COMPLEXITY
Mingzhen Lu on The Evolution of Root Systems & Biogeochemical Cycling
Podcast summary created with Snipd AI
Quick takeaways
- Roots have evolved to become thinner and rely on specialized fungi for nutrient acquisition over time.
- Natural systems have transitioned from linear economies to circular economies, achieving almost complete self-sustainability.
- Different root strategies influence soil composition and biogeochemical cycles, leading to the establishment of stable regimes and significant differences in vegetation.
Deep dives
The Evolution of Roots and Symbiotic Relationships
Roots have evolved over time to become thinner and more efficient at acquiring water and nutrients. Fungi have played a crucial role in this evolution, forming mutualistic relationships with roots. Early roots were thicker and had simpler associations with fungi, but over time, roots have become thinner and more reliant on specialized fungi for nutrient acquisition. This evolution has led to the emergence of different root strategies and symbiotic relationships, as plants adapt to different environments and soil conditions.
The Circular Economy of Natural Systems
Natural systems have evolved to become circular economies, with efficient recycling processes. Initially, natural systems functioned in a linear economy, where resources were used and then became waste. However, over time, ecosystems have become more circular, recycling nutrients and materials with high efficiency. This adaptation has allowed natural systems to achieve almost complete self-sustainability, with certain elements being recycled at rates as high as 99%. Inspired by this, the speaker questions the linear economy of cities and emphasizes the need to transition to a circular economy.
Root Strategies, Soil Composition, and Biogeochemical Cycles
Different root strategies, such as those found in the Finbo and the forest, influence soil composition and biogeochemical cycles. These strategies create self-reinforcing feedback loops within ecosystems, leading to the establishment of stable regimes and significant differences in vegetation. For example, the Finbo plants thrive in nutrient-poor soils and burn to maintain their preferred conditions, while forest plants accumulate nutrients and become more efficient at nutrient uptake. The transition between these regimes is sharp, defined by soil composition, and reflects the complex interactions between organisms and their environment.
Lessons for Human Economic Systems
There are lessons from ecology that can be applied to human economic systems. Understanding feedback mechanisms and the importance of circular economies can guide sustainability efforts. Just as natural systems have evolved to recycle waste and optimize resource use, human societies can strive to achieve circular economies and efficient resource management. The challenge lies in closing the gap between waste generation and waste utilization, but the potential for innovation and problem-solving exists. By harnessing the lessons from natural ecosystems, we can work towards creating more sustainable and resilient economic systems.
The Potential for Adaptation and Change
The study of roots and ecosystems reveals the potential for adaptation and change in the face of environmental challenges. Roots have evolved over millions of years, demonstrating the capacity for organisms to find solutions to changing conditions. This adaptability is seen in the diverse strategies employed by roots and the evolution of symbiotic relationships. While challenges such as plastic waste and pollution require rapid innovation, the human capacity for problem-solving and technological advancement offers hope for finding solutions. By learning from nature and recognizing the importance of feedback mechanisms, we can navigate the complexities of the changing world and create a more sustainable future.
As fictional Santa Fe Institute chaos mathematician Ian Malcolm famously put it, “Life finds a way” — and this is perhaps nowhere better demonstrated than by roots: seeking out every opportunity, improving in their ability to access and harness nutrients as they’ve evolved over the last 400 million years. Roots also exemplify another maxim for living systems: “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” As the Earth’s climate has transformed, the plants and fungi have transformed along with it, reaching into harsh and unstable environments and proving themselves in a crucible of evolutionary innovation that has reshaped the biosphere. Dig deep enough and you’ll find that life, like roots, trends toward the ever-finer, more adaptable, more intertwined…we all live in and on Charles Darwin’s “tangled bank”, whether we recognize it in our farms, our markets, or our minds.
Welcome to COMPLEXITY, the official podcast of the Santa Fe Institute. I’m your host, Michael Garfield, and every other week we’ll bring you with us for far-ranging conversations with our worldwide network of rigorous researchers developing new frameworks to explain the deepest mysteries of the universe.
This week on Complexity, we talk to SFI Postdoctoral Fellow Mingzhen Lu (Google Scholar, Twitter) about the lessons of the invisible webwork beneath our feet, the hidden world upon which all of us walk and rely — largely unnoticed, and until recently scarcely understood. We discuss the intersection of geography, ecology, and economics; the relationship between the so-called “Wood-Wide Web” and urban systems; how plants domesticated mycorrhizal fungi much as humans domesticated animals and plants; the evolutionary trends revealed by a paleoecological study of roots and what they suggest for the future of technology and civilization… This episode is an especially intertwingled and far-reaching one, as suits the topic. Plant yourself and soak it up!
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Discussed in this episode:
“Evolutionary history resolves global organization of root functional traits”
by Zeqing Ma, Dali Guo, Xingliang Xu, Mingzhen Lu, Richard D. Bardgett, David M. Eissenstat, M. Luke McCormack & Lars O. Hedin
in Nature
“Global plant-symbiont organization and emergence of biogeochemical cycles resolved by evolution-based trait modelling”
by Mingzhen Lu, Lars O. Hedin
in PubMed
“Biome boundary maintained by intense belowground resource competition in world’s thinnest-rooted plant community”
by Mingzhen Lu, William J. Bond, Efrat Sheffer, Michael D. Cramer, Adam G. West, Nicky Allsopp, Edmund C. February, Samson Chimphango, Zeqing Ma, Jasper A. Slingsby, and Lars O. Hedin
in PNAS
Complexity ep. 8 - Olivia Judson on Major Energy Transitions in Evolutionary History
A (Very) Short History of Life on Earth
by Henry Gee (Senior Editor of Nature)
"General statistical model shows that macroevolutionary patterns and processes are consistent with Darwinian gradualism”
by SFI Professor Mark Pagel
in Nature
Complexity ep. 29 - On Coronavirus, Crisis, and Creative Opportunity with David Krakauer
“Childhood as a solution to explore–exploit tensions”
by SFI Professor Alison Gopnik
in Philosophical Transactions of The Royal Society B
Complexity ep. 35 - Scaling Laws & Social Networks in The Time of COVID-19 with Geoffrey West
Complexity ep. 17 - Chris Kempes on The Physical Constraints on Life & Evolution
Complexity ep. 60 - Andrea Wulf on The Invention of Nature, Part 1: Humboldt's Naturegemälde
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
by Philip K. Dick
The Shock Doctrine
by Naomi Klein
Doughnut Economics
by Kate Raworth
The Long Descent
by John Michael Greer
“6 Ways Mushrooms Can Save The World”
by Paul Stamets
The Expanse (novel series)
by James S. A. Corey (Daniel Abraham & Ty Franck, here at IPFest 2019 on our World Building panel)
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