The Outer Reaches of Life

Postgate, John R.

ISBN 10: 0521440106 / ISBN 13: 9780521440103

Published by Cambridge University Press, 1994

Former library copy. Pages intact with minimal writing/highlighting. The binding may be loose and creased. Dust jackets/supplements are not included. Includes library markings. Stock photo provided. Product includes identifying sticker. Better World Books: Buy Books. Do Good. Seller Inventory # GRP29638703

Synopsis:

John Postgate, one of Britain's leading microbiologists, uses the variegated life-styles of microbes to illustrate the enormous potential of life on this planet. Since the dawn of life on Earth, the world has been gradually transformed by living things into a comfortable home for plants, animals and ourselves. But many harsh and seemingly inhospitable places remain, and it is the inhabitants of such places, mainly invisible microbes, that reveal the remarkable potential and resilience of life. How do microbes survive, even flourish, in superheated water or supercooled brine; at enormous pressures; without air; amid poisons? And what part do, and did, they play in making the Earth hospitable? Illustrated by charming vignettes, and free of technical language and diagrams, The Outer Reaches of Life provides new clues to the origin and evolution of terrestrial life and offers a glimpse of how life might have established itself elsewhere in the universe.

Review: '... top-class popular scientific writing ' Science and Public Affairs

'This book is a delight. It is written for the general public in that no prior scientific knowledge has been assumed ... Underneath the non-technical language and the humour, we are allowed to see current microbiology displayed and interpreted by one of its most experienced and erudite students.' Chris Thurston, SGM Quarterly

Bibliographic Details

Title: The Outer Reaches of Life
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Publication Date: 1994
Binding: Hardcover
Condition: Good
Edition: 1st.