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Was ist Leben?
Life is all around us, abundant and diverse. It is truly a marvel. But what does it actually mean to be alive, and how do we decide what is living and what is not?
After a lifetime of studying life, Nobel Prize–winner Sir Paul Nurse, one of the world’s leading scientists, has taken on the challenge of defining it. Written with great personality and charm, his accessible guide takes readers on a journey to discover biology’s five great building blocks, demonstrates how biology has changed and is changing the world, and reveals where research is headed next.
To survive all the challenges that face the human race today — population growth, pandemics, food shortages, climate change — it is vital that we first understand what life is. Never before has the question ‘What is life?’ been answered with such insight, clarity, and humanity, and never at a time more urgent than now.
After a lifetime of studying life, Nobel Prize–winner Sir Paul Nurse, one of the world’s leading scientists, has taken on the challenge of defining it. Written with great personality and charm, his accessible guide takes readers on a journey to discover biology’s five great building blocks, demonstrates how biology has changed and is changing the world, and reveals where research is headed next.
To survive all the challenges that face the human race today — population growth, pandemics, food shortages, climate change — it is vital that we first understand what life is. Never before has the question ‘What is life?’ been answered with such insight, clarity, and humanity, and never at a time more urgent than now.
Unknown Binding
First published September 1, 2020
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About the author
Paul Nurse
15 books44 followersPaul Maxime Nurse is an English geneticist, former President of the Royal Society and Chief Executive and Director of the Francis Crick Institute. He was awarded the 2001 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine along with Leland Hartwell and Tim Hunt for their discoveries of protein molecules that control the division of cells in the cell cycle.
In addition to the Nobel Prize, Nurse has received numerous awards and honours. He was elected an EMBO Member in 1987 and a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1989 and the Founder Member of the Academy of Medical Sciences in 1998. In 1995, he was awarded the Pezcoller-AACR International Award. He received a Royal Medal and became a foreign associate of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. He received the Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research in 1998. Nurse was knighted in 1999. He was awarded the French Legion d'Honneur and the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement in 2002.He was also awarded the Copley Medal in 2005. He was elected a Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences – one of the top honours – in April 2006. He is a member of the Advisory Council for the Campaign for Science and Engineering. Nurse is the 2007 recipient of the Hope Funds Award of Excellence in Basic Research. He is a Freeman of the London Borough of Harrow. In 2013, he was awarded the Albert Einstein World Award of Science by the World Cultural Council. In 2015, he was elected a foreign academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and won the 10th annual Henry G. Friesen International Prize in Health Research, in Ottawa, Canada. He was appointed Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour (CH) in the 2022 New Year Honours for services to science and medicine in the UK and abroad. In November 2022 he was appointed to the Order of Merit.
Nurse has received over 60 Honorary Degrees and Fellowships, including from the University of Bath in 2002, the University of Oxford in 2003, the University of Cambridge in 2003, the University of Kent in 2012, the University of Warwick (Doctor of Science) the University of Worcester (Doctor of Science) in 2013, City, University of London(Doctor of Science) in 2014 and McGill University (Doctor of Science) in 2017. In 2020 he was awarded an honorary degree from the Mendel University Brno in the Czech Republic.
He was also appointed an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (HonFREng) in 2012 and Honorary Fellow of the British Association (HonFBA) in 2013. In July 2016 it was announced that he will be the next Chancellor of the University of Bristol. He is an Honorary Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Scientific Instrument Makers
In addition to the Nobel Prize, Nurse has received numerous awards and honours. He was elected an EMBO Member in 1987 and a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1989 and the Founder Member of the Academy of Medical Sciences in 1998. In 1995, he was awarded the Pezcoller-AACR International Award. He received a Royal Medal and became a foreign associate of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. He received the Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research in 1998. Nurse was knighted in 1999. He was awarded the French Legion d'Honneur and the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement in 2002.He was also awarded the Copley Medal in 2005. He was elected a Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences – one of the top honours – in April 2006. He is a member of the Advisory Council for the Campaign for Science and Engineering. Nurse is the 2007 recipient of the Hope Funds Award of Excellence in Basic Research. He is a Freeman of the London Borough of Harrow. In 2013, he was awarded the Albert Einstein World Award of Science by the World Cultural Council. In 2015, he was elected a foreign academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and won the 10th annual Henry G. Friesen International Prize in Health Research, in Ottawa, Canada. He was appointed Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour (CH) in the 2022 New Year Honours for services to science and medicine in the UK and abroad. In November 2022 he was appointed to the Order of Merit.
Nurse has received over 60 Honorary Degrees and Fellowships, including from the University of Bath in 2002, the University of Oxford in 2003, the University of Cambridge in 2003, the University of Kent in 2012, the University of Warwick (Doctor of Science) the University of Worcester (Doctor of Science) in 2013, City, University of London(Doctor of Science) in 2014 and McGill University (Doctor of Science) in 2017. In 2020 he was awarded an honorary degree from the Mendel University Brno in the Czech Republic.
He was also appointed an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (HonFREng) in 2012 and Honorary Fellow of the British Association (HonFBA) in 2013. In July 2016 it was announced that he will be the next Chancellor of the University of Bristol. He is an Honorary Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Scientific Instrument Makers
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October 22, 2020
A fun collection of a famous Nobel prize-winner life scientist's perspective on what life precisely is....
Life as genes, as info, as chemistry (oh, la-la, that pesky chem!), as evolution... Among other things....
How DNA works (as much as we know - we don't geteverything, just bits). Quite a lot of interesting insights on genetical research.
How cellular information is managed and applied. Or, better yet, how everything cecllular works? Or seems to work?
How one becomes a Nobel prize-winning author?
What questions are still baffling us? What ideas are key ones right now? What can we consider to be the cornerstone of our current understanding of how life developed? And a lot of other things ....
In a nutshell, a great read!
Life as genes, as info, as chemistry (oh, la-la, that pesky chem!), as evolution... Among other things....
How DNA works (as much as we know - we don't geteverything, just bits). Quite a lot of interesting insights on genetical research.
How cellular information is managed and applied. Or, better yet, how everything cecllular works? Or seems to work?
How one becomes a Nobel prize-winning author?
What questions are still baffling us? What ideas are key ones right now? What can we consider to be the cornerstone of our current understanding of how life developed? And a lot of other things ....
In a nutshell, a great read!
September 3, 2024
این کتاب شگفتانگیز، دوستداشتنی ولی نه الزاماً همیشه آسان رو با ترجمهی خوبِ کاوه فیضاللهی خوندم که ظاهراً در گودریدز ثبت نشده.
بریدههایی از کتاب
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از مقدمهی مترجم:
"... به گفتهی لین مارگولیس، زیستشناس تکاملی آمریکایی،《گایا سلیطهای است سرسخت. مردم خیال میکنند زمین در حال مرگ است و آنها باید نجاتش دهند. مسخره است. اگر زمین را از تمام گیاهان گلدار خالی کنید، انسان خواهد مرد، تمام. اما زمین در بیشتر طول تاریخ خود بدون گیاهان گلدار سر کرده است. تردیدی نیست که گایا میتواند از عهدهی جبران گازهای گلخانهای مازادی که وارد اتمسفر میکنیم برآید، اما محیطی که به جا میماند برای هیچ انسانی دلپذیر نخواهد بود》."
"... آنچه بیش از هر چیز توجه او را به خود جلب کرد یکی از ویژگیهای مهم حیات است: چگونه در جهانی که بر اساس قانون دوم ترمودینامیک پیوسته رو به بینظمی و آشفتگی میرود، موجودات زنده چنین نظم و یکنواختی حیرتانگیزی را نسل از پی نسل حفظ کردهاند؟ شرودینگر بهحق این را پرسشی بزرگ میدانست و باور داشت که کلید حل این معما شناخت وراثت است، یعنی اینکه ژن چیست و چگونه به همان شکلی که هست از نسلی به نسل دیگر منتقل میشود."
"... His main focus was on one important aspect of life: how living things maintained such impressive order and uniformity for generation after generation in a universe that is, according to the Second Law of Thermodynamics, constantly moving towards a state of disorder and chaos. Schrödinger quite rightly saw this as a big question, and he believed that understanding inheritance – that is what genes are and how they are passed on faithfully between generations – was key."
"یکی از بخشهای سلول، چه بیهسته باشد چه هستهدار، که از اهمیتی حیاتی برخوردار است، غشای خارجی آن است. اگرچه ضخامت این غشای خارجی دو مولکول بیشتر نیست، اما《دیوار》یا سدی انعطافپذیر میسازد که هر سلول را از محیط پیرامونش جدا میکند و با این کار به《درون》و《بیرون》معنا میبخشد. وجود این سد، هم به لحاظ فلسفی و هم در عمل، حیاتی و تعیینکننده است. در اصل، توضیح میدهد که چرا اشکال حیاتی میتوانند در برابر گرایش فراگیر جهان به بینظمی و آشوب با موفقیت مقاومت کند. سلول در درون غشای جداسازش میتواند نظم لازم برای عملکرد خود را برقرار و همزمان در محیط موضعی پیرامونش در اطراف سلول بینظمی ایجاد کند. به این ترتیب است که حیات قانون دوم ترمودینامیک را نقض نمیکند."
