Rare Earth: Why Complex Life is Uncommon in the Universe
Brownlee, Donald,Ward, Peter D.
Language: English
Published by Copernicus, 2000
- Hardcover
- Used

Seller: HPB-Ruby, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.HPB-Ruby
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Condition: Used - Very good
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- Title
- Rare Earth: Why Complex Life is Uncommon in the Universe
- Author
- Brownlee, Donald,Ward, Peter D.
- Publisher
- Copernicus
- Publication year
- 2000
- Condition
- Very Good
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Language
- English
- ISBN 10
- 0387987010
- ISBN 13
- 9780387987019
"Synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Review
Their new science is the field of biology ratcheted up to encompass not just life on earth but also life beyond earth. It forces us to reconsider the life of our planet as a single example of how life might work, rather than as the only example.
The revolution in astrobiology during the 1990s was twofold. First, scientists grew to appreciate how incredibly robust microbial life can be, found in the superheated water of deep-sea vents, pools of acid, or even within the crust of the Earth itself. The chance of finding such simple life on other bodies in our solar system has never seemed more realistic. But second, scientists have begun to appreciate how many unusual factors have co-operated to make earth a congenial home for animal life: Jupiter's stable orbit, the presence of the Moon, plate tectonics, just the right amount of water, the right position in the right sort of galaxy. Ward and Brownlee make a convincing if depressing case for their hypothesis, undermining the principle of mediocrity (or, "Earth isn't all that special") that has ruled astronomy since Copernicus. --Mary Ellen Curtin
"About the title" may belong to another edition of this title.
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