CHAPTER 1 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE LAWS OF NATURE Subhead: Natural laws have governed life on Earth since the planets

beginnings 4.5 billion years ago. Today, in the Philippines as well as all over the world, man has come up with new laws to steward the Earth, while ironically pushing his home planet closer to the brink of total destruction. PART I: On Space, Time and Man Subhead: Its been a long way since the beginnings of our galaxy to the time man first walked the Earth SOMEWHERE in that vast ocean of space called the Universe lies an archipelago of stars, the Milky Way. By galactic standards, the Milky Way is not large, only about 80,000 light years from one end to the other. About three-fourths of the way to the outer rim of this galaxy is a star that glimmers like a firefly in the dark night. We call it the sun. It is the center of some nine planets that continuously circle around it, and is the source of all heat and energy. The third heavenly body away from but turning around the sun is the Earth. In relation to the planets in our solar system, ours is not very large; in fact, it is the fifth smallest planet. By galactic standards, the Earth does not even amount to a grain of sand in the sea of space. But the Earth is quite special. It is not too close to the Sun to be too hot, but neither is it too far away to be too cold and frozen. In other words, it is just right, and as far as we know, it is the only planet that contains life. Some scientists have tried to guess at the age of the Earth. They say it is about 4.5 billion years old, give or take a few hundred million. But let us think about that for a little while: four billion and five hundred million years old. Considering that humans have an average life span of only 60-70 years, our frame of reference makes it difficult to think in terms of a thousand, a million, let alone 4.5 billion years. We know that at the beginning, the Earth was a mere cloud of gases that
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condensed and became a solid mass. By the magic of Creation, the swirling gases formed a delicate mixture of airthe first element of life. In time, the gases turned into vapor that condensed to become waterthe second element of life. In ancient times, the Greeks called the Earth their oikos, Greek for the word home. They figured out that Earth was indeed a common home to human beings and to the other forms of life that shared this space. Oikos is also the root word of eco, the root word of ecology. Ecology is therefore the study of the Earth and of all things, living and non-living, that can be found in it. Oikos is also the root of the word eco-nomics, the study of the material provisions of one of Earths inhabitants, man. Economics is therefore only a tiny part of Ecology, and is quite irrelevant to the lives of the other inhabitants of this common living space. Life in the last four billion years We generally think that life came to be when the Earth itself came into being. But for most of Earths history, there was no life on this planet. Of the Earths 4.5 billion years, life did not start to appear until about 600 million years ago, and then only in the form of single-celled organisms. Add a few more millions of years, and in time these single-celled organisms began to form into the more complex algae, then fungi, and then other soft-bodied marine animals. It was during the first period of visible life that clams, mollusks, starfish, and seaweed began to populate the sea, when almost all of the Earth was covered with water. After several millions of years more, a skeletal structure with a more complex nervous system began to take shape. This became fish, many of which still live in the sea. This was the period when the fish dominated the planet, the period is known as the era of the fish that lasted from 600 million to 200 million years ago. In time the skeletal structure of the fish became more sophisticated. They crawled out of the water and began to live on land. To adapt and to be able to breathe air, these early creatures developed lungs. This age marked the birth of reptiles. Crocodiles, snakes, lizards and turtles are living examples of our reptilian ancestry. A kind of reptile that lived during this period, now known as the Jurassic period, was called the dinosaur. Their species lasted from about 200 million to about 70 million years ago, after which they
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became extinct. One interesting explanation for the dinosaurs mass extermination is the asteroid theory. A large asteroid was said to have hit the surface of the Earth, kicking up great clouds of dust. The dust was so thick and so widespread that the resulting clouds covered the Earths atmosphere like a blanket, which the suns rays could no longer penetrate. Without the sun, plants started to die and the dinosaurs ran out of food. About 70 million years ago, there appeared a more sophisticated kind of animal, the mammal. While reptiles bore their offspring in the form of eggs, mammals gave birth to smaller versions of themselves. Also, mammals fed their young with the mothers breast milk. It was the time of animals like cats, horses, monkeys, and apes, which were distinctive because of their more complex nervous system and level of intelligence. The mammals grew in number and variety. In natural history, the period we are living in today is known as the age of mammals. Over the last two million years, however, there has been a significant addition to life on Eartha form of mammal known as man. Man has two physical characteristics that distinguish him from other animals. First, he stands on two feet and walks erect, the only animal that does so. Unlike his other cousins from the Hominid familyapes, gorillasman does not need his front limbs to walk or climb. Kingdoms of life Before discussing the dominance of man, we would do well to first examine the two classifications of life on Earth. Inhabitants of the Plant Kingdom are classified in ascending order of complexity. At the bottom are phytoplankton, algae and mosses. Higher up are the grasses, vines, shrubs, and bushes, and all the way up is the most biologically sophisticated kind of plant, the tree. For this reason, trees are known as the climax species in the Plant Kingdom. As a living organism, the tree is quite complex. It can absorb water from the soil and then pump it high up to the leaves. It can absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, and with the energy of sunlight, chemically process it into food and then convert it into matter. Trees exhale oxygen, the gas needed by animals, and inhale carbon dioxide, the gas discharged by animals. Trees also serve as the home of birds, monkeys, lizards, insects,
