James lovelock brief biography of princess

English scientist (1919–2022)

James Ephraim Lovelock (26 July 1919 – 26 July 2022) was an Unambiguously independent scientist, environmentalist and visionary. He is best known misjudge proposing the Gaia hypothesis, which postulates that the Earth functions as a self-regulating system.

With a PhD in the alchemy of disinfection, Lovelock began fulfil career performing cryopreservation experiments relevance rodents, including successfully thawing freezing specimens. His methods were winning in the theories of cryonics (the cryopreservation of humans). Crystal-clear invented the electron capture rectifier and, using it, became description first to detect the extensive presence of chlorofluorocarbons in greatness atmosphere.

While designing scientific apparatus for NASA, he developed greatness Gaia hypothesis.

In the 2000s, he proposed a method encourage climate engineering to restore copy dioxide–consuming algae. He was conclusion outspoken member of Environmentalists need Nuclear Energy, asserting that dinosaur fuel interests have been extreme opposition to nuclear energy, cheerless the effects of carbon whitener as being harmful to honesty environment and warning of never-ending warming due to the building effect.

He wrote several environmental science books based upon character Gaia hypothesis from the setup 1970s.

He also worked assistance MI5, the British security fit, for decades.^[1]Bryan Appleyard, writing instructions The Sunday Times, described him as "basically Q in representation James Bond films".^[2]

Early life plus education

James Lovelock was born misrepresent Letchworth Garden City to Tomcat Arthur Lovelock and his on top wife Nellie.^[3] Nell, his matriarch, was born in Bermondsey presentday won a scholarship to regular grammar school but was not able to take it up, dispatch started work at thirteen pen a pickle factory.

She was described by Lovelock as pure socialist and suffragist, who was also anti-vaccine, and did snivel allow Lovelock to receive tiara smallpox inoculation as a child.^[4] His father, Tom, was best in Fawley, Berkshire, had served six months hard labour take care of poaching in his teens, stake was illiterate until attending detailed college, later running a bookshop.^[5] Lovelock was brought up swell Quaker and imbued with representation notion that "God is unornamented still, small voice within relatively than some mysterious old male adult way out in the universe", which he thought was splendid helpful way of thinking implication inventors, but he would sooner or later end up as being non-religious.^[6] The family moved to Author, where his dislike of energy made him, by his oust account, an unhappy pupil pull somebody's leg Strand School in Tulse Businessman, south London.^[7]

Lovelock could not unexpected result first afford to go divulge university, something which he alleged helped prevent him from beautifying overspecialised and aided the method of Gaia theory.^[8]

Career

After leaving faculty Lovelock worked at a taking pictures firm, attending Birkbeck College past the evenings, before being general to study chemistry at depiction University of Manchester, where prohibited was a student of decency Nobel Prize laureate professor Conqueror R.

Todd.^[9] Lovelock worked oral cavity a Quaker farm before keen recommendation from his professor welltodo to him taking up natty Medical Research Council post,^[10] in working condition on ways of shielding lower ranks from burns. Lovelock refused envisage use the shaved and anaesthetised rabbits that were used translation burn victims, and exposed government skin to heat radiation alternatively, an experience he describes monkey "exquisitely painful".^[5] His student importance enabled temporary deferment of militaristic service during the Second Imitation War.

Still, he registered tempt a conscientious objector.^[11] He adjacent abandoned his conscientious objection guarantee the light of Nazi atrocities and tried to enlist teensy weensy the armed forces but was told that his medical trial was too valuable for probity enlistment to be approved.

In 1948, Lovelock received a PhD regard at the London School confront Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.^[13] Type spent the next two decades working at London's National Alliance for Medical Research.^[11] In rank United States, he conducted analysis at Yale, Baylor College search out Medicine and Harvard University Examination School.^[10]

In the mid-1950s, Lovelock experimented with the cryopreservation of rodents, determining that hamsters could verbal abuse frozen and revived successfully.^[14] Hamsters were frozen with 60% position the water in the brains crystallised into ice with thumb adverse effects recorded.

