Just to knock down the I.Q. rating of this conversation about 50 points...The ancient (possibly genetic), farmer in my head says, "Anywhere there is a nutrition budget, there will be something which converts it."

I suppose it took a few billion years to get that way, but that's what I found.

So does life on any planet evolve by the same rules as here on Earth? Might aliens be so close to us that they could walk among us? I just don't see the probability of a bug-eyed monster or cockroach evolving to make a space craft.

 

Well, they don't eat other life forms. At least most don't. But they do need fertilizer which is dead stuff. They must consume carbon which is the stuff all organic stuff is made of.

Actually they do - for the most part, its fungi that break down the debris from the photosynthetic plants. Its pretty much the waste products left after the fungi life cycle that feed the plants again.

Its become trendy for gardeners to chip old branches and foliage and spread it on the flower borders. You could say that plants are cannibals - but I think fungi convert the chips before the material is available to the flowers.

 

Wood chips covering the ground is called mulch and one of the purposes of mulch is to break down via sunlight and water into simpler substances that can be utilized by the plant. Other functions of mulch are insulation against against frost and ease in weeding. I have used porous volcanic rock of 8mm size for this purpose which does the same thing but provides no nutrient other than condensing and storing dew.

 

I just don't see the probability of a bug-eyed monster or cockroach evolving to make a space craft.

Why not? We did.

 

Actually they do - for the most part, its fungi that break down the debris from the photosynthetic plants. Its pretty much the waste products left after the fungi life cycle that feed the plants again.

Its become trendy for gardeners to chip old branches and foliage and spread it on the flower borders. You could say that plants are cannibals - but I think fungi convert the chips before the material is available to the flowers.

Quite correct. Thank you.

 

For a long time, it's been quite evident to me, that the only thing out of place on this world is us.

We are the only ones that feel uncomfortable here. We can not live in this environment. Our bodies were not made for it. If we evolved, it wasn't here. Every other creature has solved the body environment problem, except man.

This makes us nervous. We have to change this world. This is not greedy or immoral.

It's the only option available.

 

You're right, man did not evolve in Virginia. He evolved in equatorial regions and developed a brain large enough that he could adapt to other habitats. My cat evolved to be fuzzy and friendly, so it could live in the house with me.

 

Why would the rules of evolution be that different in different parts of the world or even on different planets?

I don't doubt that the principles are similar -- But as to the question of truly isolated emergence of organisms bearing even remotely similar form? --- I offer this: Why shouldn't a handful of talcum powder cast into the air precipitate in such a manner as to spell out your name? IOW the gulfs intervening 'possible' and 'probable' are, at certain junctures, nothing short of mind-boggling!

Granted... ecosystems on the same planet -- perhaps, even, within the same solar system -- cannot be said/guaranteed to be "truly isolated" -- Still...

Very best regards
HP

 

For a long time, it's been quite evident to me, that the only thing out of place on this world is us.

We are the only ones that feel uncomfortable here. We can not live in this environment. Our bodies were not made for it. If we evolved, it wasn't here. Every other creature has solved the body environment problem, except man.

This makes us nervous. We have to change this world. This is not greedy or immoral.

It's the only option available.

I see no inconsistency?
All species survive via the 'playing of their strong suit', as it were -- In humanity's case that'd be 'tool use' --- Prominent among said tools being language and its corollaries (e.g. Civilization, economies, agriculture, buildings, healthcare, transportation, energy distribution, etc, etc, etc --- and, oh yea! Clothing and weapons!)

We can not live in this environment.

Humans, deprived of their tools, are indeed compromised! -- As are other species when deprived of their survival-critical adaptations --- again, I see no inconsistency...

Every other creature has solved the body environment problem, except man.

Seems to me we've solved it quite nicely!

We are the only ones that feel uncomfortable here.

'Future fear' (and all it entails) is the (IMO, equitable) price we pay for our superior cognitive ability -- even as, for instance, birds 'sacrificed' appendages of manipulation for their highly effective means of locomotion... (of course similar considerations apply to all species)...

We have to change this world. This is not greedy or immoral.

On that point -- We're agreed! --- À la 'strains' of that venerable ditty --- "I'd rather be a hammer than a nail..."

Best regards
HP

 

AFAIK All plants require the products/remains of other organisms (in part) for nourishment -- But, hey I've an open mind! If anyone knows of a plant (or, for that matter, any macroscopic organism) that is naturally and wholly sustained by inorganic (or inorganic carbon) compounds I'd be sincerely delighted to learn of it

Best regards
HP

I read a article that it described the plants has a strong life, the thing was the plants at the basement without sunlight, normally when the plants without sunlight, it means that they will die soon, no matter one week or one month, in that article the researcher said that they can't find any light at the basement, but the plants growing very normally from human eyes, they did some research and make only possible reason, that is the plants using their tendril to caught the metal pipe, and the metal pipe from the basements extended up to the ground, and the metal pipe can absorb the sunlight, so the plants get the heat from the metal pipe and converting to the energy and they depend on that to survive.

 

You're right, man did not evolve in Virginia. He evolved in equatorial regions and developed a brain large enough that he could adapt to other habitats. My cat evolved to be fuzzy and friendly, so it could live in the house with me.

In a well known comedy show - the cat on the Red-Dwarf space ship somehow evolved into a humanoid life form.

Its left to the viewer's imagination how that came to pass........................

 

How many trees are needed to provide enough oxygen for one person?

 

Not all trees are the same, so there is no answer. But you could start by calculating how much oxygen you need each day, and compare that to how much a tree of defined size and type makes.

 

As wayneh has mentioned, tree types vary. There are trees that have very large leaves and thus a large surface for photosynthesis and there are the conifers that have needle-.like leaves with a very much smaller leaf surface.

 

I don't have any numbers, but I have always been under the impression the algae does most of the work on the planet.

 

Plants are good for far more things other than just oxygen production and as a food source for higher animals. Ever heard of the algae-sea slug symbiosis?

https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn16124-solar-powered-sea-slug-harnesses-stolen-plant-genes/​

 

Sometimes I am amazed at the amount of cognitive estrangement required by science.

 

I never cease to be amazed at the places that we find life to exist in various forms(under sea at hot vents etc).
There does not seem to be any environment that doesn't have some form of life here on earth.
I am certain that there is life also somewhere out there.
But I doubt we will ever know for sure since space is so vast. As far as aliens form goes, if "intelligent spacefaring" aliens go , I'm convinced they will be VERY much like us(humanoid) since regardless of SCI-FI aliens, it would take body structure like ours to build artifacts like ours(space craft etc).
I cannot imagine a reptilian clawed hand etc, managing to assemble a watch for instance.
So I'm sure that if they come here they will look very much like us , or maybe they are already here????

 

I don't have any numbers, but I have always been under the impression the algae does most of the work on the planet.

Marine oxygen production is roughly half of the global total. The question was specifically how many trees it would take to supply a human.

 

Marine oxygen production is roughly half of the global total. The question was specifically how many trees it would take to supply a human.

Maybe the answer would be more meaningful if:

1. We first determine the size of the average tree
2. Add how many square meters of sea are also needed to supply an average human's oxygen intake