The author’s internal reflections have revealed several attitudes that hinder a larger understanding of Earth. While not necessarily shared to the same extent by everyone, these attitudes may be worth describing. The first is the unstated assumption that Science has explained almost everything, or that it soon will. This may result from the assumption that explaining simple examples, like hydrogen atoms, allows one to generalize about all the rest of the atoms. This does not include the possibility of emergent properties. This assumption is actually hubris when attempting to understand the complexity Earth, any of the enormously complex levels within it.
Another deep-seated assumption in the scientific outlook is that of the objective observer. This observer is the basis of repeatability, which is the basis of all scientific research. The assumption of the objective observer becomes questioned when attempting to observe a system that is on the same level as the complexity of the observer. The objective observer is even more questionable when attempting to observe a system of which one is only a small part.
We are more than computers, having been grown by and in contact with Earth. We have capacities of heart and mind that go beyond the “objective” observer. We can change from being “objective” to “involved”. Great care is needed when allowing any subjective or emotional element into the field of science. The distinction is made between emotions like greed, pride and jealousy on one hand, and wonder awe and delight on the other. Many eminent science scientific researchers are moved by the latter set of these emotions into new areas of study and new discoveries. The former set of emotions are present in scientific research anyway, but usually well-disguised.
Another human ability is vision or inspiration. This ability has been responsible for major scientific advancements. Both of these subjective abilities – emotional involvement and inspiration – will be needed to guide our relationship with Earth. This book is not trying to degrade or disprove the scientific method, but to point out hidden assumptions and common approaches in scientific investigation that hinder the kind of awareness pursued in this book.
One common approach toward a complex subject is to simplify the investigation by disregarding variables, or by taking the subject into the laboratory. Many ecological studies have been done this way. Ecology is a science that wishes it could be mathematically analyzed, but it is far too complex.
Another common approach to complexity is to divide a subject into many specialties and subspecialties. With different technical languages and specialized analytical tools, the situation in many parts of science is like the Tower of Babel. The danger is that no one will consider it their own domain to put all the pieces back together again. The danger to our topic is that the possibility of a larger system is never within the range of any one of the smaller and smaller specialties that compose the fields of ecology and biology and geology.
Becoming aware of a whole ecosystem, like a prairie, leads far beyond the scientific studies of it. Some practical approaches to healing ecosystems have profited from a whole system approach. Holistic management, using cattle as part of prairie ecosystems, has been successful in healing degraded rangelands. We will need to look at sustainable cultures for further clues to becoming aware of the whole. It is clear that such cultures base their awareness first, on acute and detailed observation of the ecosystems that they inhabit, and then on a larger awareness of the whole system.