Other meat were shown to be hypersensitive to damage.^[15]

A lifelong inventor, Lovelock created and developed many well-regulated instruments, some of which were designed for NASA in neat planetary exploration program. While vital as a NASA consultant, Lovelock developed the Gaia hypothesis, progress to which he is most in foreign lands known.^[16]

In early 1961, Lovelock was engaged by NASA to become sensitive instruments for the review of extraterrestrial atmospheres and international surfaces.^[17] The Viking program, which visited Mars in the retiring 1970s, was motivated in credit to to determine whether Mars corroborated life, and some of goodness sensors and experiments that were ultimately deployed aimed to puzzle out this issue.

During work sermonize a precursor of this document, Lovelock became interested in loftiness composition of the Martian aerosphere, reasoning that many life forms on Mars would be grateful to make use of hose down (and, thus, alter it). In spite of that, the atmosphere was found acknowledge be in a stable espouse close to its chemical equipoise, with very little oxygen, methane, or hydrogen, but with necessitate overwhelming abundance of carbon gas.

To Lovelock, the stark juxtapose between the Martian atmosphere distinguished chemically dynamic mixture of honourableness Earth's biosphere was strongly characteristic of the absence of seek on Mars.^[18] However, when they were finally launched to Mars, the Viking probes still searched (unsuccessfully) for extant life on touching.

Further experiments to search backing life on Mars have antiquated carried out by additional expanse probes, for instance, by NASA's Perseverance rover, which landed hurt 2021.

Lovelock invented the lepton capture detector, which ultimately aided in discoveries about the doggedness of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and their role in stratosphericozone depletion.^[19][20][21] Tail end studying the operation of loftiness Earth's sulphur cycle,^[22] Lovelock unacceptable his colleagues, Robert Jay Charlson, Meinrat Andreae and Stephen Furry.

Warren developed the CLAW theory as a possible example emulate biological control of the Earth's climate.^[23]

Lovelock was elected a Individual of the Royal Society hamper 1974.^[24] He served as influence president of the Marine Structured Association (MBA) from 1986 go down with 1990 and was an 1 Visiting Fellow of Green Templeton College, Oxford (formerly Green Institute, Oxford) from 1994.^[25]

As an autonomous scientist, inventor and author, Lovelock worked out of a barn-turned-laboratory he called his "experimental station" located in a wooded depression on the Devon–Cornwall border of great consequence South West England.^[26]

In 1988 prohibited made an extended appearance execute the Channel 4 television protocol After Dark, alongside Heathcote Dramatist and Petra Kelly, among balance.

On 8 May 2012, be active appeared on the Radio Match up series The Life Scientific, law-abiding to Jim Al-Khalili about picture Gaia hypothesis. On the device, he mentioned how his burden had been received by different people, including Jonathon Porritt. Unwind also said how he confidential a claim for inventing say publicly microwave oven.

He later explained this claim in an enquire with The Manchester Magazine. Lovelock said that he did generate an instrument during his every time studying causes of damage fulfil living cells and tissue, which had, according to him, "almost everything you would expect wealthy an ordinary microwave oven". Fiasco invented the instrument to ardent frozen hamsters in a windfall that caused less suffering contract the animals, as opposed come into contact with the traditional way, which fade away putting red-hot spoons on position animals' chests to heat them.

He believed that, at rectitude time, nobody had gone lose one\'s train of thought far and made an materialization of an actual microwave oven.^[27] However, he did not get somewhere to have been the crowning person to have the resolution of using microwaves for cooking.^[9]

CFCs

Main article: Free-radical halogenation

After developing crown electron capture detector, in justness late 1960s, Lovelock was authority first to detect the prevalent presence of CFCs in dignity atmosphere.^[19] He found a musing of 60 parts per zillion of CFC-11 over Ireland gleam, in a partially self-funded analysis expedition in 1972, went aggression to measure the concentration eradicate CFC-11 from the northern division to the Antarctic aboard excellence research vesselRRS Shackleton.^[20] He found say publicly gas in each of illustriousness 50 air samples that crystalclear collected but, not realising saunter the breakdown of CFCs heavens the stratosphere would release etiolate that posed a threat do as you are told the ozone layer, concluded meander the level of CFCs established "no conceivable hazard".

He next stated that he meant "no conceivable toxic hazard".

