Numbers in Nature – Nurtures our Imagination
Nature is remarkably structured…
There are fascinating patterns in the nature and we are merely discovering as we are nurturing our nature. The pattern in the Sun Flower to the Honey Bees follow the Fibonacci number series. The tiny to the grand, it is the biological cell to the universal cosmos. The micro in the microscope to the macro in the telescope, it is the behavior of sub-atomic particles that isn’t fully unraveled to the behavior of large matter that are largely matters to us in our daily working. Mathematics is a methodical approach to matter.
Mathematics is number, and it is the cradle of all creation.
God is mathematician and nature is Geometry.
No one knows for sure. There may be trillion species on planet Earth. It is estimated that the number of species inhabiting planet Earth ranges from 10-14 million of which less than 10% i.e. 1.2 million have been documented. The number of species tagged on Earth is 8.7 million. More than 80% of the species are yet to be discovered. The world today is inhabited by over 7.6 billion plus human beings and no two human being are the same.
The DNA of all human beings are 99.9% alike.
Planet Earth is also called as the Blue Planet.
The color blue gets its tag from the vast composition of water. Water covers the majority of the earth surface. In number the volume of water will read like 326 million trillion gallons. 70% plus of the earth surface is made of water. 97% of the water is contained in the oceans as salt water and balance 3% is what we call it as freshwater. To be precise, about another 70% of the freshwater is not in the liquid state but is in the form of solid state as ice. There is a whole lot water vapor in the air. It is in the form of humidity. The earth atmosphere comprises of 37.5 million billion of water.
Our body is made of water. The average human body is comprised on 50-65% of water. The variation is based on age, gender, weight and health. This water resides in the cell which needs water to survive. Plasma is the liquid portion of the blood which is 92% water.
It’s the atom that makes up the matter. It’s the proton, neutron and electrons that in turn make up the atom. There is a different world at the atomic level. The way these elements behave at microscopic level is governed by the rules we call as quantum mechanics. And the number that matters. 99.9% of the mass of the atom concentrates in the nucleus of the atom and meager 0.1% remains at the periphery with the electrons.
The human body is comprised of 20 elements and of which 11 are essential elements. 99% of the human body mass is made of 6 elements namely oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium and phosphorous. In this composition oxygen’s share is 65%, carbon’s share is 18.5%, hydrogen’s share is 9.5%, nitrogen is 3.2% and calcium’s share is 1.5%. Less than 0.1% comprises of other 5 elements namely potassium, sulfur, sodium, chlorine and magnesium.
Human body comprises of basic biological units known as cells.
There are about 200 different types of cells. The three distinct group of cells are red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. According to scientist human body has between 30-40 trillion cells and 80% of these are red blood cells. It is the cell that makes up the tissues. The cell is tiny structure comprising of the DNA and RNA. The instruction book for the human body. Everything that we do and how we grow and live is derived from this handbook. It holds a whole world of instructions.
This body of instructions in the DNA can equate to more than 1000 books of 600 pages each as per a broad estimation.
It is the nuclear fusion in the sun that creates the energy. There are four hydrogen atoms that fuses into one helium atom. In the process there is loss of mass. And the number. The loss of sun’s mass is equal to 4 million tons per second due to the process of fusion. This loss of mass gets converted into energy and that energy reaches us in the form of sunlight.
Light and sound are such intriguing phenomena in nature.
It creates a magical fusion of light and sound show. The speed matters. There is such a huge difference between the speed of light and the speed of sound. The sound needs a medium to travel. The light has no such dependency. Sound travels at a speed of 343 meters per second in air. Light is the ultimate speed benchmark and it clocks a mind blogging speed of 186,000 miles per second. To put into perspective the distance between sun and earth is 150 million km, and the light takes 8 minutes and 20 seconds to cover that distance.
When we think of light what comes to our mind is what we see but that is a small part of the spectrum of light that is invisible to naked eye. One end is the Radio waves and the other end is the Gamma waves. The electromagnetic spectrum is the term used to describe the entire range of light. Light is a wave of alternating electric and magnetic fields. The electromagnetic waves human eye detects are visible and oscillates between 400-790 terahertz. It is the measure of frequency i.e. the number of waves that pass a point in one second. This number when deciphered is several hundred trillion times a second.
The universe is a body of space, time, energy and matter.
