Everyone who survives their birth alive and well, in every country and over every generation, very soon consciously know that in order to survive they have to eat and drink regularly and get rid of the used and unused food and water their bodies no longer want or need. Even before we speak in our mother tongue we experience these basic facts before any other things we might subsequently encounter and learn. We know this because practically from day one (or two) after we exit from our mothers birth canal we are eager, if not desperate, for food, and after digestion the residue fills our nappy or runs down our legs. At that stage we do not know that the food comes via a social mode of producing it and that the waste also goes away via a social mode of waste disposal. Nevertheless daily hunger and this hot and then cold feeling on our baby skin are symptoms that are impossible to ignore for parents and children. As we get older, we soon learn to largely ignore such ‘minor’ biological distractions, but of course they are not minor and they never go away.

So even though we learn to control either end of the nutrient intake and waste output, this actual or potential embarrassment represents a frequent reminder of life on earth at it’s most basic biological level. For most of us who are sensibly grounded our intimate connection with our biological essence prevents us from forgetting who we really are and imagining that we are something unique, seperate and way above the rest of nature. In contrast few narcisistic individuals like to imagine they are superior in all things to all other human beings and to the other species of life on earth. But thinking rationally doesn’t always prevent someone from creating a virtual world of ideas, linguistic abstractions, speculative fancies and self-promoted narcissism about themselves and any others they admire. Politicians of all leanings and creators of intellectual products are the most prone to conjuring up virtual realities out of words and images that bear no direct correlation to reality. Indeed, the new Artificial Intelligence entrepreneurs are really tripping out on creating and inviting others to mimic them in creating seemingly new virtual realities out of old scrap (past intellectual production) and convincing themselves it’s refreshingly real.

[N-M-G-R + A – D]
But interestingly, the tiny fragment of daily self-knowledge (via oral intake and anal expulsion) not only keeps us grounded, but once understood in more detail, informs us of something quite profound about life on earth. Moreover, it is, a profundity which cuts through all the pretentious mystical creation stuff about how life appeared here on earth. These two acts relating to Nutrition unequivically identify the biological essence of what life everywhere – in all its amazing forms – is comprised of. At the bottom of everything else, (literally as well as metaphorically at the bottom), Life on Earth, is in a sense, eating, drinking, pooping and peeing, with other important things only occurring in between. This pattern becomes obvious for it starts from the moment we are born and continues until the moment we die. Furthermore, the real world we live in comprises of many essential life forms that live and reproduce themselves and their own species by utilising some other life-forms poop and pee as their main nutritional source.

The oxygenated air we need to breathe comes courtesy of plants and algae all of which have some root, tubule, or Hyphae dangled into some form of nutrient rich excrement and detritus re-labelled as compost or healthy topsoil. Therefore, this Nutritional recycling process does not only involve us humans. Indeed, all, ‘Life on Earth’ from microbes, plants, insects fungi, birds, fish, mammals apes and humans are part of a continuous biological process of absorbing Nutrition (N), Metabolising the nutritional source into suitable forms for the cellular components of our particular organism to utilise, which then enables it to Grow, (G), then during their life spans all (or most) life forms Reproduce (R), their own cells and more of their own species before Ageing (A) and then Dying (D). Or the sequence [N-M-G-R + A – D] for short. In general this biological process is commonly available knowledge, of course, but as a sequence ‘common’ to all forms of life on earth, it is more frequently overlooked than revealed, more frequently ignored than considered and even less understood.

Also overlooked is knowledge and understanding of exactly how the extensive combined biological and economic system functions which 24/7 delivers (N) to our human mouths. For example, I went through Primary School, Secondary School, Engineering school and Teacher Training College (17 years of government designed and sponsored Education) without anyone specifically mentioning modes of production or means of production. I conclude from this that conomics is not a subject frequently disturbing our entertainment and pleasurable distractions from dealing with the constant estrangements, alienations and dehumanisation of everyday life. Until we are ill, we are rarely informed or inform ourselves in detail how this biological sequence of (N-M-G-R + A – D) is taking place in our own bodies and in all other organic species, functions. Yet this unique biological process is effecting the whole ecological system balance of life on earth. Even when nature does get mentioned in passing, its fundamental importance is rarely considered. For most of us adults, for most of our lives, our knowledge of the earths biological process starts in the vicinity of the kitchen area and ends up in the vicinity of the toilet pan – and that’s the extent of it. Despite the existence of, vitamins, proteins, carbohydrates, fibre, sugars and adequate liquid absorbtion, the routine of Nutritional intake itself, is not considered a mystery or overly complex – except in the artistry of celebrated chefs.

