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( Nature (philosophy))
Nature is a word used in two major ways, which are inter-connected in a complex way. This complexity is due to the importance of the concept in the history of science and metaphysics, particularly in Western Civilization. 1. In modern scientific writing "nature" refers to all directly observable phenomena of the "physical" or material universe, and it is contrasted only with any other sort of existence, such as spiritual or supernatural existence. In a scientific text, the unqualified term “nature” normally means the same as “the cosmos” or “the universe”. 2. Historically, and also in casual speech, “nature” does not include all things, because it excludes the artificial or man-made. For example it generally does not include manufactured objects, and also generally does not include human interaction. In this case, the unqualified term “nature” generally means the same as “wilderness” or “the Natural environment”. The oldest meaning, which is compatible to some extent with both of these is also still common "nature" refers to the essential properties of any particular type of thing.
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