Unraveling the tapestry of life. Can we mend our earth?

Human civilization relies on biodiversity in many ways. Sudden changes in species biodiversity result in environmental changes that can modify weather patterns and therefore human civilizations.

There have been five major extinction events throughout geological history, resulting in the elimination of biodiversity, followed by a rebound of species that adapted to the new conditions. In the current geological epoch, the Holocene, there is a sixth extinction event in progress. This mass extinction has been attributed to human activities and is thus provisionally called the Anthropocene. In 2019 the human population reached 7.7 billion people and is projected to comprise 10 billion by...

Plants obtain inorganic minerals and water from the soil, which acts as a natural medium for land plants. The composition and quality of soil depend not only on the chemical constituents but also on the presence of living organisms. In general, soils contain three major components:Inorganic mineral matter, which constitutes about 40 to 45 percent of the soil volume.Organic matter, also known as humus, which makes up about 5 percent of the soil volume.Water and air, covering about 50 percent of...

As the human population continues to grow and use resources, we must be mindful of our planet’s natural limits. Sustainable development provides a pathway to maintain and improve human life now while also ensuring that future generations will have the resources that they need. The long-term success of sustainability efforts rests on understanding the interplay between human actions and ecological systems.

Regeneration and repair processes are critical in healing damages caused by injury, disease, and aging. In regeneration, the damaged tissue is entirely replaced with new growth that restores the original architecture and function. In contrast, tissue repair usually results in a fixed tissue architecture involving scar formation. Scars generally do not reestablish tissue function and may also exhibit structural abnormalities at the injury site.
Regeneration
All animals have varying degrees of...

Around 4 billion years ago, oceans began to condense on earth while volcanic eruptions released nitrogen, carbon dioxide, methane, ammonia, and hydrogen into the primordial atmosphere. However, organisms with the characteristics of life were not initially present on earth. Scientists have used experimentation to determine how organisms evolved that could grow, reproduce, and maintain an internal environment.In the 1920s, the scientists Oparin and Haldane proposed the idea that simple biological...