"A critically important part of a cell, be it a prokaryote or a eukaryote, is its outer membrane. Although just two molecules thick, this outer membrane forms a flexible ‘wall’ or barrier that separates each cell from its environment, defining what is ‘in’ and what is ‘out’. Both philosophically and practically, this barrier is crucial. Ultimately, it explains why life forms can successfully resist the overall drive of the universe towards disorder and chaos. Within their insulating membranes, cells can establish and cultivate the order they need to operate, whilst at the same time creating disorder in their local surroundings outside the cell. That way life does not contravene the Second Law of Thermodynamics."
"فرایند تقسیم سلول در پیوند دادن دو ایدهی《سلول》و《ژن》نقشی حیاتی دارد. هر بار که سلولی تقسیم میشود، تمام ژنهای تمام کروموزومهای درون آن سلول باید ابتدا رونویسی و سپس به تساوی میان دو سلول دختری تقسیم شوند. بنابراین، میان رونویسی ژنها و تقسیم سلول باید هماهنگی نزدیکی وجود داشته باشد. اگر این هماهنگی وجود نمیداشت، سلولهایی پدید میآمد که به دلیل نداشتن مجموعهی کاملی از دستورعملهای ژنتیکی لازم میمردند یا بد کار میکردند. این هماهنگی از طریق چرخهی سلولی حاصل میشود، فرایندی که تولد هر سلول جدید را ساماندهی میکند."
"The process of cell division has a vital role in linking together the ideas of ‘The Cell’ and ‘The Gene’. Every time a cell divides, all the genes on all the chromosomes inside that cell must first be copied and then divided equally between the two daughter cells. The copying of the genes and the division of the cell must, therefore, be closely co-ordinated. If they were not, we would end up with cells that would die or malfunction because they lacked the full set of genetic instructions they need. This co-ordination is achieved by the cell cycle, the process that orchestrates the birth of every new cell."
"یکی از پیامدهای مهم تکامل به وسیلهی انتخاب طبیعی آن است که کل حیات در نتیجهی نسب مشترک به هم پیوسته است. به عبارت دیگر، چنانچه در درخت حیات مسیر عکس پیموده شود، ترکههای انتهایی مدام به شاخههای بزرگتر و سرانجام به یک تنهی واحد میرسند. بنابراین، نتیجهای که میتوان گرفت این است که ما انسانها با تمام اشکال حیاتی دیگر سیارهی زمین خویشاوندیم. خویشاوندیمان با بعضی از آنها، همچون انسانریختها، نزدیک است زیرا روی ترکههای مجاور در حاشیهی درخت قرار داریم، و با بعضی دیگر، همچون مخمری که من روی آن کار میکنم، این خویشاوندی بسیار دورتر است، زیرا در زمانی بسیار دورتر، و نزدیک به تنهی اصلی درخت حیات، به هم《میپیوندیم》."
"One profound consequence of evolution by natural selection is that all life is connected by descent. This means that as the tree of life is traced backwards, the branches increasingly converge into bigger branches and eventually into a single trunk. The conclusion therefore, is that we humans are related to every other life form on the planet. To some, like the apes, we are closely related, because we are on adjacent twigs at the edge of the tree, and to others, like my yeast, the relationship is much more distant, because we only become ‘joined’ much further back in time, closer to the main trunk of the tree of life."
"اکنون میدانیم که در سلولهای تمام جانداران، صدها، یا حتی هزاران، واکنش شیمیایی همزمان انجام میشوند. این واکنشها مولکولهای حیاتی را میسازند که اجزاء و ساختارهای سلولها را تشکیل میدهند. از سوی دیگر، برای بازیافت اجزای سلولی و آزاد کردن انرژی، مولکولها را تجزیه میکنند. انبوه واکنشهای شیمیایی گوناگونی را که در جانداران زنده روی میدهد روی هم سوختوساز مینامند. سوختوساز مبنای تمام کارهایی است که جانداران انجام میدهند: نگهداشت، رشد، سازماندهی و تولید مثل، و تأمین انرژی مورد نیاز برای انجام این فرآیندها. سوختوساز شیمی حیات است."
"We now know that within the cells of all living organisms many hundreds, even thousands, of chemical reactions are being carried out simultaneously. These reactions build up the molecules of life, which form the components and structures of cells. They also break molecules down, to recycle cellular components and release energy. Together, the vast array of chemical reactions occurring in living organisms is called metabolism. It is the basis of everything living things do: maintenance, growth, organization and reproduction, and the source of all the energy needed to fuel these processes. Metabolism is the chemistry of life."
"حیات همچون اطلاعات
... بعضی توالیهای ژن در طول مدت متمادی و طی رشتهای ناگسسته از تقسیمهای سلولی بیپایان به همان شکلی که از ابتدا بودهاند باقی ماندهاند. بخشهای بزرگی از رمز ژنتیکی لازم برای ساخت انواع گوناگون اجزای سلول، مثل ریبوزوم، در تمام جانداران، خواه باکتری، خواه باستانی، قارچ، گیاه، یا جانور، مشخصاً یکسان است. معنایش این است که اطلاعات اصلی موجود در آن ژنها احتمالاً به مدت سه میلیارد سال بدون تغییر حفظ شده است."
"... سلولها میتوانند فقط از بخشهای خاصی از مجموعهی کامل اطلاعات ژنتیکی که در هر لحظه عملاً به آن نیاز دارند استفاده کنند. تکوین رویان بیشکل به موجودی انسانی که تمام اندامهایش کاملاً شکل گرفتهاند، اهمیت سرنوشتساز توانایی انجام این کار را به تصویر میکشد. سلولهای کلیه، پوست، و مغز شما همگی حاوی مجموعهی کامل و یکسانی از تمام ۲۲,۰۰۰ ژن شما هستند، اما تنظیم ژن به معنای آن است که در سلولهای رویانیِ کلیه ژنهای لازم برای ساخت کلیه《روشن》و آنهایی که اختصاصاً در تولید پوست یا مغز به کار میآیند《خاموش》بودند، و در سلولهای پوست و مغز عکس این روی داده است. در نهایت، علت تفاوت سلولها در هر کدام از اندامهای بدن شما این است که از ترکیبهای بسیار متفاوتی از ژنها استفاده میکنند. در واقع، گمان میرود که تمام انواع مختلف سلولهای بدن شما برای انجام عملکردهای پایهی لازم برای بقای خود فقط از حدود چهار هزار، یا نزدیک به یکپنجم از کل مجموع ژنهای شما، استفاده میکنند..."
"... What this provides is a way for cells to use only the specific portions of the total set of genetic information that they actually need at any given moment in time. The critical importance of being able to do this is illustrated by the development of a formless embryo into a fully formed human being. The cells in your kidney, skin and brain all contain the same total set of 22,000 genes, but gene regulation means the genes needed to make a kidney were turned ‘on’ in embryonic kidney cells, and those that function specifically to create skin or brain were turned ‘off’, and vice versa. Ultimately, the cells in each of your organs are different because they use very different combinations of genes. In fact, only about 4,000, or a fifth, of your total set of genes are thought to be turned on and used by all the different types of cells in your body to support the basic operations needed for their survival."
"امروزه، بیشتر زیستشناسان کلمهی وراژنتیک (epigenetics) را بر مبنای ایدههای ودینگتن(Waddington) به کار میبرند. منظور از این اصطلاح مجموعهای از واکنشهای شیمیایی است که سلولها به کمک آنها ژنها را به شیوههایی نسبتاً ماندگار روشن یا خاموش میکنند. این فرایندهای وراژنتیکی توالی DNA خودِ ژنها را تغییر نمیدهند، بلکه در عوض، معمولاً با افزودن《برچسب》های شیمیایی به DNA یا به پروتئینهای متصل به آن DNA، کارشان را انجام میدهند. به این ترتیب، الگوهایی از فعالیت ژن پدید میآید که میتواند تا پایان عمر سلول، و گاه حتی از طریق تقسیمهای سلولی بیشتر، مدتی طولانیتر دوام بیاورد. اگرچه خیلی رایج نیست، اما گاه این تغییرات میتوانند از نسلی به نسل بعد نیز دوام بیاورند، و بالقوه اطلاعات مربوط به سرگذشت زندگی و تجربههای یک فرد جاندار را بهشکل شیمیایی مستقیماً از والدین به فرزندانشان و همینطور به نسلهای بعد منتقل کنند. بعضی گفتهاند که دوام فرانسلی این الگوهای بیان ژن، این ایده که وراثت صرفاً بر پایهی توالی DNAی رمزگذاریشده در ژنها است را با چالشی جدی روبهرو میکند..."
"Today, the way most biologists use the word epigenetics is based on Waddington’s ideas. It describes the set of chemical reactions that cells use to turn genes either on or off in fairly enduring ways. These epigenetic processes do not change the DNA sequence of the genes themselves; instead, they often work by adding chemical ‘tags’ to the DNA, or to proteins that bind to that DNA. This creates patterns of gene activity that can persist through the lifespan of a cell and sometimes even longer, through many cell divisions. Occasionally, although far less commonly, they can persist from one generation to the next, potentially carrying information about an individual organism’s life history and experience directly, in chemical form, from parents to their offspring and on to subsequent generations. Some have argued that the cross-generational persistence of these patterns of gene expression poses a major challenge to the idea that inheritance is based only on the DNA sequences encoded in genes..."