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ferns, orchids and thousands of other plants and animals. A tree is also capable of reproduction through the seeds of its fruits, fruits that animals feed upon. The other kingdom is the Animal Kingdom. Through time, single-celled organisms evolved into anemones, mollusks and fish. The ladder rose further to include land-dwelling animals such as insects, worms, snakes, lizards, crocodiles, bears, pigs, cattle, cats, monkeys, baboons, chimpanzees, and apes. At the peak is the Animal Kingdoms version of a climax species, man. Perhaps because they are the climax species of their respective kingdoms, there is a special bond between man and trees. This probably explains why humans feel an indescribable sense of majesty when in the presence of a large tree, and a sense of solace by simply sitting in its shade. But there is a difference in their ecological functions. Whereas a tree performs essential ecological services, like holding soil and water and providing a habitat for others, man does not. He is not a producer, but is only a user and consumer of both plants and animals, for food and for fancy. Like the dinosaurs, man is an omnivorehe eats almost anything and everything. Man is also an omni-userhe uses almost everything. Whereas dinosaurs had no need for lifeless rocks, in this day and age, humans use rocks and metals for various (and some very silly) purposes. What is even more alarming is that after use, man throws away what is left as waste. Even at the height of their dominance on Earth, the dinosaurs waste served to nourish the soil. Biologists and anthropologists have long studied what makes man different from other animals. Let us begin with the similarities. In terms of physical structure, humans are not very different from apes. In fact, a recent study indicated that our DNA make-up is almost 99 % identical to that of a chimpanzee. In the science of ethology, the study of animal behavior, there are three imperatives common to all animal life: food, sex, and politics. All animals eat to sustain themselves; all animals breed to perpetuate themselves; and all animals have some form of social organization.
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It was once thought that only humans used tools, until we discovered that chimpanzees also did, ingeniously using twigs to poke into holes for termites. Humans once thought that affection and care for others, the trait known as altruism, was unique to man. Recent discoveries, however, reveal clear evidence that dolphins and elephants, among other creatures, are just as caring for their sick and injured, often even at risk to their own life. Humans also once believed that only they used language. Once again this has been proven wrong. With the use of sophisticated sonar equipment, we have learned that whales, monkeys and even birds use some form of language to communicate with one another. Scientists have concluded that the differences between humans and other animals lie in the degree and sophistication of particular traits. Man discovered the use of fire, and that made all the difference. However, it seems that since he began to use fire, he has done so in a manner that has caused himself great harm. The evolution of man Physically, there is now little doubt that monkeys, apes and humans have a common ancestor. What this common ancestor looked like are still the subject of much research, thus the continued search for the so-called missing link. Somewhere along the path of our evolution, our species branched off from that common ancestor and we acquired physical characteristics distinct from our cousin apes. Our pelvic bones allowed us to walk on only our hind limbs, which became two legs and feet. This event marked the point of emergence of our early ancestors, the species Homo erectus, the erect human. As the hind limbs became devoted to walking, the front limbs became the hands. Having been freed from the drudgery of locomotion, the human hands began to follow the directives of a naturally curious mind and became the extension of the human brain. Holding and manipulating things was made easier by an opposable thumb. We do not know for sure how the hand became useful. Man probably first learned to use his hands to repel the attack of fellow animals, resorting to
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sticks and stones. Still later, he probably learned to use these sticks and stones a little more imaginativelyto subdue, capture, control and even kill creatures larger than himself. With the ability to control other animals came a newfound sense of security. Man now had the time to explore his surroundings even more. From then on, it was a matter of time before he discovered fire, and learned to use it to cook his food, to heat his body in cold weather, and as a weapon of defense and offense. All these happened only in the last 200,000 years. Mans ancestor, Homo erectus, walked the Earth some two million years ago. Judging from the fossilized remains of his skull, he had an average brain size of only about 1,000 cubic centimeters (cc). Homo erectus successor species, the kind of man that walked the Earth between 500,000 and 200,000 years ago, had an average brain weight of 1,200 cc. This was the species called Homo sapiens. In Latin the word sapiens means wise. The term Homo sapiens, therefore, refers to the member of the Hominid family that is, or at least claims to be, wise. Over the last 200,000 years, the brain of Homo sapiens appears to have grown even more. Today, the average human brain is already about 1,450 cc. In fact, man today no longer calls himself merely a Homo sapiens, but a Homo sapiens sapiens. Man now claims to be doubly wise. A claim, of course, is not proof of fact. And the physical evidence of what has happened to the Earth as a result of mans behavior will prove that he is sorely lacking in the wisdom needed to deal with nature.