Incidentally, with the exception of bees, ants, and termites, all the other species of life on earth (and there are millions of them) do not need nor have created a social mode of production. Apart from domesticated plants, insects and animals, each individual organism is just located near what they need from the natural environment and then extract enough nutrition for themselves and any incapable offspring. This individual hands on or mouth on phenomena was very much what the whole human species did before hierarchical mass societies were created. In fact the human species for hundreds of thousands of years were all hunters and gatherers or pastoralists, moving about the continents and between them whilst living in relatively small communities compared with modern cities and towns. However, since the creation of hierarchical mass societies, an alternative system was established as a mode of production which developed class based divisions of labour, within them. Some members were selected (or forced) to labour in the fields and mines, others were selected to govern, others selected for a range of other purposes.

Between that ancient agricultural and social revolution and the modern era the complexity and size of such hierarchical mass societies has grown until in the late 20th century the hierarchical mass society mode became globally dominant, increasingly large and complex Empire sized aggregations. In fact with regard to modern humanity there are now still two complex systems, actively functioning side by side, but not in a synchronised way. One is a biological system and referred to as ‘nature’; the other is social, and referred to as the ‘political economy’ of the state. Both are constantly inter-meshing together on different time scales, in different locations and both function to achieve diverging and increasingly conflicting outcomes. The biological system grows anywhere it can. Jungle biology or desertification has more than once buried large conurbations flatteringly given the appellation of civilisations‘ beneath its leaves, branches, roots or so-called sands of time.

The second, the sociological system, also referred to as a mode of production, is systematically planned and organised, until it finally exhausts its accessible resources and is abandoned. First and foremost these socio-economic systems are a way of collectively organising and producing those things considered necessary for the human species to complete the biological phases (N-M-G-R + A – D) of our own biological and our own social existence. Currently the mode is designated as the capitalist mode of production and its means are now advanced forms of tools, machinery, mechanised motive power and money. This is because the ownership and control of the main ‘means’ of production, (the land, the factories, the machinery and sale’s outlets) which are used to extract natural resources, (organic and inorganic) manufacture them and offer them for sale are in the hands of those individuals and companies who own and control directly or indirectly large amounts of money capital. Capital in the form of money, credit, physical assets or asset-based securities.

However, capital in any of its social forms does not directly connect with the biological system that provides, via multiple (N-M-G-R + A – D) species processes, all the food and useful resources humans need. So as capital cannot directly grow, mine or stimulate the biological system which together with physical structure of the planet, produces all the organic and inorganic material humanity needs, ‘capital’ is best considered as a ‘means’ of purchasing and organising the economic system to produce the materials for humanities (N-M-G-R + A – D processes. Throughout history, every mode of production in every social system therefore has needed a biological intermediary to interface with the biological system and gather, pick, plant, mine, reap, catch etc and distribute the essential resources necessary for survival to their respective communities. Traditionally within hierarchical mass societies those biological intermediaries have been grouped within certain specific sections of the human species, known as slaves, serfs, peasants, other forms of indentured/unpaid labour and now under the domination of capital the human interface with the biological system of ‘nature’ is via waged and/or salaried workers.

The need for all species to have access to adequate Nutrition in order to survive and the biological resources available to do so, existed before we did and before our species did. It is important to recognise that the biological system has been reproducing and functioning on a seasonal, geographic, weather-affected, temperature-determined pattern of growth, matrurity and reproduction for multiple millions of years. Over billions of years of earth orbits, this biological development gradually transformed the planet earth from a hot, inorganic, rock, liquid, and gaseous mass orbiting the sun into a green and blue mixed environment teeming with variations on its theme of cellular and multi-cellular Eukaryotic and Prokaryotic life forms. Incidentally, this actual evolution is far more amazing and complex than any of the mythical, mystical creationist imaginings of our ancient and less ancient ancestors, could come up with.

Even the most imaginative inventor of fictions and fantasies (and there are many) could not have come up with the detailed complexity of the Eukaryotic, Prokaryotic cells, the DNA strands within them or the microscopic structure of any of the many viral forms now revealed by the magnifying power of the modern electron scanning microscopes invented by the skilled technicians of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. In contrast to the longevity and sophisticated complexity of the biological realm on earth, the current human socio-economic system – taking advantage of this whole billion year old self sustaining system – operates on a crude, daily, even hourly short duration non-self-replicating basis, and has only been doing so in its hierarchical mass society form for several thousand years.