"... همانطور که دیدهایم، نوآوریهای حیات پیامد جهشهای ژنتیکی و تغییرات تصادفی هستند. سپس این تغییرات بهوسیلهی انتخاب طبیعی غربال میشوند، و آنهایی که درست کار میکنند در جاندارانی که باقی میمانند و موفقترند جذب میشوند. معنایش این است که سیستمهای موجود با انباشت تدریجی《افزونهها》پیوسته تغییر و پیشرفت میکنند. از بعضی لحاظ مانند تلفن و کامپیوتر شما است که لازم است مدام بهروزرسانیهای نرمافزاری جدید را دانلود و نصب کنند. به این ترتيب، این وسیلهها کارکردهای جدیدی پیدا میکنند، اما نرمافزاری که آنها را هدایت میکند نیز پیوسته پیچیدهتر میشود. در مورد حیات نیز، نتیجهی اینهمه《بهروزرسانیِ》ژنتیکی آن است که کل سیستم سلول معمولاً با گذشت زمان بهتدریج پیچیدهتر میشود. این ممکن است به افزونگی بینجامد: کارکردهای بعضی اجزا با یکدیگر همپوشانی پیدا خواهد کرد؛ بعضی اعضا بقایای بخشهایی خواهند بود که بخشهای جدید جانشین آنها شدهاند و وظیفهی آنها رابه عهده گرفتهاند؛ و بعضی دیگر برای کارکرد عادی کاملاً غیرضروری خواهند شد اما در صورتی که جزء اصلی از کار بيفتد ممکن است بتوانند جای خالی آن را پر کنند."
"... As we have seen, life’s innovations arise as a consequence of random genetic mutations and variations. These are then sifted by natural selection, with those that work well being assimilated into the surviving, more successful, living organisms. This means that existing systems are changed progressively, by the gradual accretion of ‘add-ons’. This is in some ways analogous to your phone or computer, which frequently require the downloading and installation of new software updates. The devices gain new functions, but the software that drives them also becomes steadily more complicated. Similarly for life, all of these genetic ‘updates’ mean that the whole system of the cell will gradually tend to become more complex with time. This can lead to redundancy: some components will have overlapping functions; others will be the relics of superseded parts; and some will be wholly unnecessary for normal functioning but might be able to compensate if the primary component breaks."
"... به گفتهی سیدنی برنر،《ریاضی هنر کمال است. فیزیک هنر بهینگی. اما زیستشناسی، به دلیل تکامل، هنر بسندگی است》. آن اشکال حیاتی که از انتخاب طبیعی جان بهدر میبرند به این دلیل باقی میمانند که کار میکنند، نه لزوماً به این دلیل که کارها را با بیشترین کارایی یا سرراستترین شیوهی ممکن انجام میدهند. اینهمه پیچیدگی و افزونگی، تحلیل شبکههای پیامرسانی و جریان اطلاعات در سیستمهای زیستی را به چالشی بزرگ تبدیل میکند. در بسیاری موارد تیغ اوکام، یعنی گشتن به دنبال سادهترین تبیین کافی برای پدیدهها، اصلاً جواب نمیدهد. این میتواند برای فیزیکدانانی که رو به زیستشناسی میآورند آزاردهنده باشد. فیزیکدانان معمولاً جذب راهحلهای ساده و زیبا میشوند، و ممکن است با واقعیت شلخته و دور از کمال سیستمهای زنده راحت نباشند."
"... As Sydney Brenner observed, ‘Mathematics is the art of the perfect. Physics is the art of the optimal. Biology, because of evolution, is the art of the satisfactory.’ The life forms that survive natural selection persist because they work, not necessarily because they do things in the most efficient or straightforward way possible. All this complexity and redundancy makes the analysis of biological signalling networks and information flow challenging. Very often Occam’s razor – looking for the simplest adequate explanation to explain a phenomenon – simply does not apply. This can disturb some physicists who turn their attentions to biology. Physicists tend to be attracted to elegant, simple solutions, and can be less comfortable with the messy and less-than-perfect reality of living systems."
"به هر سطحی از سازمان زیستی که بنگریم، تلاش برای شناخت عمیقتر به توانایی ما در درک نحوهی مدیریت اطلاعات در آنها وابسته خواهد بود. این راهی است برای حرکت از توصیف پیچیدگی به فهم پیچیدگی. هنگامی که از عهدهی این کار برآییم، میتوانیم کمکم ببینیم که چگونه پروانههای سبکبال، باکتریهای قندخوار، رویانِ درحالتکوین، و تمام اشکال دیگرِ حیات آن پرشِ سرنوشتساز را انجام میدهند و اطلاعات را بهشکل دانشی معنادار درمیآورند که میتوانند از آن برای رسیدن به اهدافشان، که بقا، رشد، تولید مثل، و تکامل است، استفاده کنند."
"Whichever level of biological organization we look at, attempts to deepen our comprehension will hinge on our ability to understand how information is managed within them. It is a way to move from describing complexity to understanding complexity. Once we can do this, we can start to see how flitting butterflies, sugar-consuming bacteria, developing embryos and all other life forms make the crucial leap of transforming information into meaningful knowledge that they can use to fulfil their purpose of surviving, growing, reproducing and evolving."
"هدف دیگری که به موازات این اشکال حیاتی مهندسیشده میتوان برای دستیابی به آن تلاش کرد افزایش مجموع مساحت مناطقی از این سیاره است که پوشیده از جانداران فتوسنتزکنندهی طبیعی باشند. این پیشنهاد، برخلاف آنچه ممکن است در نگاه نخست به نظر رسد، چندان سرراست و آسان نیست. برای آنکه تأثیر معناداری داشته باشد باید در مقیاسی بزرگ اجرا شود، و گذشته از آن باید مسألهی ذخیرهی بلندمدت کربن در هنگام مرگ یا برداشت این گیاهان را نیز در نظر داشت. این کار را میتوان با جنگلکاری، کشت جلبک و علف دریایی در اقیانوسها، و کمک به تشکیل پودهزارها انجام داد. اما هر مداخلهای که بهقدر کافی سریع و مؤثر باشد از حد شناخت ما از روابط بومشناختی فراتر خواهد رفت. نمونهی بارزش افت تعداد حشرات است که هماكنون در بسیاری از نقاط جهان در جریان اما علتش عمدتاً ناشناخته است. آیندهی ما وابسته به گونههای حشرات است، زیرا آنها هستند که تعداد زیادی از محصولات غذایی ما را گردهافشانی میکنند، خاک میسازند، و بسیاری از کارهای دیگر را انجام میدهند."
"In parallel with these engineered life forms, another goal would be to increase the total area of the planet’s surface that is covered by naturally occurring photosynthesizing organisms. This is not such a straightforward proposal as it might first seem. To make a meaningful impact it needs to be implemented at a massive scale, and also there needs to be consideration of the issue of long-term carbon storage once the plants have died or been harvested. It could involve more forests, cultivating algae and seaweed in the oceans, and encouraging the formation of peat bogs. But making any intervention work effectively and quickly enough will stretch our understanding of ecological dynamics to its limits. The ongoing, widespread, and largely unexplained decline in insect numbers is a case in point. Our future is tied to insect species, since they pollinate many of our food crops, build soils, and more besides."
"از این همانندیهای عمیق در مبانی شیمیایی حیات نتیجهای چشمگیر حاصل میشود: حیاتی که امروزه روی زمین جریان دارد فقط یک بار آغاز شده است. چنانچه اشکال حیاتی مختلف چندین باز مستقل از هم پدید آمده و باقی مانده بودند، بینهایت بعید میبود که تمام زادگان آنها عملکردهای پایهی خود را اینطور یکسان انجام دهند."
"These deep commonalities in life’s chemical foundations point to a remarkable conclusion: life as it is on Earth today started just once. If different life forms had emerged several times independently, and had survived, it is extremely unlikely that their descendants would all conduct their basic operations in such a similar way."
"... تصور آنچه پس از تشکیل نخستین سلولها رخ داد آسانتر است. نخست، میکروبهای تکسلولی بهتدریج در سرتاسر جهان گسترش یافتند و در دریا، خشکی و هوا ساکن شدند. سپس، حدود ۲ میلیارد سال بعد، هستهداران بزرگتر و پیچیدهتر، اما تا مدتهای طولانی همچنان تکسلولی، به آنها اضافه شدند. جانداران هستهدار پرسلولی حقیقی خیلی دیرتر، و پس از آنکه حدود یکمیلیارد سال دیگر نیز گذشت، پدید آمدند. به عبارت دیگر، حیات پرسلولی حدود ۶۰۰ میلیون سال است که روی زمین بوده، یعنی فقط در یکششم از کل تاریخ حيات. اما در همین مدت تمام اشکال حیاتی بزرگتر و آشکارتری که در اطرافمان میبینیم، از جمله جنگلهای سربهآسمانساییده، کلنیهای پرجمعیت مورچهها، شبکههای عظیم قارچهای زیرزمینی، گلههای پستانداران در ساوانای آفریقا، و در این اواخر، انسانهای امروزی، از آنها به وجود آمدهاند."
"Once the first cells had successfully formed, however, it is easier to imagine what happened next. First, the single-celled microbes would have spread through the world, gradually, colonizing sea, land and air. Then, 2 billion years or so later, the larger and more complex – but for a very long time still single-celled – eukaryotes joined them. True multicellular eukaryotic organisms came much later, after another billion years or so had elapsed. That means that multicellular life has been here for about 600 million years, just one sixth of life’s total history. But in that time they’ve given rise to all the largest and most visible living forms that surround us, including towering forests, swarming colonies of ants, huge networks of underground fungi, herds of mammals on the African savannah, and very much more recently, modern humans."
