Nature,
affinity and living,
three words;
by connecting them we are creating word webs.
"The natural world is organized into a web of life more complex than we know."
p. 23, Filters Against Folly, Garrett Hardin.
attitude | character | condition | essence | force | web | inheritance | setting | urge | world | synonyms
na-ture (noun); First appeared as a word in 14th Century (1300s) Europe
Etymology: [Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin; natura, from natus, past participle of nasci, to be born–from which comes the derivative words nascent, nationality & NATION].
Nature
1: intrinsic quality.a : the inherent character or basic constitution of a person or thing : INSTINCT
b : DISPOSITION, TEMPERAMENT
2: forces or powers.a : a creative and controlling force in the universe
b : an inner force or the sum of such forces in an individual3 : a kind or class usually distinguished by fundamental or essential characteristics:
documents of a confidential ~> or acts of a ceremonial ~> nature, implying character
4: the physical constitution or drives of an organism; especially, an excretory organ or function–used in phrases like: "the call of nature."
5: a spontaneous attitude (as of generosity, shame, or fear.)
6: the external world in its entirety; Umwelt
- Theo Colburn Our Stolen Future.
- Fritjof Capra, The web of Life.
- G. Tyler Miller, Environmental Science.
- Rachel Carson, The Edge of the Sea.
7: condition, situation, milieu, or settings;a: humankind's original condition or state of nature
b: a simplified mode of life resembling this situation or condition of origin. Natus is the Latin word for to be born.
8: the genetically controlled qualities of an organism.
The mitotic division of a cell animated.
9: natural scenery; NatureNet:The National Park Service's education, awareness, monitoring, and active management page.Natural History or the related scientific study of lands, air, and water of places. Scenery, visualize, see laws of visualizing scenes.
For synonyms see nature's varieties:
TYPE, EXISTENCE, REALITY, CREATION, ORDER, ESSENCE, CHARACTER, or WORLD
Words | Terms | Glossary | Word webs | Basic vocabulary | Advanced Vocabulary | Antonyms | Obscure words | Greek concepts
a force of nature. First appeared 1981: FORCE
Historically Related ideas:
Mother Nature (noun). First appeared 1601:
nature personified as a woman considered as the source and guiding force of creation.
Related ideas: human nature (noun). First appeared 1668:
the character or qualities of humans; especially : the fundamental human dispositions and traits of people.
Related ideas: call of nature. First appeared 1763: the need to urinate or defecate.
Related ideas: crime against nature. First appeared 1828: SODOMY
Related ideas: freak of nature. First appeared 1883: FREAK
RELATED CONCEPTS:
natural history (noun). First appeared 1567.
1: a treatise on some aspect of nature
2: the natural development of something (as an organism or disease) over a period of time
3: the study of natural objects esp. in the field from an amateur or popular point of view
Related ideas: naturalist, nat-u-ral-ist (noun). First appeared 15871: one that advocates or practices naturalism
2: a student of natural history; especially, a field biologist
attitude | character | condition | essence | force | inheritance | setting | urge | world | synonyms
Affinity
Based on an old concept of the Middle Ages: affinity (Aristotle’s connatural knowledge)
af-fin-i-ty (noun), plural -ties, First appeared 14th Century
Etymology: [Middle English affinite, from Middle French or Latin; Middle French afinite, from Latin affinitas, from affinis bordering on, related by marriage, from ad- + finis end, border]RELATED to:
1: relationship by marriage.
2: attraction or complementarity.
a: sympathy marked by community of interest; KINSHIP
b: drawn to, complementary, completes a quality(1) : an attraction to or liking for something
<people with an affinity to darkness --Mark Twain>
<pork and fennel have a natural affinity for each other -- Abby Mandel >
(2) : an attractive force between substances or particles that causes them to enter into and remain in chemical combination
c : a person esp. of the opposite sex having a particular attraction for one.For a synonym see ATTRACTION
3: connection. link or ties.
a : likeness based on relationship or causal connection
<found an affinity between the teller of a tale and the craftsman –Mary McCarthy >
<this investigation, with affinities to a case history, a psychoanalysis, a detective story –Oliver Sachs >
b: a relation between biological groups involving resemblance in structural plan and indicating a common origin.The affinity of whales and porpoises is not a casual likeness since they are cousins as marine mammals.
"Nature has an affinity to living things."
Copper Canyon, Mexico.
For example:
living; liv-ing [1] (adjective) First appeared before 12th Century
1. creating an affect
a : having life
b : ACTIVE, FUNCTIONING <~ languages ~>
2. signal or indicator
a : exhibiting the life or motion of nature : NATURAL { the wilderness is a ~ museum ... of natural history --NEA Journal }
b : [2] LIVE as opposed to dead, hence breathing or responding to stimulus.
3. vital
a : full of life or vigor,
b: Carrying Capacity, or the fullness of life exhibited in an area.
So nature is more than complex: Garrett
Hardin reminds us that:
"The natural world is organized into a web of life more complex than we know."
p. 23, Filters Against Folly, (NY: Viking,-Penguin, 1985).
attitude | character | condition | essence | web | force | inheritance | setting | urge | world | synonyms
