3. A ROSE SEED:

Ultimately physics, chemistry, biology, and evolutionary theory describe the same thing (physical reality) in different ways. I combine these perspectives to create a lens from which to view life on this planet. In many ways, we can liken life on Earth to a rose seed. If we knew nothing of roses or plants, and someone placed a rose seed in our hand, what would we guess about the seed? How could we understand what can come of that seed given time and circumstance? In a human-centric way, I suggest that civilization is coded in the “DNA” of Earth just as petal color is coded in the DNA of a rose seed.

While life and physical realty appear to be of a random nature, this is hardly so. The entire Universe is subject to physical laws. The word random is a useful way to describe something that is extremely complex but in truth nothing is random. If something is “random,” this supposes that there is no physical explanation for its existence. The truth is, if we had all of the facts we could explain and predict everything. At the same time, we must acknowledge the limitation of the human brain. While the facts exist, they cannot be measured by people because there are infinite variables relative to the human brain at any given moment. The word random is less a reflection of reality and more an acknowledgement of cognitive limitation.

I meet a lot of people who have a problem with this idea, “So you don’t believe in free will?” My answer, “I believe in experienced free will. That is all my brain needs.” In reality I know that everything that has happened can be explained and everything that will happen can be predicted if I have all the facts, as some may need to hear it, if I had the mind of “God.”

The idea that choice does not exist is not news. Literature pertaining to Life History Theory represents an already established base within biology where it has been demonstrated that genetic and environmental circumstances set the stage for who we will be. The implication is that our future depends on the past. As it should! If not, we would be no different from something that is random; without explanation.

This relates to cities in that they are natural biological phenomenon, not random combinations of human circumstances. Cities are part of the “DNA” of life on this planet. Thus there exists the potential to biologically analyze them as we do other organisms and systems. In the example of a rose seed, while we cannot guarantee the seed in our hand will become a flowering plant, general knowledge of these plants is of great utility to gardeners. An understanding of something’s nature helps us explain its past, understand its present and prepare for its future.