E., Maggs, R.J. and Wade, R.J. (1973). Halogenated Hydrocarbons in and over the Atlantic. Nature 241, 194-196.
^ Travels with an Electron Capture Detector, acceptance speech for Blue Planet Prize 1997
^ Lovelock, J.E., Maggs, R.J. and Rasmussen, R.A. (1972). Atmospheric Dimethyl Sulphide and the Natural Sulphur Cycle. Nature 237, 452-453.
^ Charlson, R. J., Lovelock, J. E., Andreae, M. O. and Warren, S. G. (1987). Oceanic phytoplankton, atmospheric sulphur, cloud albedo and climate. Nature 326, 655-661.
^ Nukes Are Green, Nicholas Kristof, The New York Times, 9 April 2005. Retrieved 4 October 2007.
^ James Lovelock urged to get his nuclear facts straight, Friends of the Earth, 4 July 2007. Retrieved 4 October 2007.
^ ^a ^b The Earth is about to catch a morbid fever that may last as long as 100,000 years, James Lovelock, The Independent, 16 January 2006. Retrieved 4 October 2007.
^ Lovelock: "Respect the Earth", World Nuclear News, 6 September 2007. Retrieved 4 October 2007.
^ Lovelock, J.E. and Rapley, C.G. (2007). Ocean pipes could help the Earth to cure itself. Nature 449, 403-403.
^ ^a ^b Scientists propose 'plumbing' method to solve crisis of global warming, Lewis Smith, The Times, 26 September 2007. Retrieved 3 October 2007.
^ James Lovelock's plan to pump ocean water to stop climate change, Roger Highfield, The Daily Telegraph, 26 September 2007. Retrieved 4 October 2007.
^ Pipes hung in the sea could help planet to 'heal itself', Michael McCarthy, The Independent, 27 September 2007. Retrieved 4 October 2007.
^ How sea tubes could slow climate change, Alok Jha, The Guardian, 27 September 2007. Retrieved 4 October 2007.
^ Cold water on global warming plans, Phillip Williamson, The Guardian, 1 October 2007. Retrieved 4 October 2007.
^ The last green taboo: engineering the planet, Johann Hari, The Independent, 4 October 2007. Retrieved 4 October 2007.
^ ^a ^b Shepherd, J.G., Inglesias-Rodriguez, D. and Yool, A. (2007). Geo-engineering might cause, not cure, problems. Nature 449, 781.
^ Biological Ocean Sequestration of CO2 Using Atmocean Upwelling, Atmocean. Retrieved 3 October 2007.

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Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 277th day of the year (278th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 276th day of the year (277th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ...

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