Note the vast difference, both quantitatively and qualitatively, between the two active systems: self-reproducing biology (nature) has existed for billions of years, fueled by non-polluting sunlight and decomposing bio-chemical energy sources; sociology in the form of hierarchical mass societies of (humans) has existed for a few thousand years and has been fueled by highly polluting wood burning, lung destroying coal burning, cancer inducing petro-chemical burning or toxicity on steroids nuclear fission burning. The latter being pimped up by vested interests as ‘clean’ energy when its spent fuel rods will not be ‘clean’ for many thousands of years and not safe for many hundreds of years.

Note also that biology operates on a large-scale reproductive frequency spectrum of hours, days, weeks, or years, decades and even centuries in the case of forest’s and Petro-chemical deposits; in contrast ociology (humanity) operates on a reproductive frequency of hours, days and at best decades. This difference, particularly with regard to the natural resources used by humanity as sources of Nutrition and energy, represents a huge actual and potential contradiction. The difference between the rate of production of Nutrition over seasons and years by nature and the consumption of nature by us humans twice a day (or more)is considerable and becoming larger. The more natural resources we destroy or consume and the more people we need to feed the more the contradiction intensifies and the sooner comes the reckoning. That contradiction has been ignored by elites for generations and is stil be ignored by current generations.

Furthermore, if humanity exists in communities in which some members consume far more than the average member needs daily to survive, then the problem of the limited supply coming via a natural, biologically determined rate of reproduction to supply a social system based overwhelmingly on socially determined – immediate – needs (often based on greed and conspicuous consumption) this situation exacerbates the contradiction between the historically determined rates of human consumption and the biologically determined rates of natural resource production supplies. A biologically focused human economic strategy suggests that the biological resources extracted for social needs should not be exceeding the resources being biologically produced, particularly when these land based resources are being reduced by destruction or by alternative use. It’s as simple and as profound as that.

Historically, this actual and potential contradictory scenario began when humanity ceased to be hunter-gatherers living on adequate, but subsistence level diets and became agricultural societies governed by hierarchical elites who demanded and obtained an increasingly luxurious life-style of sophisticated food resources, personal items of luxury clothing/jewelry and luxury housing in the form of castles and palaces. All this continually increasing top-down human demand upon limited natural organic and inorganic resources was routed through the historically settled agriculturally-based hierarchical mass society modes of production which although frequently flexible comprised of three basic classes; a ruling class, a labouring class and a middle-tier administrative class.

This three tier class system, given occasional variations, is the template which has prevailed throughout the recorded history of the human species. That is to say that the much vaunted complex history of class struggles and genocides within the track record of the hierarchical mass society form of human aggregation, is the primary one actually recorded. In contrast, the previous activities by human beings before hierarchical mass societies were formed, are the subject of the disciplines of archeology, anthropology and ethnology. Nonetheless, these latter disciplines do provide some contrasting evidence to the current dehumanised and estranged positions humans find themselves experiencing within the hierarchical mass society form of communal living. Therefore, the modern economic and financial complexity we hear about in magazines, newspapers and electronic news media is the result of a professional study of the latest mode of production – capitalism! Moreover, we all know professionals have a vested interest in complicating their knowledge and language so as to appear more intelligent and capable than the non-professional members of society and to maintain a financial advantage over them.

Whatever sociological or technical complexity is intentionally or unintentionally woven around or above that basic fundamental biological fact does not alter its fundamental simplicity. All species of life need Nutritious food in – used food out – and that nature supplied that process for billions of years before humanity existed and that it continued to satisfy humanities requirements for millions of years until the onset of hierarchical mass societies, cannot be denied. It was only then that wars, genocides, slavery, wage-slavery and poverty and malnutrition became endemic for the bulk of humanity. Intellectuals and experts in economics, politics and finance, may make it more difficult to understand or interpret what they are explaining or justifying, but that will not alter the basic fundamentals that appear at every babies feed time and nappy change. The most complex it needs to be for the ordinary citizen to understand life on earth in all its interconected variety can be indicated by reference to the sequence – Nutrition, Metabolism, Growth, Reproduction, Ageing and Death or (N-M-G-R + A – D) for short. More complexity, if so desired, can be added later by looking in detail at each of the phases indicated by the appropriate Capital letter in the above sequence.

Roy Ratcliffe (July 2026)

For a fuller consideration of the history of the hierarchical mass society system of human aggregation, download a copy of my extensive book ‘Life on Earth’ (Past, Present and Future) obtainable from Amazon, Browns Books and Google in either digital or paperback form. Roy Ratcliffe.