Gênesis: uma busca científica pelas origens da vida

Genesis: The Scientific Quest for Life's Origins 

Robert Hazen (Author)

Product Details

Paperback: 368 pages

Publisher: Joseph Henry Press (February 28, 2007)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 030910310X

ISBN-13: 978-0309103107

Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.9 inches

Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

What is the meaning of life? Hazen (co-author, Science Matters: Achieving Scientific Literacy) can't answer that, but he may be able to shed light on how life started. We're all familiar with the "primordial soup" theory: organic building blocks floating around in Earth's ocean four billion years ago combined to form the first primitive organisms. Hazen explains the many rival theories vying for public attention. The discovery of life near hydrothermal vents deep in the ocean have led some scientists to propose that life started there, while recent studies of microbes living in rock miles below Earth's surface point to even more radical genesis stories. The origin of life is a hotly contested scientific field, of which Hazen provides a balanced view, airing all the controversies, and only slightly favoring his own pet theory. He spends just as much time on the tools of the trade: the study of molecular fossils and even how we might search for life on other planets. His writing is clear and entertaining, giving a delightful look into his unpredictable experimental work without shying away from the complexity of the science. (Sept. 23) 

Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

"...provides the best overview of the 'origin of life' field for the non-specialist reader that I have encountered. I think that even those who are familiar with most of its contents will enjoy the presentation." - Nature "For a better view of how science really works, turn to this wonderfully engaging account of modern research into the dawn of biology...The book climaxes with a stunningly clever new hypothesis of how the first RNA molecules could have arisen spontaneously. Fascinating, Captain." - The Guardian "This is the best origins-of-life account that I have seen, for both professionals and philosophers. Others who are interested but uninformed will find the story stretches their minds - and rewards the effort." - BBC Focus"

Product Description

Life on Earth arose nearly 4 billion years ago, bursting forth from air, water, and rock. Though the process obeyed all the rules of chemistry and physics, the details of that original event pose as deep a mystery as any facing science. How did non-living chemicals become alive? While the question is (deceivingly) simple, the answers are unquestionably complex. Science inevitably plays a key role in any discussion of life's origins, dealing less with the question of why life appeared on Earth than with where, when, and how it emerged on the blasted, barren face of our primitive planet. Astrobiologist Robert Hazen has spent many years dealing with the fundamental questions of life's genesis. As an active research scientist, he is down deep in all the messy details that science has to offer on the subject, tracing the inexorable sequence of events that led to the complicated interactions of carbonbased molecules. As he takes us through the astounding process of emergence, we are witness to the first tentative steps toward life - from the unfathomable abundance of carbon biomolecules synthesized in the black vacuum of space to the surface of the Earth to deep within our planet's restless crust. We are privy to the breathtaking drama that rapidly unfolds as life prevails. The theory of emergence is poised to answer a multitude of questions - even as it raises the possibility that natural processes exist beyond what we now know, perhaps beyond what we even comprehend. Genesis tells the tale of transforming scientific advances in our quest for life's origins. Written with grace, beauty, and authority, it goes directly to the heart of who we are and why we are here.

About the Author

Robert M. Hazen is a scientist at the Carnegie Institution of Washington and the Clarence Robinson Professor of Earth Science at George Mason University. Dr Hazen is the author of man books including The Breakthrough, Why Aren't Black Holes Black and the bestselling Science Matters: Achieving Scientific Literacy which he co-authored with James Trefil.


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SOURCE/FONTE: Amazon Books