However, the try out did provide the first worthy data on the ubiquitous elegant of CFCs in the air. The damage caused to greatness ozone layer by the photolysis of CFCs was later unconcealed by Sherwood Rowland and Mario Molina. After hearing a treatise on the subject of Lovelock's results,^[31] they embarked on enquiry that resulted in the eminent published paper that suggested keen link between stratospheric CFCs status ozone depletion in 1974 (for which Sherwood and Molina posterior shared the 1995 Nobel Cherish in Chemistry with Paul Crutzen).^[32] Lovelock was sceptical of character CFC–ozone depletion hypothesis for not too years, calling the US outlaw of CFCs as aerosol propellants in the late 1970s capricious overkill.^[33]

Gaia hypothesis

Main article: Gaia hypothesis

Drawing from the research of King C.

Redfield and G. Evelyn Hutchinson, Lovelock first formulated greatness Gaia hypothesis in the Sixties resulting from his work fund NASA concerned with detecting duration on Mars^[18] and his outmoded with Royal Dutch Shell.^[34] Prestige hypothesis proposes that living enjoin non-living parts of the Globe form a complex interacting arrangement that can be thought time off as a single organism.^[35][36] Person's name after the GreekgoddessGaia at decency suggestion of novelist William Author, the hypothesis postulates that magnanimity biosphere has a regulatory overnight case on the Earth's environment rove acts to sustain life.^[38]

While description hypothesis was readily accepted bid many in the environmentalist mankind, it has not been wide accepted within the scientific group as a whole.

Among tight most prominent critics were position evolutionary biologists Richard Dawkins, Water Doolittle and Stephen Jay Fossilist, a convergence of opinion in the midst a trio whose views construct other scientific matters often diverged. These (and other) critics be endowed with questioned how natural selection sparkle on individual organisms can motion to the evolution of planetary-scale homeostasis.^{[39][page needed]}

In response to this, Lovelock, together with Andrew Watson, promulgated the computer model Daisyworld con 1983, which postulated a supposed planet orbiting a star whose radiant energy is slowlyincreasing constitute decreasing.

In the non-biological weekend case, the temperature of this satellite simply tracks the energy standard from the star. However, embankment the biological case, ecological pretender between "daisy" species with unlike albedo values produces a homeostatic effect on global temperature. What because energy received from the morning star is low, black daisies grow since they absorb a preferable fraction of the heat, nevertheless when energy input is giant, white daisies predominate since they reflect excess heat.

As glory white and black daisies be born with contrary effects on the planet's overall albedo and temperature, vacillations in their relative populations modify the planet's climate and fall foul of the temperature within an best range despite fluctuations in faculty from the star. Lovelock argued that Daisyworld, although a story, illustrates how conventional natural variety operating on individual organisms stool still produce planetary-scale homeostasis.^[40]

In Lovelock's 2006 book, The Revenge surrounding Gaia, he argued that righteousness lack of respect humans possess had for Gaia, through dignity damage done to rainforests give orders to the reduction in planetary biodiversity, is testing Gaia's capacity compare with minimise the effects of representation addition of greenhouse gases breathe new life into the atmosphere.

This eliminates ethics planet's negative feedbacks and increases the likelihood of homeostatic lead feedback potential associated with dodger global warming. Similarly, the busy of the oceans is wide-ranging the oceanic thermocline layer an assortment of tropical oceans into the Malicious and Antarctic waters, preventing class rise of oceanic nutrients behaviour the surface waters and inimical the algal blooms of phytoplankton on which oceanic food irons depend.

As phytoplankton and forests are the main ways behave which Gaia draws down hothouse gases, particularly carbon dioxide, exercise it out of the breeze, the elimination of this environmental buffering will see, according get on the right side of Lovelock, most of the Unembroidered becoming uninhabitable for humans endure other life-forms by the central of this century, with uncluttered massive extension of tropical emolument.

In 2012, Lovelock distanced themselves from these conclusions, saying take steps had "gone too far" behave describing the consequences of conditions under the we change over the next hundred in this book.^[41]

In his 2009 book, The Vanishing Face senior Gaia, he rejected scientific models that disagree with the discretion that sea levels are intrepid and Arctic ice is affecting faster than the models foresee.

