Gaia hypothesis

American  

[gey-uh hahy-poth-uh-sis, hi-poth‐] / ˈgeɪ ə haɪˌpɒθ ə sɪs, hɪˌpɒθ‐ /

noun

1. a theory advancing the notion that life on earth is perpetuated by the interaction of organisms with their inorganic environment, a process maintained by the earth’s self-regulation of its own material conditions and requirements.

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Gaia hypothesis British  

/ ˈɡaɪə /

noun

1. the theory that the earth and everything on it constitutes a single self-regulating living entity

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Etymology

Origin of Gaia hypothesis

Coined in 1975 by British environmentalist and futurist James E. Lovelock (1919–2022); see origin at Gaia ( def. 2 )

Example Sentences

When I first encountered this idea of the Gaia hypothesis, I found it very seductive.

From Salon • Dec. 19, 2022

The Gaia hypothesis, first proposed in the 1970s, saw the Earth itself as a complex, self-regulating system that created and maintained the conditions for life on the planet.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 27, 2022

Echoing James Lovelock’s Gaia hypothesis, which proposes that the Earth is a vast, self-regulating organism, Mutu said in her recent talk that the injustices humans commit against one another are inevitably related to the Earth.

From Washington Post • Jul. 7, 2021

With the Gaia hypothesis, coevolution becomes a symbiotic relationship between life and environment, which evolve together as a single, self-regulating system maintaining the conditions for life on Earth.

From Scientific American • Sep. 5, 2019

They began to study new models of interconnectivity and group mind, such as James Lovelock's Gaia hypothesis and Rupert Sheldrakes theory of morphogenesis, to explain and confirm their growing sense of non-local community.

From Open Source Democracy by Rushkoff, Douglas