بریدههایی از کتاب
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از مقدمهی مترجم:
"... به گفتهی لین مارگولیس، زیستشناس تکاملی آمریکایی،《گایا سلیطهای است سرسخت. مردم خیال میکنند زمین در حال مرگ است و آنها باید نجاتش دهند. مسخره است. اگر زمین را از تمام گیاهان گلدار خالی کنید، انسان خواهد مرد، تمام. اما زمین در بیشتر طول تاریخ خود بدون گیاهان گلدار سر کرده است. تردیدی نیست که گایا میتواند از عهدهی جبران گازهای گلخانهای مازادی که وارد اتمسفر میکنیم برآید، اما محیطی که به جا میماند برای هیچ انسانی دلپذیر نخواهد بود》."
"... آنچه بیش از هر چیز توجه او را به خود جلب کرد یکی از ویژگیهای مهم حیات است: چگونه در جهانی که بر اساس قانون دوم ترمودینامیک پیوسته رو به بینظمی و آشفتگی میرود، موجودات زنده چنین نظم و یکنواختی حیرتانگیزی را نسل از پی نسل حفظ کردهاند؟ شرودینگر بهحق این را پرسشی بزرگ میدانست و باور داشت که کلید حل این معما شناخت وراثت است، یعنی اینکه ژن چیست و چگونه به همان شکلی که هست از نسلی به نسل دیگر منتقل میشود."
"... His main focus was on one important aspect of life: how living things maintained such impressive order and uniformity for generation after generation in a universe that is, according to the Second Law of Thermodynamics, constantly moving towards a state of disorder and chaos. Schrödinger quite rightly saw this as a big question, and he believed that understanding inheritance – that is what genes are and how they are passed on faithfully between generations – was key."
"یکی از بخشهای سلول، چه بیهسته باشد چه هستهدار، که از اهمیتی حیاتی برخوردار است، غشای خارجی آن است. اگرچه ضخامت این غشای خارجی دو مولکول بیشتر نیست، اما《دیوار》یا سدی انعطافپذیر میسازد که هر سلول را از محیط پیرامونش جدا میکند و با این کار به《درون》و《بیرون》معنا میبخشد. وجود این سد، هم به لحاظ فلسفی و هم در عمل، حیاتی و تعیینکننده است. در اصل، توضیح میدهد که چرا اشکال حیاتی میتوانند در برابر گرایش فراگیر جهان به بینظمی و آشوب با موفقیت مقاومت کند. سلول در درون غشای جداسازش میتواند نظم لازم برای عملکرد خود را برقرار و همزمان در محیط موضعی پیرامونش در اطراف سلول بینظمی ایجاد کند. به این ترتیب است که حیات قانون دوم ترمودینامیک را نقض نمیکند."
"A critically important part of a cell, be it a prokaryote or a eukaryote, is its outer membrane. Although just two molecules thick, this outer membrane forms a flexible ‘wall’ or barrier that separates each cell from its environment, defining what is ‘in’ and what is ‘out’. Both philosophically and practically, this barrier is crucial. Ultimately, it explains why life forms can successfully resist the overall drive of the universe towards disorder and chaos. Within their insulating membranes, cells can establish and cultivate the order they need to operate, whilst at the same time creating disorder in their local surroundings outside the cell. That way life does not contravene the Second Law of Thermodynamics."
"فرایند تقسیم سلول در پیوند دادن دو ایدهی《سلول》و《ژن》نقشی حیاتی دارد. هر بار که سلولی تقسیم میشود، تمام ژنهای تمام کروموزومهای درون آن سلول باید ابتدا رونویسی و سپس به تساوی میان دو سلول دختری تقسیم شوند. بنابراین، میان رونویسی ژنها و تقسیم سلول باید هماهنگی نزدیکی وجود داشته باشد. اگر این هماهنگی وجود نمیداشت، سلولهایی پدید میآمد که به دلیل نداشتن مجموعهی کاملی از دستورعملهای ژنتیکی لازم میمردند یا بد کار میکردند. این هماهنگی از طریق چرخهی سلولی حاصل میشود، فرایندی که تولد هر سلول جدید را ساماندهی میکند."
"The process of cell division has a vital role in linking together the ideas of ‘The Cell’ and ‘The Gene’. Every time a cell divides, all the genes on all the chromosomes inside that cell must first be copied and then divided equally between the two daughter cells. The copying of the genes and the division of the cell must, therefore, be closely co-ordinated. If they were not, we would end up with cells that would die or malfunction because they lacked the full set of genetic instructions they need. This co-ordination is achieved by the cell cycle, the process that orchestrates the birth of every new cell."
"یکی از پیامدهای مهم تکامل به وسیلهی انتخاب طبیعی آن است که کل حیات در نتیجهی نسب مشترک به هم پیوسته است. به عبارت دیگر، چنانچه در درخت حیات مسیر عکس پیموده شود، ترکههای انتهایی مدام به شاخههای بزرگتر و سرانجام به یک تنهی واحد میرسند. بنابراین، نتیجهای که میتوان گرفت این است که ما انسانها با تمام اشکال حیاتی دیگر سیارهی زمین خویشاوندیم. خویشاوندیمان با بعضی از آنها، همچون انسانریختها، نزدیک است زیرا روی ترکههای مجاور در حاشیهی درخت قرار داریم، و با بعضی دیگر، همچون مخمری که من روی آن کار میکنم، این خویشاوندی بسیار دورتر است، زیرا در زمانی بسیار دورتر، و نزدیک به تنهی اصلی درخت حیات، به هم《میپیوندیم》."
"One profound consequence of evolution by natural selection is that all life is connected by descent. This means that as the tree of life is traced backwards, the branches increasingly converge into bigger branches and eventually into a single trunk. The conclusion therefore, is that we humans are related to every other life form on the planet. To some, like the apes, we are closely related, because we are on adjacent twigs at the edge of the tree, and to others, like my yeast, the relationship is much more distant, because we only become ‘joined’ much further back in time, closer to the main trunk of the tree of life."
"اکنون میدانیم که در سلولهای تمام جانداران، صدها، یا حتی هزاران، واکنش شیمیایی همزمان انجام میشوند. این واکنشها مولکولهای حیاتی را میسازند که اجزاء و ساختارهای سلولها را تشکیل میدهند. از سوی دیگر، برای بازیافت اجزای سلولی و آزاد کردن انرژی، مولکولها را تجزیه میکنند. انبوه واکنشهای شیمیایی گوناگونی را که در جانداران زنده روی میدهد روی هم سوختوساز مینامند. سوختوساز مبنای تمام کارهایی است که جانداران انجام میدهند: نگهداشت، رشد، سازماندهی و تولید مثل، و تأمین انرژی مورد نیاز برای انجام این فرآیندها. سوختوساز شیمی حیات است."
"We now know that within the cells of all living organisms many hundreds, even thousands, of chemical reactions are being carried out simultaneously. These reactions build up the molecules of life, which form the components and structures of cells. They also break molecules down, to recycle cellular components and release energy. Together, the vast array of chemical reactions occurring in living organisms is called metabolism. It is the basis of everything living things do: maintenance, growth, organization and reproduction, and the source of all the energy needed to fuel these processes. Metabolism is the chemistry of life."
"حیات همچون اطلاعات
... بعضی توالیهای ژن در طول مدت متمادی و طی رشتهای ناگسسته از تقسیمهای سلولی بیپایان به همان شکلی که از ابتدا بودهاند باقی ماندهاند. بخشهای بزرگی از رمز ژنتیکی لازم برای ساخت انواع گوناگون اجزای سلول، مثل ریبوزوم، در تمام جانداران، خواه باکتری، خواه باستانی، قارچ، گیاه، یا جانور، مشخصاً یکسان است. معنایش این است که اطلاعات اصلی موجود در آن ژنها احتمالاً به مدت سه میلیارد سال بدون تغییر حفظ شده است."
"... سلولها میتوانند فقط از بخشهای خاصی از مجموعهی کامل اطلاعات ژنتیکی که در هر لحظه عملاً به آن نیاز دارند استفاده کنند. تکوین رویان بیشکل به موجودی انسانی که تمام اندامهایش کاملاً شکل گرفتهاند، اهمیت سرنوشتساز توانایی انجام این کار را به تصویر میکشد. سلولهای کلیه، پوست، و مغز شما همگی حاوی مجموعهی کامل و یکسانی از تمام ۲۲,۰۰۰ ژن شما هستند، اما تنظیم ژن به معنای آن است که در سلولهای رویانیِ کلیه ژنهای لازم برای ساخت کلیه《روشن》و آنهایی که اختصاصاً در تولید پوست یا مغز به کار میآیند《خاموش》بودند، و در سلولهای پوست و مغز عکس این روی داده است. در نهایت، علت تفاوت سلولها در هر کدام از اندامهای بدن شما این است که از ترکیبهای بسیار متفاوتی از ژنها استفاده میکنند. در واقع، گمان میرود که تمام انواع مختلف سلولهای بدن شما برای انجام عملکردهای پایهی لازم برای بقای خود فقط از حدود چهار هزار، یا نزدیک به یکپنجم از کل مجموع ژنهای شما، استفاده میکنند..."
