Synergy plays a significant role in the work we do at Gaia, too. The effects of synergy across society, throughout history and up and down the food chain are measurable and quantifiable. In short, we're all in this together no (wo)man is an island. ( Here's a neat blog with more info on food synergies.) Adding vitamin C helps the absorption of plant-based iron in foods like spinach or chickpeas. Many phytonutrients in fruits and vegetables, such as the carotenoids that give yellow and red produce their vibrant color, are better absorbed when consumed with some dietary fat. In our own body, synergy is a driving force behind digestion and immunity, thanks to the billions of bacteria that provide immune support for us while taking advantage of an endless smorgasbord of microbes that are unwelcome visitors.Īnd speaking of digestion, synergy even exists in the food we eat. Even the most hardened misanthrope among us cannot go a day without encountering human synergy. Even the development of the assembly line and modern business practices such as using licensed images on products are examples of synergy. Cyclists in a peloton take turns leading the group, like the locomotive in a train, to reduce individual effort. Off the farm, the examples continue to abound. It's an integral method of farming that we use at Gaia. We cultivate different crops in close proximity for pest control, pollination, providing habitat for beneficial insects and to increase crop productivity.
Today we call this method as companion planting. The leaves serve as a living mulch to lock in moisture, while the prickly hairs on the squash vines deter insects and other pests.
The squash spreads out along the ground, which blocks sunlight to prevent weeds from thriving. The plants help one another, with the high-growing corn providing the structure the beans need to climb, and the beans in turn enrich the soil with nitrogen that all the plants need. Native Americans farmed using the Three Sisters crops of winter squash, corn and beans to provide mutually beneficial effects for the land, the plants and, ultimately, the humans who will consume them. Synergy has even been adapted by societies over millennia in a variety of ways. On the African savannahs, oxpecker birds hitch a ride on the backs of rhinoceroses, which provides parasitic control for the ungulate partner and a food source for the avian one.
Emperor penguins huddle together to conserve body heat and survive harsh winters in Antarctica.
DEFINE SYNERGY FREE
Look up at the sky in fall, and you will see geese flying in a V formation as they migrate south, each one creating a free lift for those behind. Consider the bees and the flowers: Bees sip nectar from flowers that gets turned into honey used as their food, and the flowers are in turn pollinated by the bees.
Synergy can be seen throughout the plant and animal kingdoms in both simple and profound ways. While this would certainly earn a penalty from any math teacher, Mother Nature gets a pass. Consider the concept of synergy, wherein the combined efforts of organisms achieve more than those of an individual. Nature makes the rules so she gets to bend them sometimes, too.
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