Combining genome-level biology with astronomy and Earth history, this volume aims to explore the major breakthroughs in the 21st Century to enhance the understanding of Earth as an interactive system.
The next few decades are likely to witness deep environmental crises, crises we will be able to cope with only through a clear understanding of the complex, delicate system of which we are part. Fortunately, the great advances made in all fields of science since World War II make it possible to reconstruct the entire life history of the world we live in, from the Big Bang to the present, and thus to understand how the system works. This book presents a global picture of our world - how it originated, how it evolved, how it works - and provides the background necessary to assess ways to stabilize it. Although the science is rigorous and quantitative, the book is written in an informal style and is readily accessible to anyone with a knowledge of high-school algebra.
This concise undergraduate textbook brings together Earth and biological sciences to explore the co-evolution of the Earth and life over geological time. Written for a one-semester course, it explores the Earth system at and above the surface of the Earth by examining the interactions and feedback processes between the geosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere and biosphere. It also explains how the Earth's surface environment involves a complex interplay between these systems. Through a wealth of features and student questioning, the book allows students to understand how physical controls make our planet hospitable for life, investigate the processes of global change that operate on a range of timescales, understand important cross-disciplinary connections and explore how the whole Earth system has evolved. Finally, it assesses how and why the climate of the Earth has varied over geological time, and considers whether life itself is passive or an active agent for change.
This concise undergraduate textbook brings together Earth and biological sciences to explore the co-evolution of the Earth and life over geological time. Written for a one-semester course, it explores the Earth system at and above the surface of the Earth by examining the interactions and feedback processes between the geosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere and biosphere. It also explains how the Earth's surface environment involves a complex interplay between these systems. Through a wealth of features and student questioning, the book allows students to understand how physical controls make our planet hospitable for life, investigate the processes of global change that operate on a range of timescales, understand important cross-disciplinary connections and explore how the whole Earth system has evolved. Finally, it assesses how and why the climate of the Earth has varied over geological time, and considers whether life itself is passive or an active agent for change.
Exploring the broad implications of evolutionary theorist Lynn Margulis's work, this collection brings together specialists across a range of disciplines, from paleontology, molecular biology, evoluti
Exploring the broad implications of evolutionary theorist Lynn Margulis's work, this collection brings together specialists across a range of disciplines, from paleontology, molecular biology, evoluti
The purpose of the book is to provide factual information and to explain the physical world in which we live by first setting the Earth within the context of the planetary system which orbits the Sun.
With over 500 planets now known to exist beyond the Solar System, spacecraft heading for Mars, and the ongoing search for extraterrestrial intelligence, this timely book explores current ideas about the search for life in the Universe. It contains candid interviews with dozens of astronomers, geologists, biologists, and writers about the origin and range of terrestrial life and likely sites for life beyond Earth. The interviewees discuss what we've learnt from the missions to Mars and Titan, talk about the search for Earth clones, describe the surprising diversity of life on Earth, speculate about post-biological evolution, and explore what contact with intelligent aliens will mean to us. Covering topics from astronomy and planetary science to geology and biology, this book will fascinate anyone who has ever wondered 'Are we alone?'
The Cosmos Explained pinpoints where you are in space and time, charting the life of our universe from the Big Bang to the future of our galaxy and beyond. The Cosmos Explained is an exciting and beautifully designed book that charts the life of our universe from the Big Bang to the present day and beyond.Starting with the moment of the Big Bang―at exactly one ten-millionth of a trillionth of a trillionth of a trillionth of a second―this book charts a history of space and time all the way through the evolution of our solar system, the birth of stars and the formation of life on Earth, to the future of our galaxy and beyond.With deeply insightful and fascinating text by Hayden Planetarium Associate Professor Charles Liu, who also hosts the immensely popular StarTalk podcast, this book is an accessible and enthralling gateway into the mysteries of space, time and the universe.Pinpoint exactly where you are in space and time using the timeline at the bottom of every page, and explore the
Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation was published anonymously in 1844. Starting with the genesis of the solar system, it progresses systematically through such topics as the formation of the earth, the origins of marine life, the emergence of reptiles, birds and other life forms, and the evolution of human life. Drawing widely upon contemporary ideas from astronomy, biology, geology, linguistics, and anthropology, it seeks to establish the 'hypothesis of an organic creation by natural law'. Preceding Darwin's Origin of Species by fifteen years, Vestiges ignited a storm of controversy by pitting natural law and its role in what would soon come to be known as 'evolution' against the generally accepted Victorian belief that the universe was created by God. In 1884, it was revealed that the author was the British publisher Robert Chambers. This fifth edition of the work also contains its 1845 sequel, Explanations.
