MOG: The Invisible Invincibles

The first post of Mind of God (MOG) series dealt with the illusion of our existence. In the second post we realized that the line of difference between living and non-living is thinner than we think. Conscience is energy and it is inter-convertible with matter (e=mc^2).  This post is meant to challenge the human biasness towards thinking that we are the ultimate species. This post is meant to humble us.

Even though you cannot perceive ‘it’, it is all around you; it is within you, watching your every move, all the time. From the bright sky to the dark depths, ‘it’ is everywhere. You are here because of ‘it’, and it is ‘it’ that will turn you to dust. ‘It’ was there long before you were born, and ‘it’ will be here long after your race perishes. It is more intelligent than you think; it is more advanced than humans. Welcome to the world of the invisible invincibles.

Our brain is biased towards thinking that evolution has created more advanced species through time, ultimately making the best of them all – us!  It is that biasness that made us ignore the tiny but omnipresent microorganisms. The species of virus and bacteria were here long before any complicated life evolved, and are going to be there after the sun blasts. We, the complex organisms, have evolved from them and are here only because these tiny species have allowed us to be here. 99% of the microorganisms helps us to survive. Each of our cells has at least one [endosymbiont] microorganism called mitochondria (they have a separate identity, even different type of DNA from your cells within which it lives). Without them we will die within seconds. And the other one percent can kill us at will. This 1% has also shaped out history…check out this post to know more!

These invisible species are also invincible. Their survival defies logic and challenges our conventional thinking about the limitations of life. Bacteria have been found to survive on concentrated sulphuric acid that melts metals. They are present in the freezing ice of Antartica to the magma vents of mid oceanic ridges. They live at depths of 600m and probably beyond, surviving on rocks. They have survived in moon when a lens was accidently left behind. Blast the DNA of deinococcus radiodurans and they will soon regenerate. Find a new antibiotic to kill a bacterium and it will evolve to resist it. The more our scientists find advanced methods to kill them the hardier they become.  Our intelligence has failed to stop them.

Entire clan of bacteria comprise a single genetic pool and they share their genetic code with each other. Once a bacterium finds a new code it shares it with the entire clan within seconds. Their communication system is faster and efficient than your 3.5G mobile connection. They behave like one interconnected species, like a single conscience. This makes it so difficult to kill them.

They are more intelligent than you think. Intelligence is something that helps you adapt and survive. Intelligence does not mean creation of wheels to move, they can move much faster by efficient ways without polluting the world. Intelligence does not mean creation of language; they behave like a single connected species (that is why a disease spread and stop through out the globe at the same time) without the need of being multilinguist and without the problems of electromagnetic microwave radiations. They do not have the problem of building civilization and then fighting to save it. We innovate to adapt, they evolve. And they survive under any condition.

One wise man once said simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. The multi-cellular organisms’ live for a short duration of time, even the mighty dinosaurs could not survive. We are imperfect and temporary. However, these micro-organisms are here for millions of years. We owe our life to these magnificent specks of conscience. They are the ultimate form of life. More than 90% of their characteristics are mysterious to us. The more we know about them the more we are humbled. It seems like we are a temporary unstable by-product of evolution and the world truly belongs to them. They are probably present through out the universe as one inter-connected conscience and we are just the residue that got separated. Once we die and decay we will probably go back and mix with them and become part of the eternal conscience.