NATURE
Nature, in the broadest sense, is the natural world, physical
universe,
material world or material universe. "Nature" refers to the
phenomena
of the physical world, and also to life in general. Manufactured
objects
and human interaction are, in common usage, not considered part
of
nature unless qualified in ways such as "human nature" or "the
whole of
nature". Nature is generally distinguished from the supernatural.
It
ranges in scale from the subatomic to the galactic.
EARTH
Earth (or, "the earth") the fifth largest planet in the solar
system, third
in order of distance from the Sun. It is the largest of its
planetary system's
terrestrial planets and the only place in the universe known to
support
life.
The most prominent features of the earth's climate are its two
large
polar regions, two relatively narrow temperate zones, and a
wide
equatorial tropical to subtropical region. Precipitation patterns
vary
widely according to location, ranging from several metres of water
per
year to less than a millimetre. About 70 percent of the surface is
covered
by salt-water oceans. The remainder consists of continents and
islands,
with the vast majority of the inhabited land in the Northern
Hemisphere.
LIFE
Although there is no universal agreement on the definition of
life,
scientists generally accept that the biological manifestation of
life is
characterized by organization, metabolism, growth, adaptation,
response to stimuli and reproduction. Life may also be said to be
simply
the characteristic state of organisms.