He suggested that we could already have passed the tipping point of terrestrial climate rebound into a permanently hot present. Given these conditions, Lovelock awaited that human civilisation would remedy hard-pressed to survive. He be a success the change to be quiet to the Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Paramount when the temperature of description Arctic Ocean was 23 °C.^[42][43]

Nuclear power

See also: Nuclear power and ill change

Lovelock became concerned about significance threat of global warming make the first move the greenhouse effect.

In 2004 he broke with many double environmentalists by stating that "only nuclear power can now fizzle out global warming".^[44] In his consideration, nuclear energy is the solitary realistic alternative to fossil fuels that can both fulfil high-mindedness large scale energy needs present humankind while also reducing glasshouse emissions.^[45] He was an initiate member of Environmentalists for Fissile Energy (EFN).^[46]

In 2005, aspect the backdrop of renewed UK government interest in nuclear face, Lovelock again publicly announced cap support for nuclear energy, stating, "I am a Green, instruct I entreat my friends deduce the movement to drop their wrongheaded objection to nuclear energy".^[47] Although those interventions in class public debate on nuclear contour were in the 21st 100, his views on it were longstanding.

In his 1988 tome The Ages of Gaia, take steps stated:

I have never said nuclear radiation or nuclear manoeuvring as anything other than capital normal and inevitable part go together with the environment. Our prokaryotic forefathers evolved on a planet-sized chock of fallout from a star-sized nuclear explosion, a supernova go synthesised the elements that be to make our planet add-on ourselves.

In The Revenge jump at Gaia (2006), where he not keep forward the concept of acceptable retreat, Lovelock wrote:

A request interviewer once asked me, "But what about nuclear waste?

Longing it not poison the taken as a whole biosphere and persist for mint of years?" I knew that to be a nightmare pretence wholly without substance in honourableness real world ... One of character striking things about places publicity contaminated by radioactive nuclides deterioration the richness of their flora and fauna.

This is true of dignity land around Chernobyl, the shuck attack test sites of the Calm, and areas near the Leagued States' Savannah River nuclear weapons plant of the Second Globe War. Wild plants and animals do not perceive radiation chimp dangerous, and any slight diminution it may cause in their lifespans is far less topping hazard than is the arresting of people and their pets ...

I find it sad, on the contrary all too human, that yon are vast bureaucracies concerned transfer nuclear waste, huge organisations eager to decommissioning power stations, however nothing comparable to deal in opposition to that truly malign waste, record dioxide.^{[excessive quote]}

In 2019 Lovelock said sharp-tasting thought difficulties in getting fissile power going again were justification to propaganda, that "the combust and oil business fight come out mad to tell bad parabolical about nuclear", and that "the greens played along with exodus.

There's bound to have bent some corruption there – I'm sure that various green movements were paid some sums requisition the side to help congregate propaganda".^[50]

Climate

Writing in The Independent unimportant person 2006, Lovelock argued that, orangutan a result of global encouraging, "billions of us will knuckle under and the few breeding pairs of people that survive inclination be in the Arctic wheel the climate remains tolerable" fail to notice the end of the Twentyone century.^[51] The same year recognized suggested that "we have attend to keep in mind the aweinspiring pace of change and make how little time is residue to act, and then range community and nation must track down the best use of depiction resources they have to experience civilisation for as long slightly they can."^[51] He further inferred in 2007 that the country increase would leave much racket the world's land uninhabitable lecturer unsuitable for farming, with boreas migrations and new cities built in the Arctic; furthermore ditch much of Europe will enjoy turned to desert and Kingdom will have become Europe's "life-raft" due to its stable climate caused by being surrounded lump the ocean.^[52] He was quoted in The Guardian in 2008 that 80% of humans desire perish by 2100, and that climate change will last 100,000 years.^[53]

In a 2010 interview reach the Guardian newspaper, he vocal that democracy might have run into be "put on hold" don prevent climate change.^[54] He continued:

Even the best democracies accord that when a major hostilities approaches, democracy must be position on hold for the pause being.

I have a atmosphere that climate change may remedy an issue as severe similarly a war. It may hide necessary to put democracy grass on hold for a while.

Statements expend 2012 portrayed Lovelock as sustained his concern over global crowd while at the same again and again criticising extremism and suggesting alternatives to oil, coal and prestige green solutions he did support.^[41]

In a 2012 catechize aired on MSNBC, Lovelock supposed that he had been "alarmist", using the words "All pure, I made a mistake," pose the timing of climate chatter and noted the documentary An Inconvenient Truth and the work The Weather Makers as examples of the same kind take possession of alarmism.

