Chapter 25
Invisible Interactions between
Microorganisms
Kenji Ueda
Abstract Interactions between microorganisms are fundamental to the constitution
of community life, but the details have not yet been known due to their invisibility.
Here, various modes in such interactions are enumerated to deepen our insights into
the natural principles directing the development of ecosystem resilience.
25.1 Introduction
On March 11, 2011, a huge earthquake struck the northeast part of Japan. This
earthquake generated tsunami tidal waves that destroyed many cities and took the
lives of many people. Furthermore, the tsunami that then struck caused the breakdown of the Fukushima atomic power plant. Unfortunately, the damaged power
plant dispersed a huge amount of radioactive material over the peaceful land.
Resilience is a word that became widely used after the catastrophe in Japan.
Resilience is an academic term originally used in physics. While stress is defined as
an impact of external forces, resilience refers to the ability to recover from stress
damage. In recent years, the use of this term has been expanded, especially in the
field of psychology. Psychological resilience is defined as the ability to restore one’s
mental state to that before a crisis.
During the last 9 years, the remains of most buildings and roads that were
destroyed due to the earthquake and tsunami have been removed. Some of those
material items lost have been reconstructed in different styles, but many others
remain lost. In contrast, the ocean looks the same as before, and the fields once
swept by the strong flow of seawater were soon covered with green (Fig. 25.1). The
revival of plants in turn supports the life of many animals. Such natural restoration
can be observed everywhere, demonstrating that nature intrinsically retains the will
and power for directing self-recovery.
K. Ueda (*)
Life Science Research Center, College of Bioresource Sciences, Nihon University, Fujisawa,
Japan
e-mail: ueda.kenji@nihon-u.ac.jp
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
C. J. Hurst (ed.), Microbes: The Foundation Stone of the Biosphere, Advances in
Environmental Microbiology 8, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-63512-1_25
527
Invisible Interactions between
Microorganisms
Kenji Ueda
Abstract Interactions between microorganisms are fundamental to the constitution
of community life, but the details have not yet been known due to their invisibility.
Here, various modes in such interactions are enumerated to deepen our insights into
the natural principles directing the development of ecosystem resilience.
25.1 Introduction
On March 11, 2011, a huge earthquake struck the northeast part of Japan. This
earthquake generated tsunami tidal waves that destroyed many cities and took the
lives of many people. Furthermore, the tsunami that then struck caused the breakdown of the Fukushima atomic power plant. Unfortunately, the damaged power
plant dispersed a huge amount of radioactive material over the peaceful land.
Resilience is a word that became widely used after the catastrophe in Japan.
Resilience is an academic term originally used in physics. While stress is defined as
an impact of external forces, resilience refers to the ability to recover from stress
damage. In recent years, the use of this term has been expanded, especially in the
field of psychology. Psychological resilience is defined as the ability to restore one’s
mental state to that before a crisis.
During the last 9 years, the remains of most buildings and roads that were
destroyed due to the earthquake and tsunami have been removed. Some of those
material items lost have been reconstructed in different styles, but many others
remain lost. In contrast, the ocean looks the same as before, and the fields once
swept by the strong flow of seawater were soon covered with green (Fig. 25.1). The
revival of plants in turn supports the life of many animals. Such natural restoration
can be observed everywhere, demonstrating that nature intrinsically retains the will
and power for directing self-recovery.
K. Ueda (*)
Life Science Research Center, College of Bioresource Sciences, Nihon University, Fujisawa,
Japan
e-mail: ueda.kenji@nihon-u.ac.jp
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
C. J. Hurst (ed.), Microbes: The Foundation Stone of the Biosphere, Advances in
Environmental Microbiology 8, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-63512-1_25
527