Only 5% of the matter and energy is known, and the rest 95% is unknown as dark energy and dark matter. These gets manifested as stars, planets, galaxies and constellations. How much is the mass of these matters? How long back this universe came into existence? The estimated age of our universe is about 13.77 billion years with an uncertainty of 59 million years. The universe is expanding faster than the speed of light. It is also accelerating in its expansion. The observable universe is the part of the universe that we can see. We see the light of galaxy that has enough time to reach us here on Earth. It is believed that the observable universe is 46 billion light years in any direction and it has between 120-300 sextillion stars.
According to estimates from experts, the number of atoms in our observable universe is ten quadrillion vigintillion and one-hundred thousand quadrillion vigintillion atoms. This mind-blowing number needs no further analysis, this number only paralyzes our thoughts.
The universe is a collection of galaxies are collection of stars.
How many galaxies and stars are there in our universe is anybody’ estimation. It is in billions and the current instruments have the limitation. Today, we have the instrument known as Hubble Space Telescope. The estimates vary from experts to experts and the number widely ranges from some 100-200 billions of galaxies.
The basic element that makes up the human body is the biological cell. Then the quintessential question, how many cells are there in an average human body? After all its body of these cells who work behind to make our life. According to scientists the average human body comprises of 37.2 trillion cells and the exact number will vary depending on one’s body structure. The cells are grouped and each group has different set of task to do. There are 210 different types of such group working in collaboration to make the magic of life. The cells are created and destroyed every minute. It is estimated that 300 million cells die every minute.
We are living in a rapidly expanding digital world. The numbers that are getting generated are astoundingly magical. Though the numbers are working on logic. This world is giving the real world a tight fight. Digital World is exploding from text to voice to likes to shares to tweets to pins. And it is the digital data that is turning out to be the most mind-boggling facet of the number and rapidly churning number has put us in a tectonic tailspin.
Data is literally on an over drive.
There has been a rapid explosion of data. It is estimated that 90% of the current digital data got generated in the last couple of years only. The millions of devices are getting seamlessly connected through Internet of Things (IoT). It is not just the human being talking to the devices, it is the devices they are doing the bigger talking between themselves. The data is getting generated and shared between these galaxy of devices dotted the planet Earth. Two-third of the world’s 7.6 billion people have a mobile phone. More than fifty percentage of these mobiles are smart phones. The number of internet usage has crossed the 4.0 billion mark. And a quarter of that number got added in the last half decade, such has been the growth of usage. With the smart phones and broadband, there has rapid rise in the social media users and it has crossed the 3.0 billion.
It is the social characters like Facebook to messaging character like WhatsApp to visual characters like Instagram to voice characters like YouTube are telling the digital side of the virtual story to the real world.
After putting all these startling numbers in perspective there is a tangential proposition that needs to be placed in its right perspective. The proposition on human nature itself and the nature that nurtures our nature.
Imagination is more powerful than knowledge was the words of Albert Einstein. Indeed, there is an intriguing link between nature and imagination but what is the link between these large-scale numbers and nurturing those numbers.
In the wonderful words of cultural historian Thomas Berry, the loss of imagination is loss of nature.
It was poet William Blake who said nature is imagination itself.
There is difference between human nature and the nature around us but the surrounding numbers are simply mind-boggling.
Mind finds it too difficult to do the number crunching and connect the tiny dots in vast canvas of number game played by the players of nature.
Nihar R Pradhan
A fascinating article about numbers in nature, and also nature in numbers. After all, as you alluded too, all of us and every single living thing and matter in this world are all intertwined. So true there are so many patterns in this world, from the honey bees being attracted to the sun flowers again and again, and the Fibonacci number series. In terms of macro, there is cycle of time and seasons: the sun sets and rises each day, the planets revolve around each other in their own rhythms, seasons come and go. Mathematics is what helps us work out these patterns, though sometimes the answer to how certain patterns come about aren’t always clear.
It is so true all of us are made up of water, and the majority of our bodies are made up of water. And as you said, we are a product of atoms. So in a way that makes us all the same. Yet many of us don’t realise that. There is atomic level, and then there is also cosmic level – the science and the philosophy, both going hand-in-hand to help us understand this world. Both are different kinds of energy, physical, mental and spiritual.
It is always interesting to ponder what the universe is made up of. Light (which is in turn stars), sound, dark matter, dark energy, all of that most certainly is a part of this existence we are all in together. From the way it seems, the future seems more data driven. Maybe the world will be more mechanic. Maybe this isn’t all bad as science will advance and may we discover more than we know already.
