James Lovelock
Lovelock, James (1919-), a British chemist, biologist, and inventor, set forth a hypothesis that he called Gaia (GAY uh) that views the earth as a living organism that functions as a unified whole.
James Ephraim Lovelock was born on July 26, 1919, in Letchworth, Hertfordshire, England, to Tom Lovelock, an art dealer, and Nellie A. E. (March) Lovelock, a local government official. At the University of Manchester, he majored in chemistry, earning a B.Sc. degree in 1941. At the University of London, he earned a Ph.D. degree in medicine in 1949 and a D.Sc. degree in biophysics in 1959.
From 1941 to 1961, Lovelock served as a staff scientist with the National Institute for Medical Research in London. He then taught in Houston, Texas, and worked with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) devising ways to detect life on other planets. During this project, Lovelock realized the concept that led him to formulate the Gaia hypothesis.
He presented his hypothesis in 1968, calling it Gaia after the ancient Greek goddess of the earth. According to his theory, all living things interact to create the conditions that are needed for life to continue. An example of Gaia at work is a tropical rain forest. Trees give off water through their leaves in a process called transpiration. By adding humidity to the air, the trees increase the number of rainstorms. As a result, the environment necessary for a rain forest is maintained in two ways: first, the rain keeps the trees watered; second, rain clouds block the sun, to keep the forest from overheating.
He presented his ideas in Gaia: A New Look at Life on Earth (1979) and The Ages of Gaia (1988). His theory aroused controversy among scientists, some of whom considered it unscientific. Other experts thought that research on Gaia could add to the understanding of environmental problems, such as the greenhouse effect.
Lovelock patented about 60 inventions, including many precision measuring instruments. After 1964, he became a self-employed researcher at his laboratory in southwestern England. From 1967 to 1990, he was a visiting professor at the University of Reading.