"... What this provides is a way for cells to use only the specific portions of the total set of genetic information that they actually need at any given moment in time. The critical importance of being able to do this is illustrated by the development of a formless embryo into a fully formed human being. The cells in your kidney, skin and brain all contain the same total set of 22,000 genes, but gene regulation means the genes needed to make a kidney were turned ‘on’ in embryonic kidney cells, and those that function specifically to create skin or brain were turned ‘off’, and vice versa. Ultimately, the cells in each of your organs are different because they use very different combinations of genes. In fact, only about 4,000, or a fifth, of your total set of genes are thought to be turned on and used by all the different types of cells in your body to support the basic operations needed for their survival."
"امروزه، بیشتر زیستشناسان کلمهی وراژنتیک (epigenetics) را بر مبنای ایدههای ودینگتن(Waddington) به کار میبرند. منظور از این اصطلاح مجموعهای از واکنشهای شیمیایی است که سلولها به کمک آنها ژنها را به شیوههایی نسبتاً ماندگار روشن یا خاموش میکنند. این فرایندهای وراژنتیکی توالی DNA خودِ ژنها را تغییر نمیدهند، بلکه در عوض، معمولاً با افزودن《برچسب》های شیمیایی به DNA یا به پروتئینهای متصل به آن DNA، کارشان را انجام میدهند. به این ترتیب، الگوهایی از فعالیت ژن پدید میآید که میتواند تا پایان عمر سلول، و گاه حتی از طریق تقسیمهای سلولی بیشتر، مدتی طولانیتر دوام بیاورد. اگرچه خیلی رایج نیست، اما گاه این تغییرات میتوانند از نسلی به نسل بعد نیز دوام بیاورند، و بالقوه اطلاعات مربوط به سرگذشت زندگی و تجربههای یک فرد جاندار را بهشکل شیمیایی مستقیماً از والدین به فرزندانشان و همینطور به نسلهای بعد منتقل کنند. بعضی گفتهاند که دوام فرانسلی این الگوهای بیان ژن، این ایده که وراثت صرفاً بر پایهی توالی DNAی رمزگذاریشده در ژنها است را با چالشی جدی روبهرو میکند..."
"Today, the way most biologists use the word epigenetics is based on Waddington’s ideas. It describes the set of chemical reactions that cells use to turn genes either on or off in fairly enduring ways. These epigenetic processes do not change the DNA sequence of the genes themselves; instead, they often work by adding chemical ‘tags’ to the DNA, or to proteins that bind to that DNA. This creates patterns of gene activity that can persist through the lifespan of a cell and sometimes even longer, through many cell divisions. Occasionally, although far less commonly, they can persist from one generation to the next, potentially carrying information about an individual organism’s life history and experience directly, in chemical form, from parents to their offspring and on to subsequent generations. Some have argued that the cross-generational persistence of these patterns of gene expression poses a major challenge to the idea that inheritance is based only on the DNA sequences encoded in genes..."
"... همانطور که دیدهایم، نوآوریهای حیات پیامد جهشهای ژنتیکی و تغییرات تصادفی هستند. سپس این تغییرات بهوسیلهی انتخاب طبیعی غربال میشوند، و آنهایی که درست کار میکنند در جاندارانی که باقی میمانند و موفقترند جذب میشوند. معنایش این است که سیستمهای موجود با انباشت تدریجی《افزونهها》پیوسته تغییر و پیشرفت میکنند. از بعضی لحاظ مانند تلفن و کامپیوتر شما است که لازم است مدام بهروزرسانیهای نرمافزاری جدید را دانلود و نصب کنند. به این ترتيب، این وسیلهها کارکردهای جدیدی پیدا میکنند، اما نرمافزاری که آنها را هدایت میکند نیز پیوسته پیچیدهتر میشود. در مورد حیات نیز، نتیجهی اینهمه《بهروزرسانیِ》ژنتیکی آن است که کل سیستم سلول معمولاً با گذشت زمان بهتدریج پیچیدهتر میشود. این ممکن است به افزونگی بینجامد: کارکردهای بعضی اجزا با یکدیگر همپوشانی پیدا خواهد کرد؛ بعضی اعضا بقایای بخشهایی خواهند بود که بخشهای جدید جانشین آنها شدهاند و وظیفهی آنها رابه عهده گرفتهاند؛ و بعضی دیگر برای کارکرد عادی کاملاً غیرضروری خواهند شد اما در صورتی که جزء اصلی از کار بيفتد ممکن است بتوانند جای خالی آن را پر کنند."
"... As we have seen, life’s innovations arise as a consequence of random genetic mutations and variations. These are then sifted by natural selection, with those that work well being assimilated into the surviving, more successful, living organisms. This means that existing systems are changed progressively, by the gradual accretion of ‘add-ons’. This is in some ways analogous to your phone or computer, which frequently require the downloading and installation of new software updates. The devices gain new functions, but the software that drives them also becomes steadily more complicated. Similarly for life, all of these genetic ‘updates’ mean that the whole system of the cell will gradually tend to become more complex with time. This can lead to redundancy: some components will have overlapping functions; others will be the relics of superseded parts; and some will be wholly unnecessary for normal functioning but might be able to compensate if the primary component breaks."
"... به گفتهی سیدنی برنر،《ریاضی هنر کمال است. فیزیک هنر بهینگی. اما زیستشناسی، به دلیل تکامل، هنر بسندگی است》. آن اشکال حیاتی که از انتخاب طبیعی جان بهدر میبرند به این دلیل باقی میمانند که کار میکنند، نه لزوماً به این دلیل که کارها را با بیشترین کارایی یا سرراستترین شیوهی ممکن انجام میدهند. اینهمه پیچیدگی و افزونگی، تحلیل شبکههای پیامرسانی و جریان اطلاعات در سیستمهای زیستی را به چالشی بزرگ تبدیل میکند. در بسیاری موارد تیغ اوکام، یعنی گشتن به دنبال سادهترین تبیین کافی برای پدیدهها، اصلاً جواب نمیدهد. این میتواند برای فیزیکدانانی که رو به زیستشناسی میآورند آزاردهنده باشد. فیزیکدانان معمولاً جذب راهحلهای ساده و زیبا میشوند، و ممکن است با واقعیت شلخته و دور از کمال سیستمهای زنده راحت نباشند."
"... As Sydney Brenner observed, ‘Mathematics is the art of the perfect. Physics is the art of the optimal. Biology, because of evolution, is the art of the satisfactory.’ The life forms that survive natural selection persist because they work, not necessarily because they do things in the most efficient or straightforward way possible. All this complexity and redundancy makes the analysis of biological signalling networks and information flow challenging. Very often Occam’s razor – looking for the simplest adequate explanation to explain a phenomenon – simply does not apply. This can disturb some physicists who turn their attentions to biology. Physicists tend to be attracted to elegant, simple solutions, and can be less comfortable with the messy and less-than-perfect reality of living systems."
"به هر سطحی از سازمان زیستی که بنگریم، تلاش برای شناخت عمیقتر به توانایی ما در درک نحوهی مدیریت اطلاعات در آنها وابسته خواهد بود. این راهی است برای حرکت از توصیف پیچیدگی به فهم پیچیدگی. هنگامی که از عهدهی این کار برآییم، میتوانیم کمکم ببینیم که چگونه پروانههای سبکبال، باکتریهای قندخوار، رویانِ درحالتکوین، و تمام اشکال دیگرِ حیات آن پرشِ سرنوشتساز را انجام میدهند و اطلاعات را بهشکل دانشی معنادار درمیآورند که میتوانند از آن برای رسیدن به اهدافشان، که بقا، رشد، تولید مثل، و تکامل است، استفاده کنند."
"Whichever level of biological organization we look at, attempts to deepen our comprehension will hinge on our ability to understand how information is managed within them. It is a way to move from describing complexity to understanding complexity. Once we can do this, we can start to see how flitting butterflies, sugar-consuming bacteria, developing embryos and all other life forms make the crucial leap of transforming information into meaningful knowledge that they can use to fulfil their purpose of surviving, growing, reproducing and evolving."
"هدف دیگری که به موازات این اشکال حیاتی مهندسیشده میتوان برای دستیابی به آن تلاش کرد افزایش مجموع مساحت مناطقی از این سیاره است که پوشیده از جانداران فتوسنتزکنندهی طبیعی باشند. این پیشنهاد، برخلاف آنچه ممکن است در نگاه نخست به نظر رسد، چندان سرراست و آسان نیست. برای آنکه تأثیر معناداری داشته باشد باید در مقیاسی بزرگ اجرا شود، و گذشته از آن باید مسألهی ذخیرهی بلندمدت کربن در هنگام مرگ یا برداشت این گیاهان را نیز در نظر داشت. این کار را میتوان با جنگلکاری، کشت جلبک و علف دریایی در اقیانوسها، و کمک به تشکیل پودهزارها انجام داد. اما هر مداخلهای که بهقدر کافی سریع و مؤثر باشد از حد شناخت ما از روابط بومشناختی فراتر خواهد رفت. نمونهی بارزش افت تعداد حشرات است که هماكنون در بسیاری از نقاط جهان در جریان اما علتش عمدتاً ناشناخته است. آیندهی ما وابسته به گونههای حشرات است، زیرا آنها هستند که تعداد زیادی از محصولات غذایی ما را گردهافشانی میکنند، خاک میسازند، و بسیاری از کارهای دیگر را انجام میدهند."
