Nature, in the broadest sense, is equivalent to the natural world, physical world, or material world. "Nature" refers to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. It ranges in scale from the subatomic to the cosmic.
The term "nature" may refer to living plants and animals, geological processes, weather, and physics, such as matter and energy. The term is often refers to the "natural environment" or wilderness wild animals, rocks, forest, beaches, and in general areas that have not been substantially altered by humans, or which persist despite human intervention.
For, example, manufactured objects and human interaction are generally not considered part of nature, unless qualified as, for example, "human nature" or "the whole of nature". This more traditional concept of "nature" implies a distinction between natural and artificial elements of the Earth, with the artificial as that which has been brought into being by a human consciousness or a human mind.
Bachalpsee in the Swiss Alps; generally mountainous areas are less affected by human activity
Green leaves
Much attention has been given to preserving the natural characteristics of Hopetoun Falls, Australia, while maintaining visitor access.
Lightning strikes during the eruption of the huge Galunggung volcano in 1982
Contents
1. Etymology
2. Earth
3. Historical perspective
4. Geology
5. Geological evolution
6.Atmosphere, climate, and weather
7.Water on Earth
8. Oceans
9.Lakes
10. Ponds
11.Rivers
12. Streams
Ecosystems
Examples of ecosystems
1. Wilderness
2. Life
3.Evolution
4.Microbes
5. Plants and animals
6.Human interrelationship
7.Aesthetics and beauty
8.Matter and energy
9. Beyond Earth
10. Sea also
Etymology
The word nature is derived from the Latin word natura, or "essential qualities, innate disposition", and literally means birth.
1] Natura was a Latin translation of the Greek word physis (φύσις), which correlated plants, animals, and other features of the world as developing of their own accord.
The concept of nature as a whole, the physical universe, is one of several expansions of the original notion; it began with certain core applications of the word φύσις by pre-Socratic philosophers, and has steadily gained currency ever since.