Nature

Nature (from the Latin word natura, in turn from the Greek φύσις) refers to the phenomena of the physical universe and life, often referring more specifically to organic life and natural phenomena on Earth. more...

Home
Asia
Australia
Br. Comm. Other
Canada
Europe
Latin America
Middle East
Publications & Supplies
Topical & Specialty
Animation, Cartoons
Cinderellas & Fakes
Nature
Other
People, Sports
Structures, Machines
Transport, Space
World Errors, Freaks,...
UK (Great Britain)
United States
Worldwide

Human activity is rarely considered natural unless qualified in ways such as "human nature" or "the whole of nature". Conversely, "nature" may refer to the "natural environment" or wilderness, meaning areas of Earth which have not been substantially altered by human intervention.

In general, nature includes all phenomena independent of human intervention, and is defined over the complete range of length scales. At the macroscopic scale, nature includes astronomical objects, outer space and the structure of the universe, while at the subatomic scale, nature includes fundamental descriptions of the matter and energy from which the universe is composed.

Etymology

The word nature means the universe, with all its phenomena." Natura was a Latin translation of the Greek word physis (φύσις), which originally related to the intrinsic characteristics that plants, animals, and other features of the world develop of their own accord. The word φύσις occurs very early in Greek philosophy, and in several senses. Generally, these senses are similar to the current senses in which the English word nature is used. This is shown in the first written use of the word φύσις, in connection with a plant by Homer. The concept of nature as a whole, the physical universe, is one of several expansions of the original notion. This usage was confirmed during the advent of modern scientific method. Isaac Newton's Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica (1687), for example, is translated "Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy". The etymology of the word "physical" shows its use as a synonym for "natural" in about the mid-15th century.

Earth

Earth (or, "the earth") is the only planet known to support life, and as such, its natural features are the subject of many fields of scientific research. Within the solar system, it is third nearest to the sun; it is the largest terrestrial planet and the fifth largest overall. Its most prominent climatic features are its two large polar regions, two relatively narrow temperate zones, and a wide equatorial tropical to subtropical region. Precipitation varies widely with location, from several metres of water per year to less than a millimetre. About 70 percent of the surface is covered by salt-water oceans. The remainder consists of continents and islands, with most of the inhabited land in the Northern Hemisphere.

Read more at Wikipedia.org