Microcosmos: Four Billion Years of Microbial Evolution / Edition 1

"Microcosmos is nothing less than the saga of the life of the planet. Lynn Margulis and Dorion Sagan have put it all together, literally, in this extraordinary book, which is unlike any treatment of evolution for a general readership that I have encountered before. A fascinating account that we humans should be studying now for clues to our own survival."—From the Foreword by Dr. Lewis Thomas

Microcosmos brings together the remarkable discoveries of microbiology in the later decades of the 20th century and the pioneering research of Dr. Margulis to create a vivid new picture of the world that is crucial to our understanding of the future of the planet. Addressed to general readers, the book provides a beautifully written view of evolution as a process based on interdependency and their interconnectedness of all life on the planet.

ISBN-13: 9780520210646

Media Type: Paperback

Publisher: University of California Press

Publication Date: 05-29-1997

Pages: 304

Product Dimensions: 5.50(w) x 8.25(h) x 0.70(d)

Lynn Margulis (1957-2011) was Distinguished University Professor of Geosciences at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and and a National Medal of Science recipient. Dorion Sagan has written and co-authored books on culture, evolution, and the history and philosophy of science, including Biospheres.

Read an Excerpt

From the Foreword by Dr. Lewis Thomas:

"Microcosmos is nothing less than the saga of the life of the planet. Lynn Margulis and Dorion Sagan have put it all together, literally, in this extraordinary book, which is unlike any treatment of evolution for a general readership that I have encountered before. A fascinating account that we humans should be studying now for clues to our own survival."

Author Biography: Lynn Margulis is Distinguished University Professor at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and a member of the National Academy of Sciences. Dorion Sagan is the author of Biospheres and coauthor, with Lynn Margulis, of What Is Life? (1996).

Table of Contents

Foreword by Lewis Thomas (1986)
Preface (1997)
Acknowledgments
Introduction: The Microcosm
1. Out of the Cosmos
2. The Animation of Matter
3. The Language of Nature
4. Entering the Microcosm
5. Sex and Worldwide Genetic Exchange
6. The Oxygen Holocaust
7. New Cells
8. Living Together
9. The Symbiotic Brain
10. The Riddle of Sex
11. Late Bloomers: Animals and Plants
12. Egocentric Man
13. The Future Supercosm
Notes
Index Show More