"In parallel with these engineered life forms, another goal would be to increase the total area of the planet’s surface that is covered by naturally occurring photosynthesizing organisms. This is not such a straightforward proposal as it might first seem. To make a meaningful impact it needs to be implemented at a massive scale, and also there needs to be consideration of the issue of long-term carbon storage once the plants have died or been harvested. It could involve more forests, cultivating algae and seaweed in the oceans, and encouraging the formation of peat bogs. But making any intervention work effectively and quickly enough will stretch our understanding of ecological dynamics to its limits. The ongoing, widespread, and largely unexplained decline in insect numbers is a case in point. Our future is tied to insect species, since they pollinate many of our food crops, build soils, and more besides."
"از این همانندیهای عمیق در مبانی شیمیایی حیات نتیجهای چشمگیر حاصل میشود: حیاتی که امروزه روی زمین جریان دارد فقط یک بار آغاز شده است. چنانچه اشکال حیاتی مختلف چندین باز مستقل از هم پدید آمده و باقی مانده بودند، بینهایت بعید میبود که تمام زادگان آنها عملکردهای پایهی خود را اینطور یکسان انجام دهند."
"These deep commonalities in life’s chemical foundations point to a remarkable conclusion: life as it is on Earth today started just once. If different life forms had emerged several times independently, and had survived, it is extremely unlikely that their descendants would all conduct their basic operations in such a similar way."
"... تصور آنچه پس از تشکیل نخستین سلولها رخ داد آسانتر است. نخست، میکروبهای تکسلولی بهتدریج در سرتاسر جهان گسترش یافتند و در دریا، خشکی و هوا ساکن شدند. سپس، حدود ۲ میلیارد سال بعد، هستهداران بزرگتر و پیچیدهتر، اما تا مدتهای طولانی همچنان تکسلولی، به آنها اضافه شدند. جانداران هستهدار پرسلولی حقیقی خیلی دیرتر، و پس از آنکه حدود یکمیلیارد سال دیگر نیز گذشت، پدید آمدند. به عبارت دیگر، حیات پرسلولی حدود ۶۰۰ میلیون سال است که روی زمین بوده، یعنی فقط در یکششم از کل تاریخ حيات. اما در همین مدت تمام اشکال حیاتی بزرگتر و آشکارتری که در اطرافمان میبینیم، از جمله جنگلهای سربهآسمانساییده، کلنیهای پرجمعیت مورچهها، شبکههای عظیم قارچهای زیرزمینی، گلههای پستانداران در ساوانای آفریقا، و در این اواخر، انسانهای امروزی، از آنها به وجود آمدهاند."
"Once the first cells had successfully formed, however, it is easier to imagine what happened next. First, the single-celled microbes would have spread through the world, gradually, colonizing sea, land and air. Then, 2 billion years or so later, the larger and more complex – but for a very long time still single-celled – eukaryotes joined them. True multicellular eukaryotic organisms came much later, after another billion years or so had elapsed. That means that multicellular life has been here for about 600 million years, just one sixth of life’s total history. But in that time they’ve given rise to all the largest and most visible living forms that surround us, including towering forests, swarming colonies of ants, huge networks of underground fungi, herds of mammals on the African savannah, and very much more recently, modern humans."
April 8, 2021
What is Life?
It’s a question that scientists and philosophers have wondered about for a long time. And what is it that defines and differentiates life from non-life? While philosophers may, to a certain degree, be able to give an answer, most likely it won’t be complete or fully satisfying. Biologists are the people that should be asked about these questions. They’re the ones trying to work out the physics and chemistry of living organisms. To answer the question What is Life? it is first necessary to understand life.
Life is incredibly complex. It has been evolving for about 3.5 billion years in our planet. In the beginning there were only single cell organisms. All the biodiversity we see today came from the same common ancestor. Life’s branches are numerous and they stretch long. As we go on about our daily lives, we might not think about this facts. That’s why I believe books like this one are so important. They remind us that there is a connectedness between humans and all other living organisms, in terms of the cell, genes, evolution and chemistry, among others.
I was very surprised to learn that this is Paul Nurse’s first book. He is as distinguished a biologist as you’ll find, having won the Nobel Prize in 2001 and having been the president of the Royal Society until a few years ago. His writing is engaging and captivating. Whenever necessary he uses technical terms, while also remaining clear and approachable throughout the book. He also comes across as a very humble person, despite how much he has achieved. Complemented by some fascinating stories about his life and work, this book actually feels quite personal, which is remarkable, considering that it’s a science book.
This is a wonderful book that works remarkably well as an introduction to modern biology. It’s also written by a highly distinguished biologist. Paul Nurse not only guides us through the major steps of biology in order to answer the initial question, but also shares his opinions about life, viruses, society, religion and the future, among others. I hope that he keeps on writing more books.
It’s a question that scientists and philosophers have wondered about for a long time. And what is it that defines and differentiates life from non-life? While philosophers may, to a certain degree, be able to give an answer, most likely it won’t be complete or fully satisfying. Biologists are the people that should be asked about these questions. They’re the ones trying to work out the physics and chemistry of living organisms. To answer the question What is Life? it is first necessary to understand life.
Life is incredibly complex. It has been evolving for about 3.5 billion years in our planet. In the beginning there were only single cell organisms. All the biodiversity we see today came from the same common ancestor. Life’s branches are numerous and they stretch long. As we go on about our daily lives, we might not think about this facts. That’s why I believe books like this one are so important. They remind us that there is a connectedness between humans and all other living organisms, in terms of the cell, genes, evolution and chemistry, among others.
I was very surprised to learn that this is Paul Nurse’s first book. He is as distinguished a biologist as you’ll find, having won the Nobel Prize in 2001 and having been the president of the Royal Society until a few years ago. His writing is engaging and captivating. Whenever necessary he uses technical terms, while also remaining clear and approachable throughout the book. He also comes across as a very humble person, despite how much he has achieved. Complemented by some fascinating stories about his life and work, this book actually feels quite personal, which is remarkable, considering that it’s a science book.
This is a wonderful book that works remarkably well as an introduction to modern biology. It’s also written by a highly distinguished biologist. Paul Nurse not only guides us through the major steps of biology in order to answer the initial question, but also shares his opinions about life, viruses, society, religion and the future, among others. I hope that he keeps on writing more books.
September 18, 2020
Ever since the success of Carlo Rovelli's Seven Brief Lessons in Physics there has been a fashion for short, smart-looking small hardbacks which almost always have a number in the title or subtitle. Paul Nurse's new (and first) book fits in perfectly as an attractive little number with the subtitle 'understanding biology in five steps'.
Such books fall into two broad categories. Some (like Seven Brief Lessons) are little more than expensive collections of a handfuls of woffly essays. But some - and What is Life? is a good example - manage to pack a surprising amount of content into an informative, readable bite-sized chunk, easily consumed on a commute or at bedtime.
Nurse makes no secret of the fact this is not a very original title, echoing amongst others quantum physicist Schrödinger's vastly influential book from the 1940s. However, what Nurse does here is quite different. Each of his five steps is a major component to understanding the nature of life: cells - his own subject which he describes as 'biology's atom' - genes, evolution, life as chemistry and life as information. All are good, but I was blown away by the 'life as chemistry' section, bring home as it does the sheer complexity and scale of the vast numbers of chemical reactions that are happening all the time through an organism, with many different reactions occurring within the confines of a cell.
For me, the weakest part of the book is that it isn't really in five steps. I'm happy to allow Nurse an introduction and a 'pull it all together' bit at the end, but there's a sixth step before that called 'changing the world' which seems to be an unstructured mix of opinion material that was quite interesting, but not directly relevant to the book's theme, such as his support for GM crops. It rather feels like the publisher lost their nerve about the five steps and asked for a bit more.
This certainly isn't a huge problem, though. There's so much in those five steps sections I'm happy anyway. If, like me, you have limited experience of biology - especially modern biology - it's a beautiful, succinct introduction to those five fascinating components.
Such books fall into two broad categories. Some (like Seven Brief Lessons) are little more than expensive collections of a handfuls of woffly essays. But some - and What is Life? is a good example - manage to pack a surprising amount of content into an informative, readable bite-sized chunk, easily consumed on a commute or at bedtime.
Nurse makes no secret of the fact this is not a very original title, echoing amongst others quantum physicist Schrödinger's vastly influential book from the 1940s. However, what Nurse does here is quite different. Each of his five steps is a major component to understanding the nature of life: cells - his own subject which he describes as 'biology's atom' - genes, evolution, life as chemistry and life as information. All are good, but I was blown away by the 'life as chemistry' section, bring home as it does the sheer complexity and scale of the vast numbers of chemical reactions that are happening all the time through an organism, with many different reactions occurring within the confines of a cell.
For me, the weakest part of the book is that it isn't really in five steps. I'm happy to allow Nurse an introduction and a 'pull it all together' bit at the end, but there's a sixth step before that called 'changing the world' which seems to be an unstructured mix of opinion material that was quite interesting, but not directly relevant to the book's theme, such as his support for GM crops. It rather feels like the publisher lost their nerve about the five steps and asked for a bit more.
This certainly isn't a huge problem, though. There's so much in those five steps sections I'm happy anyway. If, like me, you have limited experience of biology - especially modern biology - it's a beautiful, succinct introduction to those five fascinating components.
August 5, 2021
In the 1940s Erwin Schrodinger asked, "What is Life?". Since then, many scientists have tried to give a more complete answer. Paul Nurse, who won the Nobel Prize for the co-discovery of molecules that control cell division in the cell cycle, has taken his lifetime in biology to try to answer this question as well.
