Ever since human beings could tell stories, the planet has been imagined through myth as a whole, functional being. The Greeks called her 'Gaia,' the source and mother of all life. While this personification may not be literally true, the essence of the myth is, Where would we be if not for planet Earth?

The Earth, like a mother, provides the nourishment life requires. Today, the more evolved myth of science tells us that the planet does indeed work as a whole, not unlike an organic body.