Screen LibraryThe origins of life and the universe
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | |
|---|---|
| Published: |
Columbia University Press,
|
| Publisher Address: | New York |
| Publication Dates: | c2003. |
| Literature type: | Book |
| Language: | English |
| Subjects: | |
| Carrier Form: | xii, 217 p.: ill. ; 24 cm. |
| ISBN: |
0231126549 (alk. paper) 0231126557 (pbk. : alk. paper) |
| Index Number: | Q10 |
| CLC: | Q10 |
| Call Number: | Q10/L967 |
| Contents: |
Includes bibliographical references (p. [201]-203) and index. Preface -- Introduction -- Meaning of science -- What is life? -- Some origins models before science -- 1. Foundations of the universe -- What is in the universe? ; Physics holds one of the clues to the origins : relativity ; Next clue : quantum physics ; Forces of nature and elementary particles ; Conclusions -- 2. Building a universe -- Cosmology : the big bang model ; Genesis of stars and planets ; Conclusions -- 3. Life as it is today -- Universal blueprint ; Variations in the blueprint ; Metabolism and energy transactions ; Life that depends on simple molecules only ; Cell's envelope and its skeleton ; Conclusions -- 4. Prebiotic Earth : first organic compounds and first informational molecules -- Organic compounds from Earth's putative primitive atmosphere ; Space chemistry and the origins of life ; Ocean floor chemistry ; Proteins and metabolism first : the iron-sulfur world ; Genetic information first : the RNA world ; Conclusions -- 5. Life on its way -- Lessons from bacteriophages ; Quasispecies and hypercycles ; Origin of the genetic code : from the RNA world to proteins ; Protocells and the emergence of the DNA world ; First DNA-containing cells and their evolution ; Paths of fast evolution ; First eukaryotes ; Conclusions -- 6. Has life originated elsewhere and will it end? -- Panspermia ; Life elsewhere in the solar system ; Discontent with origins models ; End of the universe, the end of life ; Conclusions -- Appendix 1. Graphic representation of special relativity -- Appendix 2. More on Heisenberg's uncertainty principle -- Appendix 3. How do we know the age of the universe? -- Appendix 4. Eric Chaisson's view of cosmic evolution -- Appendix 5. Do the universe and life have a purpose and a designer? |