Every activity or process in Nature obeys the principle of least action, Nature's own principle of economy. For any activity, simple or complex, nature's infinite intelligence spontaneously and instantaneously computes which path will consume least effort for that activity.

For example, if an object moves from position X to position Y (see figure), there may be many (even an infinite number) of possible paths that the object can take. These are labelled as A, B, C, etc. Of these, one path, labelled L, will have a minimum value for a quantity known as the "action" (the momentum multiplied by the distance travelled). Nature spontaneously chooses this path. The same principle applies for all systems and all types of activity, however complex. When this principle was first stated by Maupertius in 1747, he exclaimed at the "divine economy" that nothing in the universe, not even "action", is squandered.

This theme of economy in Nature's administration of the universe may be termed the principle of "automation in administration". The Government of Nature operates with supreme efficiency, so that the maximum result is obtained for the minimum expenditure of effort. The whole of the universe is silently and efficiently governed through this principle.