As usual, great write up, Nihar. Have a good week ahead 😀
Indeed Mabel the more we deep dive into this fascinating world of numbers and the magic this numbers in our world. Mathematics at work. Nothing can be more amazing to read than the language of maths, it is just that the language appear complex. It is difficult to decipher the complexity behind this deceptively simple appearing numerical combinations. Yes, all these things are so interrelated and there is an equation in each such natural relationships. Some are evident and many are inferred, and many others are yet to be explored and expanded. It is in this journey of exploration and discovery we enjoy the beauty of life. From an atom to a single cell, as we attempt to understand the role they play in making our life the way it is. It is so much in nature, the patterns, the rhythms, the flow, the structure, the cycle and some we connect immediately and others we need patience and perseverance to understand and appreciate. Therein lies the beauty and bounty of life.:D
As we simplify the beauty of life which otherwise is largely loaded with complex thought and we have made every aspects surrounding our life with webs of complexity. On the other hand when we remove those lens and put up the simple ones we get see so many fascinating side of life and there is so much in just learning and relating to these mind boggling numbers associated with nature. Also when we sum up things we end up that everything is atom, and we are all matter and matter and energy are merely two side of the same coin. It is only when light falls on us that we can see our body otherwise is merely a body of energy. Light is a wave and it travels and it carries the energy and it carries the sound…when we read the complex equations and formula in our science subjects in school it is challenging and our mind is primarily loaded with the fear of exam and our thoughts are skewed towards results. We rarely give our mind that space to dwell and deal it in a manner that gives us the much needed insights and inspirations.:D
Yes with digital and data, the world is now a changed place and it is only going to grow and gain a different place for itself and we shall remain mainly mute spectator to the data explosion. The pace of race has changed dramatically. Some numbers we have no clue and the task is done by computers and we just feed the logic and the number crunching is done by these smart algorithms behind this powerful machines. The nature is getting eclipsed in the ecosystem of interconnected machines and devices. As we step out and spend quality time in midst of nature we have so much to observe and we can see the bright side of life. We are deeply immersed in the kind of digital glitter. We are being controlled by the digital signals. We hear the sound in our television but give little thought how fascinating it is to dissect and know a little more behind the scene, and there is science but it is the nature at work. We have taken the principles of nature and nurtured to make our life more convenient and much more comfortable with the innovations of things surrounding us.:D
Thanks so much Mabel as usual and always look forward a great conversation.
Hope you a lovely weekend.
😀
The language of maths is certainly an amazing thing, and having studied it before, there is always a problem to ponder and ponder over and over again. It’s one thing to mechanically follow a formula, and another thing to explain the logic and science behind it. You are so right in saying maths and all things logical patterns are interrelated with what’s around us. From a scientific perspective, it starts with a cell which can be expanded into molecules and then there is formation of so much more.
I think sometimes we have to simplify life, for it is the simple things that often bring us the most joy. But before that usually we go through complex experiences, go through more than just go through the motions. Indeed we are all matter and energy colliding with other matter and energy…so in a sense we are all one, all the same, just that we are different forms of energy. For instance, when you speak of light, I also think of sound – they are both essentially waves in different forms; energy is waves of atoms. And I guess that’s how you combine science with nature and philosophy. We rarely let our mind time to dwell on what we don’t see because we are so fixated with watching progress and getting ahead. But there is also much to be learnt from just taking things slow and feeling the motions as opposed to going through the motions.
‘The pace of race has changed dramatically. Some numbers we have no clue and the task is done by computers’ This is so true, and sometimes we rely on computers to get things done without knowing the reasoning behind it, or how the mechanics all work (think mundane office jobs). One could argue that it could be the equivalent of showing someone a problem and then showing them the answer right away. Then again, this is a good way to make our lives more efficient and improve other areas of life.
As usual, love chatting and may you have a good week ahead, Nihar 😀
Indeed, Mabel that we are so busy in things in life we have very little time to ponder, though we keep wandering aimlessly and small things that matter so much gets missed out, just that we take it for granted. It is the daily grind and the work pressure that drives our life. We are immersed. But as and when we get some time and reflect on things around us we are amazed with the beauty and bounty of nature. How is that a human being comes into existence from a single cell. How the cell multiples and we have all the organs and the biological system in place. How it happens though science has its detailed explanation but beyond science we are confronted with many more questions and we don’t have the answers. It is here that philosophy comes into play and we frantically look for those elusive answers to this deeply profound questions.