Meteorites and Their Parent Planets provides an engrossing overview of a highly interdisciplinary field - the study of extraterrestrial materials. The second edition of this successful book has been thoroughly revised, and describes the nature of meteorites, where they come from, and how they get to Earth. Meteorites offer important insights into processes in stars and in interstellar regions, the birth of our solar system, the formation and evolution of planets and smaller bodies, and the origin of life. The first edition was immensely popular with meteorite collectors, scientists and science students in many fields, and amateur astronomers. In this second edition all of the illustrations have been updated and improved, many sections have been expanded and modified based on discoveries in the last decade, and a new final chapter on the importance of meteorites has been added. Everyone with an interest in meteorites will want a copy of this book.
Meteorites and Their Parent Planets provides an engrossing overview of a highly interdisciplinary field - the study of extraterrestrial materials. The second edition of this successful book has been thoroughly revised, and describes the nature of meteorites, where they come from, and how they get to Earth. Meteorites offer important insights into processes in stars and in interstellar regions, the birth of our solar system, the formation and evolution of planets and smaller bodies, and the origin of life. The first edition was immensely popular with meteorite collectors, scientists and science students in many fields, and amateur astronomers. In this second edition all of the illustrations have been updated and improved, many sections have been expanded and modified based on discoveries in the last decade, and a new final chapter on the importance of meteorites has been added. Everyone with an interest in meteorites will want a copy of this book.
An argument that we have a moral duty to explore other planets and solar systems--because human life on Earth has an expiration date.Inevitably, life on Earth will come to an end, whether by climate disaster, cataclysmic war, or the death of the sun in a few billion years. To avoid extinction, we will have to find a new home planet, perhaps even a new solar system, to inhabit. In this provocative and fascinating book, Christopher Mason argues that we have a moral duty to do just that. As the only species aware that life on Earth has an expiration date, we have a responsibility to act as the shepherd of life-forms--not only for our species but for all species on which we depend and for those still to come (by accidental or designed evolution). Mason argues that the same capacity for ingenuity that has enabled us to build rockets and land on other planets can be applied to redesigning biology so that we can sustainably inhabit those planets. And he lays out a 500-year plan for undertakin
Providing an in-depth understanding both for general readers and astronomy enthusiasts, this highly comprehensive book provides an up-to-date survey of our knowledge of the Universe beyond Earth. The book explores our Solar System, its planets and other bodies; examines the Sun and how it and other stars evolve through their lifetimes; discusses the search for planets beyond our Solar System and how we might detect life on them; and highlights interesting objects found within our galaxy, the Milky Way. It also looks at our current understanding of the origin and evolution of the Universe, as well as many other intriguing topics, such as time, black holes and Einstein's theories, dark matter, dark energy and the Cosmic Microwave Background. The book is uniquely supported by video lectures given by the author, available online. It also includes the very latest astronomical observations, such as those made by the Planck and Kepler spacecraft.
Nitrogen is an essential nutrient for life, and its sources and cycling have varied over earth history. Stable isotope ratios of nitrogen compounds (expressed as δ15N, in ‰) are preserved in the sedimentary record and track these changes, providing important insights into associated biogeochemical feedbacks. Here we review the use of nitrogen stable isotope geochemistry in unravelling the evolution of the global N cycle in deep time. We highlight difficulties with preservation, unambiguous interpretations, and local versus global effects. We end with several case studies illustrating how depositional and stratigraphic context is crucial in reliably interpreting δ15N records in ancient marine sediments, both in ancient anoxic (Archean) and more recent well oxygenated (Phanerozoic) environments.