Before answering, Nurse provided a summary of cells, genes, evolution as well as life as chemistry and life as information. I was not sure where he was going with the summaries. They were thorough, but if you already took Bio 101, and intermediate boichem, there would not be much new information. I kept hoping he would sprinkle in a hint of how he was putting all of this old information together, "in a new way," but I had to wait until the end of the book.
Nurse's discussion of enzymes was something to behold. Much of the book read like a textbook, but this section on enzymes read like a mystery filled story in which the reader got to think deeply about all of the incredible things happening inside the tiny cell. Precision enzymes that recognize, perfectly, their substrate, and how they cleave it at exact sites, to make a new product that, in turn, becomes the substrate for the next enzyme. I always loved this (and basically all cell signaling) when I was in college and love to revisit it when an author comes along and can dive in and take me for what feels like a Magic School Bus ride through the cell. I really loved that section and read it two times. Nurse had the same engaging style when writing about ribosomes. I highly recommend not skipping that section, even if you are familiar with all the biochem in this book. It was very well written and immensely enjoyable.
At the very end of the book, Nurse outlined his 3 principles for defining life and they are as follows:
1) Just like Herman Mueller stated, life has to have the ability to evolve and reproduce. Life is subjected to heredity, variability, mutation, and selection.
2) There is a physicality to life in which each form of life is a bounded entity, separated from its environment. This means cultures and computer programs are excluded.
3) (Which is really the "new way of putting it together")
Living entities are chemical, physical, and informational machines. They construct their own metabolism and use it to maintain their life, grow, and reproduce. These living machines are coordinated and regulated by managing information, with the effect that living entities operate as purposeful wholes.
One issue I had with "purposeful wholes" is that Nurse wrote about gravitational waves and rivers as examples of non purposeful entities and used cells and animal bodies as examples of purposeful entities. He should have at least talked about stars, Earth (with its active core), or some other entity that better resisted entropy. Comparing cells or animal bodies to gravitational waves and rivers is not a very good comparison. It would have been better to compare rivers and gravitational waves to downstream cell signaling of the cell and not the cell itself. I feel like Eric Smith (Origin of Life) would have a lively debate with Nurse about this 3rd section of his criteria for life. That said, I think most scientists are on board and excited about life as chemical, physical, and informational machines. It would have been nice to expand on this a bit since it was, by far, the most exciting part of the book. But, Nurse's descriptions of information were very basic and very brief. There was nothing in depth like there was in the Life as Chemistry section. There was no elaboration on this 3rd criteria for life.
Nurse also glossed over his own work on cell division in the cell cycle. I would have liked to have read more about that time in his life, but I guess that is for another book (hopefully).
I noticed that in some reviews, people didn't love that this was two books in one. I agree that it was, because Nurse was focused on the definition of life in the first and 3rd part of the book, but in the middle he shared lots of opinions about the anti-vaxxer crowd, the anti-GMO movement, and climate change deniers. I think every scientist should weigh in on such issues. We are in a post Trump world, in which facts are attacked. My own mother, who is 77 and who almost always tries to make her decisions based on evidence, asked me, "How many scientists do you think believe in climate change?" I was so shocked, because I know she understands it enough to know it's very real, but she is being swayed by politicians and their followers who deliberately obfuscate the discussion surrounding climate change and try to pretend there are "facts" on "both sides." There is only the side of truth and the side of lies. There are not two valid sides. I informed her that all reputable scientists recognize that climate change is caused by natural causes (CO2 gases spewing out of volcanoes and cyclic CO2 levels) and is hastened by human actions (factories, farming, human caused change in Earth's surface and oceans). But she still seems confused because she lives in Pittsburg and, in her part of that area, is surrounded by conservative people who actually believe the lies Trump and other climate change deniers keep feeding the public. So, it is incredibly important that all scientists address these important issues anytime they have a platform to do so. our intellectual integrity as a people depends on it. Our health and environmental policies depend on it.
Before answering, Nurse provided a summary of cells, genes, evolution as well as life as chemistry and life as information. I was not sure where he was going with the summaries. They were thorough, but if you already took Bio 101, and intermediate boichem, there would not be much new information. I kept hoping he would sprinkle in a hint of how he was putting all of this old information together, "in a new way," but I had to wait until the end of the book.
Nurse's discussion of enzymes was something to behold. Much of the book read like a textbook, but this section on enzymes read like a mystery filled story in which the reader got to think deeply about all of the incredible things happening inside the tiny cell. Precision enzymes that recognize, perfectly, their substrate, and how they cleave it at exact sites, to make a new product that, in turn, becomes the substrate for the next enzyme. I always loved this (and basically all cell signaling) when I was in college and love to revisit it when an author comes along and can dive in and take me for what feels like a Magic School Bus ride through the cell. I really loved that section and read it two times. Nurse had the same engaging style when writing about ribosomes. I highly recommend not skipping that section, even if you are familiar with all the biochem in this book. It was very well written and immensely enjoyable.
At the very end of the book, Nurse outlined his 3 principles for defining life and they are as follows:
1) Just like Herman Mueller stated, life has to have the ability to evolve and reproduce. Life is subjected to heredity, variability, mutation, and selection.
2) There is a physicality to life in which each form of life is a bounded entity, separated from its environment. This means cultures and computer programs are excluded.
3) (Which is really the "new way of putting it together")
Living entities are chemical, physical, and informational machines. They construct their own metabolism and use it to maintain their life, grow, and reproduce. These living machines are coordinated and regulated by managing information, with the effect that living entities operate as purposeful wholes.
One issue I had with "purposeful wholes" is that Nurse wrote about gravitational waves and rivers as examples of non purposeful entities and used cells and animal bodies as examples of purposeful entities. He should have at least talked about stars, Earth (with its active core), or some other entity that better resisted entropy. Comparing cells or animal bodies to gravitational waves and rivers is not a very good comparison. It would have been better to compare rivers and gravitational waves to downstream cell signaling of the cell and not the cell itself. I feel like Eric Smith (Origin of Life) would have a lively debate with Nurse about this 3rd section of his criteria for life. That said, I think most scientists are on board and excited about life as chemical, physical, and informational machines. It would have been nice to expand on this a bit since it was, by far, the most exciting part of the book. But, Nurse's descriptions of information were very basic and very brief. There was nothing in depth like there was in the Life as Chemistry section. There was no elaboration on this 3rd criteria for life.
Nurse also glossed over his own work on cell division in the cell cycle. I would have liked to have read more about that time in his life, but I guess that is for another book (hopefully).
I noticed that in some reviews, people didn't love that this was two books in one. I agree that it was, because Nurse was focused on the definition of life in the first and 3rd part of the book, but in the middle he shared lots of opinions about the anti-vaxxer crowd, the anti-GMO movement, and climate change deniers. I think every scientist should weigh in on such issues. We are in a post Trump world, in which facts are attacked. My own mother, who is 77 and who almost always tries to make her decisions based on evidence, asked me, "How many scientists do you think believe in climate change?" I was so shocked, because I know she understands it enough to know it's very real, but she is being swayed by politicians and their followers who deliberately obfuscate the discussion surrounding climate change and try to pretend there are "facts" on "both sides." There is only the side of truth and the side of lies. There are not two valid sides. I informed her that all reputable scientists recognize that climate change is caused by natural causes (CO2 gases spewing out of volcanoes and cyclic CO2 levels) and is hastened by human actions (factories, farming, human caused change in Earth's surface and oceans). But she still seems confused because she lives in Pittsburg and, in her part of that area, is surrounded by conservative people who actually believe the lies Trump and other climate change deniers keep feeding the public. So, it is incredibly important that all scientists address these important issues anytime they have a platform to do so. our intellectual integrity as a people depends on it. Our health and environmental policies depend on it.
March 19, 2024
A terrific read from a Nobel laureate evangelizing science and our biological connectedness to all life on earth. Clear, engaging and persuasive language across short chapters that cover basic biology we should all know, including mitochondria, DNA and evolution. Loved it.
Brief chapter summaries.
1. The Cell: Biology's fundamental unit (as the atom is that of chemistry), meaning that cells are the "smallest entities that have the core characteristics of life" and are alive themselves. This means they "are active, they can move and respond to the environment, and their contents are always in motion." They are composed of smaller units, organelles, with discreet and important roles, but enclose all these structures in a protective membrane which separates each cell from its environment. "This barrier is crucial. Ultimately, it explains why life forms can successfully resist the overall drive of the universe towards disorder and chaos. Within their insulating membranes, cells can establish and cultivate the order they need to operate...."
2. The Gene: The basis of biological inheritance, the gene, plus DNA and its alphabet, chromosomes and genetic sequences, carbon-based polymers, get clearly explained here. How variations occur, how mutations can happen, how individuals can have random variations that don't come from either parent can cause "bewildering diversity."
3. Evolution by Natural Selection: Artificial selection has been practiced by humans for thousands of years, turning wolves into man's best friend and turning a wild mustard plant into a whole section of products in the veggie section of our markets including broccoli and cabbage. Elimination of genetic variations that can't compete results in specific enduring changes that accumulate in populations. For E by NS to happen, living organisms must be able to reproduce, have a hereditary system where characteristics are copied and inherited during reproduction, and the system of reproduction must exhibit variability, which itself must be inherited during the reproductive process. Also, for this to work, living things must die. "One profound consequence of E by NS is that all life is connected by descent." Go far back enough and we "are related to every other life form on the planet." E by NS brings about great complexity without any controlling intellect or defined end game but it can describe how different life forms can come about and attain purpose.
