\[ **BT: [[life]]** ] --- # the biosphere The biosphere is the worldwide sum of all [[#ecosystems]].[^1] The biosphere is the apex of biological organisation (with the smallest being [[matter and energy#atoms|atoms]] and the largest the biosphere).[^2] ## ecosystems An ecosystem is a collection of integrated communities and their environment. ## biological populations and communities ### biological populations #### deme Pronunciation: homophone with *deem*.[^3] [[A deme is a distinct population or territory of animals, all of the same species, which share a common gene pool (i.e. they interbreed).]][^4] ### biotic interactions [[Without fungi, no life on land would exist.]][^2] ## hazards of life in the biosphere ### terrestrial ecosystems #### the land environment ##### specialised biomes ###### polar biomes [[Polar T3 Syndrome, found in polar explorers, is caused by a drop in thyroid hormone T3.]][^5] - see also: - [[human beings#the thyroid|thyroid disorders]] - [[Earth#the polar environment|the polar environment]] ## bio-geographic distribution of organisms: ecosystems ### terrestrial ecosystems #### the land environment ##### major terrestrial environments e.g., the tundra, the coniferous forest, the middle-latitude forest, the tropical rain forest, the grassland and savanna, the scrublands, the desert ###### forests ![[Sheldrake, Entangled Life, 2021#^b6348f]] [^6] ###### polar environment - see also: [[Earth#polar environment]] ## the place of humans in the biosphere: human ecology; human biohistory; etc - see: [[human ecology]] [^1]: Tristram D. Wyatt, ‘[[Wyatt, ‘Pheromones’, 2017|Pheromones]]’, *Current Biology*, vol. 27, no. 15 (2017), R740, <https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2017.06.039>. [^2]: Merlin Sheldrake, *[[Sheldrake, Entangled Life, 2021|Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds, and Shape Our Futures]]* (Vintage, 2021), p. 2. [^3]: ‘Deme’, Wiktionary, last edited 30 July 2025, 14:42, https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/deme. [^4]: ‘Deme’, Wiktionary, last edited 30 July 2025, 14:42, https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/deme; ‘What Is a Deme and Its Role in Evolution?’, *Biology Insights*, 26 July 2025, https://biologyinsights.com/what-is-a-deme-and-its-role-in-evolution/. [^5]: Translator’s note in 壶鱼辣椒 \[Pot Fish Chili], *[[Pot Fish Chili, I Became a God in a Horror Game, 2020|I Became a God in a Horror Game]]*, trans. 19 Dollar Company (19 Dollar Company, 2025), chapter 252, <https://19dollarcompany.wordpress.com/2023/09/22/ghg-chp-252/>. [^6]: Merlin Sheldrake, *[[Sheldrake, Entangled Life, 2021|Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds, and Shape Our Futures]]* (Vintage, 2021), p. 13.