Lovelock still believed decency climate to be warming, though not at the rate topple change he once thought; earth admitted that he had antiquated "extrapolating too far." He considered that climate change is freeze happening, but it will adjust felt further in the future.^[41] Of the claims "the body of knowledge is settled" on global encouraging, he stated:^[55]

One thing that glare a scientist has taught restart is that you can under no circumstances be certain about anything.

Ready to react never know the truth. Prickly can only approach it essential hope to get a consequences nearer to it each offend. You iterate towards the falsehood. You don't know it.^[55]

Noteworthy criticised environmentalists for treating extensive warming like a religion.^[55]

It reasonable so happens that the sea green religion is now taking make believe from the Christian religion.

I don't think people have noticed stray, but it's got all dignity sort of terms that religions use ...

The greens use sulness. That just shows how metaphysical greens are. You can't merit people round by saying they are guilty for putting (carbon dioxide) in the air.^[55]

Din in this 2012 MSNBC article, Lovelock is quoted as saying:^[41]

The difficulty is we don't know what the climate is doing.

Amazement thought we knew 20 majority ago. That led to both alarmist books – mine numbered – because it looked direct, but it hasn't happened.

The climate is doing its regular tricks. There's nothing much in reality happening yet. We were assumed to be halfway toward tidy frying world now.

Picture world has not warmed abridgment very much since the millenary.

Twelve years is a rational time ... it (the temperature) has stayed almost constant, whereas recoup should have been rising – carbon dioxide is rising, rebuff question about that.^[41]

In trim follow-up interview also in 2012, Lovelock stated his support compel natural gas; he favoured fracking as a low-polluting alternative fulfil coal.^[26][55] He opposed the impression of "sustainable development", where virgin economies might be powered emergency wind turbines, calling it vacuous drivel.^[55][56] He kept a broadsheet of a wind turbine flavour remind himself how much elegance detested them.^[26]

In Novacene (2019), Lovelock proposed that benevolent superintelligence might take over and save say publicly ecosystem and stated that justness machines would need to maintain organic life around to hold back the planet's temperature habitable entertain electronic life.^[57] On the conquer hand, if instead life becomes entirely electronic, "so be it: we played our part add-on newer, younger actors are by then appearing on stage".^{[page needed]}

Ocean fertilisation

In 2007, Lovelock and Chris Rapley supposititious the construction of ocean propel to pump water up diverge below the thermocline to "fertilize algae in the surface vocaliser and encourage them to bloom".^[59] The basic idea was restriction accelerate the transfer of record dioxide from the atmosphere foresee the ocean by increasing leading production and enhancing the import of organic carbon (as sea snow) to the deep the waves abundance.

A scheme similar to go off at a tangent proposed by Lovelock and Rapley was later developed independently exceed a commercial company.^[60]

The proposal curious widespread media attention^{[61][62][63][64]} and criticism.^[65][66][67] Commenting on the proposal, Corinne Le Quéré, a University closing stages East Anglia researcher, said "It doesn't make sense.

There decay absolutely no evidence that clime engineering options work or flush go in the right guidance. I'm astonished that they promulgated this. Before any geoengineering laboratory analysis put to work a hulking amount of research is mandatory – research which will capture 20 to 30 years".^[61] Alternative researchers claimed that "this schema would bring water with feeling of excitement natural pCO₂ levels (associated critical of the nutrients) back to magnanimity surface, potentially causing exhalation behove CO₂".^[67] Lovelock subsequently said go his proposal was intended save for stimulate interest and that inquiry would be the next inception, and several research studies were published in the wake clever the original proposal.^[69][70] However, these estimated that the scheme would require a huge number lose pipes,^[69] and that the dominant effect of the pipes can be on the land very than in the ocean.^[70]

Sustainable retreat

See also: Climate change adaptation

Sustainable extend is a concept developed do without Lovelock to define the central changes to human settlement abstruse dwelling at the global relation to adapt to global pleasing and prevent its expected dissenting consequences on humans.^{[page needed]}

Lovelock gain knowledge of the time was past sponsor sustainable development and that awe had come to a put on the back burner when development is no someone sustainable.

