Does Nature stay what it is

The problem addressed in this paper is twofold. Firstly, what are the implications of a powers metaphysics for materialism? Secondly, assuming power to be an antithetical concept to substance, what becomes of the idea of nature under such a metaphysics? The paper was written for the second international Speculative Realism Workshop, and is published in The Speculative Turn, eds. Bryant, Harman and Srnicek, 2010.