Just look at the magic of Sun, there is science behind it and it is all about nuclear fusion but how is it that we keep getting the energy from it for years together and who controls the Sun and for many Sun is the God. We talk of energy and matter as same thing and science has proved it but what is matter and how mind and matter are connected and philosophers have come with so many theories and proposition to bring out relations and build correlations between these fascinating aspects of life. How mind controls our body, the matter and how energy comes from nature and make our body do its function. The more we think the more we realize how little we know of things around us and many times we have simply complicated the simple things. We are confused and corrupted our mind…
You have so aptly put “feeling the motions as opposed to going through the motions”, we have taken things for granted and we have become a part of that daily grind. We wait for the completion and without cherishing the process that is what makes thing so beautiful and life more meaningfully engaging. Just thinking on the way light and sound works and how light is a wave and how we see the color with a particular frequency just gets overlooked or we take things for granted and we simply do not enjoy the present moment and the process rather than we wait for the destination and the result. Nothing can be more magical than the mind and imagination that we are all capable of exploring. It opens up a whole new world for us and we have the answers for many questions that keep haunting us. Yes, it is science, nature and philosophy all work together and in tandem to make our living better and life more purposefully engaged. Unfortunately science with its significant presence dominants the science as it visible and seemingly makes a big difference in our life.
Thank as always Mabel and every time we have exchange of ideas it such a fascinating conversation.
Have a lovely week ahead.
😀
Often I think we don’t make the time to ponder when we can actually make the time to ponder and wonder and wander. Yes, we do take time and time to ponder for granted. We participate in the daily grind because well, it keeps us afloat in life and sometimes that’s wears us down. But we do need to try our very best to recognise that life is not all about routine and mundane. It is fascinating how we are all a product of cells and a product of multiplication – so in that sense, that means coming together, we achieve so much more and achieve on more profound levels.
The sun is magic and so are the other planets around us. Nuclear fusion is also something so amazing to learn and ponder about. Is Sun God or is God Sun? Is science philosophy or philosophy science? Everything is somehow connected and intertwined. It is scary to think how little we know…we are just a small speck in this large universe of anything and everything of all consequences and possibilities.
Feeling the motions – that’s when we fully immerse ourselves in what we’re doing, and also appreciating what we have. Indeed the mind is magical and so are our emotional sensories that let us feel the most uplifted (or disheartened) when we allow ourselves to open up to that side of ourselves.
As usual, love chatting with you Nihar 😀
I agree, and you have crafted it poetically…ponder, wonder and wander. There is a rhyme and rhythm. It makes a such difference in our life when we take detour from our routines and daily grind. So rightly said that it just puts us afloat whereas life is to swim across the vast ocean and so much to explore and discover. Sharing, collaborating, meaningfully engaging brings out so much from others and from within, just that we need to consciously put our sincere efforts in that direction and it needs commitment and we need the drive, and strive to get there. It matters…
Science in a way is form of philosophy. Just how little we know about the matter and energy around us and we are merely knowing 5% of the matter/energy comprising of the universe and rest all are dark matter and energy. We believe on things that we cannot see but by influence of gravity and the way planets and stars behave compared to other Galaxy. We infer about the unseen. Though science believes in seen. God is not seen. All science has its umbilical cord from the bedrock of philosophical discourse. There can’t be a more fascinating debate than between the subject of science and the proposition of philosophy. It can be a clash of titans. These are different but there is something that subtly connects them and brings out so much hidden similarities. It is indeed intriguing to juxtaposition science and philosophy and derive the nuanced thoughts.
We are indeed just speck in the large universe, and when we analyze the working of the universe and how our function are insignificant but we have to keep doing our work and the universe does its job…we have to co-exists and this keeps evolving and the journey of evolution of the man to the star to the planet to the universe itself is so amazing to learn. We only manage to learn few words or sentences of a chapter but the entire volumes of book still remains to be opened and read. Life is so short and we have so many things to do…therein lies the paradox and dichotomy of life. The art of living comes into play when we turn philosophical in our thoughts as we look at the vastness of things around us and how small we are in this large canvas. A spiritual journey makes us understand and appreciate these questions better…
Thanks Mabel, always cherish our thoughtful interactions.
😀
Life is certainly cast and there is so much to explore. While it is one big island, there are so many connections and collaborations we can make. Sincere efforts is one of the best things to ever encounter and to actually do without expecting anything in return. Every small sincere action and effort matters.
