What if the Earth has a Brain?

As we age, the Earth ages with us.

This thought greeted me as sunrise approaches on the last morning of the year. If it isn't too foggy, the sun should emerge in the east in a little over an hour. Here in Pacifica, it's 48 degrees. I'm in the skilled nursing facility known as Linda Mar.

A substantial portion of my career has been spent investigating environmental issues. Circle of Poison  is the best known of this work, but The Bhopal Syndrome has also had some impact. Both of these were meant to be seen as components of the cumulative and ultimate threat -- global climate change.

It's easy to overlook the fact that the earth itself is also aging -- just like us --although according to a different time continuum. We come and go so fast, relatively speaking, that it is often hard for us to perceive geologic and astronomical time.

Instead, we mourn the passing of a local cafe that had been a favorite for 25 years, or a beloved pet that dies after 18 years. These losses are real and painful and we've all had them. But they remain well within the limits of our human memory card.

In my case, I remember specific events from the early 50s -- a half-century ago.

That is a pittance compared to Earth, which is over 4.5 billion years old. That would take a hell of a lot of candles to celebrate and it would take a pretty big cake.

The best we can do is use metaphors and utilize our skills at estimation.

As we age, we gradually note the loss of functions, and the changes to what our bodies can tolerate, like temperature ranges or exercise. Here, during a physical therapy workout, I'm being asked to be able to do things a five-year-old can do and believe me, that is progress.

What if the Earth has a brain?

Could we perceive it and where would it be? What does it think about passing the 4.5 billion milestone? Is it gradually slowing down?

Perhaps these are the projections of an aging man.

Perhaps.

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