What is ecology ?

Ecology (from Greek: ?????, "house"; -????a, "study of") is the scientific study of the relation of living organisms with each other and their surroundings. Ecosystems are defined by a web, community, or network of individuals that arrange into a self-organized and complex hierarchy of pattern and process. Ecosystems create a biophysical feedback between living (biotic) and nonliving (abiotic) components of an environment that generates and regulates the biogeochemical cycles of the planet. Ecosystems provide goods and services that sustain human societies and general well-being. Ecosystems are sustained by biodiversity within them.[ Biodiversity is the full-scale of life and its processes, including genes, species and ecosystems forming lineages that integrate into a complex and regenerative spatial arrangement of types, forms, and interactions. Ecology is a sub-discipline of biology, the study of life. The word "ecology" ("oekologie") was coined in 1866 by the German scientist Ernst Haeckel (1834�1919). Haeckel was a zoologist, artist, writer, and later in life a professor of comparative anatomy. Ancient philosophers of Greece, including Hippocrates and Aristotle, were among the earliest to record notes and observations on the natural history of plants and animals; the early rudiments of modern ecology. Modern ecology mostly branched out of natural history science that flourished in the late 19th century. Charles Darwin's evolutionary treatise and the concept of adaptation as it was introduced in 1859 is a pivotal cornerstone in modern ecological theory. Ecology is not synonymous with environment, environmentalism, natural history or environmental science.Ecology is closely related to the biological disciplines of physiology, evolution, genetics and behavior. An understanding of how biodiversity affects ecological function is an important focus area in ecological studies. Ecosystems sustain every life-supporting function on the planet, including climate regulation, water filtration, soil formation (pedogenesis), food, fibers, medicines, erosion control, and many other natural features of historical, spiritual or scientific value.