‘We believe on things that we cannot see’ Spot on, and I like how you used the analogy of space and galaxies out there. Most of us will never travel to space and see the world from afar, yet because of science we all believe that it exists. Then there is also belief in religion; quite a number of us belief in a certain kind of faith without actually having living through the histories entwined with those beliefs. There is power in science and philosophy, stories and trust.
Learning about life and this world takes time. Not only are we just a speck, but there is so much not learn – not just about the world around us but what lies within us and what makes us tick. Here’s a good weekend ahead to you, Nihar 🙂
I fully agree Mabel, doing things without expecting in return and what counts is our sincere efforts. There are things that are more than what meets our eye. There are layers and there layers within layers, and it is only when we unravel those hidden layers we start cherishing the juice in the meat of things. Life is so much played in the spectrum of intangibles, the relationships and the beliefs, and the faith we have these things that matters to us. That’s how religion is so personal, it best experienced in private and problems arises when we make it public. And when dogmas and colours at attached. There is power in the belief that we have and how we make mountain move with those invisible power. Just that we don’t realize its intensity and recognize the innate power within and we keep searching for that all elusive empowerment from outside. We are be-fooled…
It is indeed so fascinating to dwell on this contest between science and philosophy, and philosophy is nothing but learning how to live our life and then we have created such exotic castles around it, we feel at awe and today is treated something abstract and out of the way thing when it is merely a part of life and living. As we start looking at things from a different lens we develop the nuanced outlook that matters and it is so much about nurturing new perspectives in life.
You too have a great weekend and take care!!!
😀
Indeed. There are layers within layers in life, and there is so much to discover. The private and personal is always the hardest to discover, and it takes time to get to that level.
Science and philosophy will always co-exist. That’s the beauty of the two worlds. You have a good weekend 😀
We can have so many more new facets emerging out of this duality of debate on science and philosophy.
Thanks Mabel and you too.
😀
Sometimes, I wonder as a human race, have we decoded the real secrets of nature or are we just going around with our theories? I have no answers!
Quite a profound question, and yes when we ponder we realize we are circling and one theory which was believed to be true yesteryear has turned its leaf and we have something else superseding it. Perhaps each theory are trying to give some bones to hold onto the flesh, and as it get exposed we have one more to take its place. Is nature to be looked through the prism of science or philosophy and many that we are unable to answer we handover to the philosophers and we make our mind move with those theories and more theories…
This had landed in the spam, just saw it.
Thanks for your intriguing question.
😀
True. I feel we humans are a minuscule part of the entire scheme of thing called universe or galaxy…or any other thing we may call. Somethings are beyond our understanding.
Indeed it is beyond our comprehension and we keep wondering…
Perhaps that is how it is meant to be.
😀
That’s life!
Well said…
😀
What a wonderful post Nihar.. Such a lot of information and statistics.
What figures I found fascinating were the ones about Energy.. Only 5% of the matter and energy known, and 95% unknown as dark energy and dark matter..
Which means Science and we hardly know anything when it comes to the unseen world and what the Universe is comprised of and how it operates..
As you go on to explain the Trillions within the mind blowing Galaxies etc, and then the trillions of cells in our bodies own structures.
We are pretty remarkable BE-ings,
And one of our most amazing things IS our Imagination. So fully agree with the quotes you mentioned by Thomas Berry and William Blake.
Fantastic research in the figures you researched Nihar.. 🙂
Yes dear Sue, nothing can be more fascinating than exploring the world of imagination. It is indeed magic what we can achieve if we use the full power of our imagination. It is so difficult to fathom the numbers in nature. The way it gets measured and the way it presents an altogether new perspective on nature is amazing. Universe always remains the most wonderful facet that keeps us in awe and wonder. The number of galaxies, planets and stars are just mind boggling. The very thought that how these many objects got created and who has been the architect of such massive cosmological structure of the universe.
If we analyze a bit deeply and dwell deeper on the subject of science we find it has managed to merely touch the surface of the nature and there is whole body of knowledge to be unearthed. The fact that we are in cognizant of the just 5% of the matter and energy that comprises of the universe is a testimony to the reality of the unknown that kept the known facts so insignificant. As we touch any aspect of the nature and associated numbers we find something intriguing and much more revealing facets.
Thanks so much dear Sue and have a wonderful day ahead.
Take Care!!!
😀
My pleasure my friend, a fascinating subject ‘Matter’ 🙂
Thank you Dear Sue.
😀