23.02.12

She later developed a much more radical theory, dubbed Gaia, that suggests Earth's physical and biological processes are bound together to form a self-regulating system.

"If science doesn't fit in with the cultural milieu, people dismiss science, they never reject their cultural milieu! If we are involved in science of which some aspects are not commensurate with the cultural milieu, then we are told that our science is flawed," Margulis argued .

"I suspect that all people have cultural concepts into which science must fit. Although I try to recognise these biases in myself, I'm sure I cannot entirely avoid them. I try to focus on the direct observational aspects of science."

The biologist said she admired Charles Darwin's contribution to science and agreed with much of his theoretical analysis, but added she was not a neo-Darwinist.

It was a mathematical concept that "never made much sense" to Margulis.

Source: Register