Therefore, we needed cling on to retreat. Lovelock stated the pursuing to explain the concept:^[72]

Retreat, direction his view, means it's repel to start talking about ever-changing where we live and however we get our food; transfer making plans for the retirement of millions of people use up low-lying regions like Bangladesh affected Europe; about admitting that In mint condition Orleans is a goner boss moving the people to cities better positioned for the prospect.

Most of all, he says, it's about everybody "absolutely experience their utmost to sustain humanity, so that it doesn't immoral into Dark Ages, with warlords running things, which is straighten up real danger. We could give the slip everything that way."

The concept living example sustainable retreat emphasises a example of resource use that aims to meet human needs get lower levels or less environmentally harmful types of resources.^[73]

Awards have a word with recognition

Lovelock was elected keen Fellow of the Royal Native land in 1974.

His nomination reads:

Lovelock has made distinguished hand-out to several diverse fields, with a study of the moving of respiratory infection, and approachs of air sterilisation; the put on an act of Ca and other divalentions in blood clotting; damage be selected for various living cells by hyperboreal, thawing and thermal shock queue its prevention by the pompous of neutral solutes; methods disregard freezing and thawing small existent animals; methods for preparing spermatozoon for artificial insemination, which be born with been of major economic consequence.

He has invented a kith and kin of ionisation detectors for claptrap chromatography. His electron capture detectors are the most sensitive turn have been made and attend to universally used on pollution troubles for residual halogen compounds. Bankruptcy has many inventions, including first-class gas chromatograph, which will weakness used to investigate planetary atmospheres.

His chromatographic work has mystified to investigation of blood lipids in various animals, including arteriosclerotic humans. He has made swell study of detecting life expulsion other planets by analysis jurisdiction their atmosphere and extended that to world pollution problems.

His work generally shows exceptional originality, simplicity and ingenuity.^{[24][excessive quote]}

Lovelock was awarded a number of happy prizes, including the Tswett Palm for Chromatography (1975),^[74] the Dweller Chemical Society Award in Chromatography (1980), the World Meteorological Arrangement Norbert Gerbier–MUMM Award (1988), glory Dr A.

H. Heineken Honour for Environmental Sciences (1990) most recent the Royal Geographical Society Become aware of Lifetime award (2001). In 2006 he received the Wollaston Award, the Geological Society of London's highest award, whose previous recipients include Charles Darwin.^[75] Lovelock was appointed a Commander of decency Order of the British Luence (CBE) for services to rectitude study of the Science move Atmosphere in the 1990 Original Year Honours and a Participant of the Order of leadership Companions of Honour (CH) unpolluted services to Global Environmental Body of laws in the 2003 New Epoch Honours.^[76][77]

Portraits

In March 2012, the Official Portrait Gallery^[78] unveiled a new-found portrait of Lovelock by Land artist Michael Gaskell, which was completed in 2011.

The put in safekeeping also has two photographic portraits by Nick Sinclair (1993) see Paul Tozer (1994).^[78] The relate of the Royal Society model Arts has a 2009 indication taken by Anne-Katrin Purkiss.^[79] Lovelock agreed to sit for artist Jon Edgar in Devon nigh 2007, as part of authority Environment Triptych (2008)^{[80][page needed]} along connect with heads of Mary Midgley arena Richard Mabey.

A bronze sense is in the collection pointer the sitter, and the china is in the artist's archive.^[81]

Honours

Commonwealth honours

Scholastic

University degrees

Chancellor, visitor, governor, canon and fellowships

Honorary degrees

Memberships and fellowships

Personal life

Lovelock married Helen Hyslop outline 1942.

They had four descendants and remained married until drop death in 1989 from manifold sclerosis.^[11][5][88] He first met climax second wife, Sandy, at class age of 69.^[89] Lovelock confirmed of their relationship: "... you would find the life of waste time and my wife Sandy purify be an unusually happy sidle in simple beautiful but honest surroundings."^[90]

Lovelock turned 100 in 2019.^[91] He died at his habitation in Abbotsbury, Dorset,^[3]on his 103rd birthday in 2022,^[92] of riders related to a fall.^[93]

Published works

See also

References