4. Life as Chemistry: Life doesn't need a vital or magical force because it can be explained through extraordinary chemistry and chemical reactions. The array of thousands of chemical reactions in the cells of an organism define its metabolism and is the basis of every living thing - its maintenance, growth, organization and reproduction. And it's not chaotic - all the metabolic chemistry is based on "compartmentation" - complex systems are separated but connected by enzymes. Great explanations of ATP ("life's universal energy source) and mitochondria (where it's produced). We have tons of data about thousands of biological chemical reactions.
5. Life as Information: Reliance on information helps all living things act with a sense of purpose (go here, avoid that, seek water) and cohesive purposeful behavior is one of life's defining features. At the metabolic level, the information in DNA and gene regulation (turning the work of particular genes on and off at the right time) are key. Modules communicate and signal requirements, keep histories and can persist in chemical form and be passed on to offspring. There can be redundancies and inefficiencies but evolution is progressive. Exploring life centered on the information of how all the biological systems connect and interact will allow us to "move from describing complexity to understanding complexity.... and comprehend life."
6. Changing the World: Just as any other life form, the sources of infectious diseases (viruses, bacteria, fungi, worms...) evolve by natural selection, and since they can reproduce very quickly, their genes can also adapt rapidly. This is why the rise of antimicrobial resistance is such a threat. For non-infectious conditions and diseases like cancer, understanding the human genome and how to manipulate it to fight the cancer (or whatever) is a way forward. This could be done at the individual level. Good excursions into the ethics of genetic risks and privacy, genetic engineering and managing natural processes such as aging. Honest and open debate will be crucial, and the scientific and political levels, tough he argues that politics should come after the science (gives examples such as Stalin backing Lysenko based on ideology of rejecting Mendel and millions starving, climate change deniers...). End: The value of science is not up for debate.
7. What is Life?: He talks of the processes that make an organism alive, but then reflects that interdependency incorporates all living things. The web of connections is core to life. "As far as we know, we humans are the only life forms who can see this deep connectivity and reflect on what it all means. That gives us special responsibility for life on this planet.... We need to care about it, we need to care for it. And to do that we need to understand it."
Brief chapter summaries.
1. The Cell: Biology's fundamental unit (as the atom is that of chemistry), meaning that cells are the "smallest entities that have the core characteristics of life" and are alive themselves. This means they "are active, they can move and respond to the environment, and their contents are always in motion." They are composed of smaller units, organelles, with discreet and important roles, but enclose all these structures in a protective membrane which separates each cell from its environment. "This barrier is crucial. Ultimately, it explains why life forms can successfully resist the overall drive of the universe towards disorder and chaos. Within their insulating membranes, cells can establish and cultivate the order they need to operate...."
2. The Gene: The basis of biological inheritance, the gene, plus DNA and its alphabet, chromosomes and genetic sequences, carbon-based polymers, get clearly explained here. How variations occur, how mutations can happen, how individuals can have random variations that don't come from either parent can cause "bewildering diversity."
3. Evolution by Natural Selection: Artificial selection has been practiced by humans for thousands of years, turning wolves into man's best friend and turning a wild mustard plant into a whole section of products in the veggie section of our markets including broccoli and cabbage. Elimination of genetic variations that can't compete results in specific enduring changes that accumulate in populations. For E by NS to happen, living organisms must be able to reproduce, have a hereditary system where characteristics are copied and inherited during reproduction, and the system of reproduction must exhibit variability, which itself must be inherited during the reproductive process. Also, for this to work, living things must die. "One profound consequence of E by NS is that all life is connected by descent." Go far back enough and we "are related to every other life form on the planet." E by NS brings about great complexity without any controlling intellect or defined end game but it can describe how different life forms can come about and attain purpose.
4. Life as Chemistry: Life doesn't need a vital or magical force because it can be explained through extraordinary chemistry and chemical reactions. The array of thousands of chemical reactions in the cells of an organism define its metabolism and is the basis of every living thing - its maintenance, growth, organization and reproduction. And it's not chaotic - all the metabolic chemistry is based on "compartmentation" - complex systems are separated but connected by enzymes. Great explanations of ATP ("life's universal energy source) and mitochondria (where it's produced). We have tons of data about thousands of biological chemical reactions.
5. Life as Information: Reliance on information helps all living things act with a sense of purpose (go here, avoid that, seek water) and cohesive purposeful behavior is one of life's defining features. At the metabolic level, the information in DNA and gene regulation (turning the work of particular genes on and off at the right time) are key. Modules communicate and signal requirements, keep histories and can persist in chemical form and be passed on to offspring. There can be redundancies and inefficiencies but evolution is progressive. Exploring life centered on the information of how all the biological systems connect and interact will allow us to "move from describing complexity to understanding complexity.... and comprehend life."
6. Changing the World: Just as any other life form, the sources of infectious diseases (viruses, bacteria, fungi, worms...) evolve by natural selection, and since they can reproduce very quickly, their genes can also adapt rapidly. This is why the rise of antimicrobial resistance is such a threat. For non-infectious conditions and diseases like cancer, understanding the human genome and how to manipulate it to fight the cancer (or whatever) is a way forward. This could be done at the individual level. Good excursions into the ethics of genetic risks and privacy, genetic engineering and managing natural processes such as aging. Honest and open debate will be crucial, and the scientific and political levels, tough he argues that politics should come after the science (gives examples such as Stalin backing Lysenko based on ideology of rejecting Mendel and millions starving, climate change deniers...). End: The value of science is not up for debate.
7. What is Life?: He talks of the processes that make an organism alive, but then reflects that interdependency incorporates all living things. The web of connections is core to life. "As far as we know, we humans are the only life forms who can see this deep connectivity and reflect on what it all means. That gives us special responsibility for life on this planet.... We need to care about it, we need to care for it. And to do that we need to understand it."
July 12, 2022
Нюърс се спира на пет базови “нива”, изграждащи живота: биологичен атом (клетката); ген и ДНК; еволюция и естествен подбор; химическите процеси в метаболизма; и животът като ползвател, производител и форма на информация.
Подходът е да се разяснят тези концепции като ключ за изграждане на по-рационален и панорамен поглед към живите форми и човешкото съществуване.
Науката определено е нужна като защита срещу невежеството, манипулацията и хаоса. Макар тя да не е всесилна поради вградените си ограничения. Но пък се развива и не (би трябвало) да се влияе от емоции.
3,5⭐️
Подходът е да се разяснят тези концепции като ключ за изграждане на по-рационален и панорамен поглед към живите форми и човешкото съществуване.
Науката определено е нужна като защита срещу невежеството, манипулацията и хаоса. Макар тя да не е всесилна поради вградените си ограничения. Но пък се развива и не (би трябвало) да се влияе от емоции.
3,5⭐️
August 29, 2022
Well written, almost absent of jargon. Little new information for biologists. Important conclusions for everyone.
April 9, 2025
Competente mas demasiado sucinto. Coloca-nos cinco ideias em biologia. A célula, o gene, a seleção natural, a química orgânica e a organização da informação como origem da vida. Parece contudo mais uma reunião de cinco ensaios que o autor pretendeu dar um fio condutor. Por último aborda as origens da vida, mas fá-lo de forma demasiadamente superficial e talvez devesse ter começado por aí.
No final fica um pouco abaixo das expectativas
No final fica um pouco abaixo das expectativas
May 3, 2022
Защо учебниците по биология не са написани така? :)
August 11, 2021
I recently read a book about trees where a dendrochronologist said that all tree trunk cells were dead save in the cambium layer & I guess they are for her purposes. Others say not, although the cells aren't typically active nor do they reproduce. I've also read about arguments of where to place viruses on the tree of life &/or whether they even belong there. It makes me wonder if we have a good definition of life & death, so I'm hoping this book will tell me the current thinking & give me a better idea where to draw the lines for myself. It didn't.
Nurse tackles the broader idea of life in general & my hopes were dashed when he chose viruses as his example of something that not everyone agrees on as being alive. I can't say that was unexpected. I was wondering & he believes they are alive even though he admits they might be 'dead' when outside of the host cell. He says their dependence on other entities for life is one that we all share with the possible exception of some archaea & algae. (He didn't compare them parasites that need host species to reproduce, though.) Life/death has always been an either/or question in my mind. It's amazing how complicated such questions get with a little more knowledge!
I found it interesting that he never mentioned Richard Dawkins. I'm not sure if he thought the The Selfish Gene theory (1974) was a bit beyond this book or if there was another reason. He certainly mentioned other pioneers in the field & mentions meeting them. It wasn't name dropping; his descriptions of interactions with them enhanced the text. He had a couple of obvious places to advance the theory to support his text, but never did.
Table of Contents:
1. The Cell - Biology’s Atom:
2. The Gene - The Test of Time:
3. Evolution by Natural Selection - Chance and Necessity:
4. Life as Chemistry - Order from Chaos:
5. Life as Information::
- Working as a Whole:
- Changing the World:
- What is Life?:
It's in the final chapter that he gives his 3 criteria of life.
This is a pretty basic overview of biology with a lot of interesting anecdotes. It would probably work in a freshman (9th grade, 15 year old kids) biology course. He narrated the audiobook himself & did an excellent job. Definitely recommended.
Nurse tackles the broader idea of life in general & my hopes were dashed when he chose viruses as his example of something that not everyone agrees on as being alive. I can't say that was unexpected. I was wondering & he believes they are alive even though he admits they might be 'dead' when outside of the host cell. He says their dependence on other entities for life is one that we all share with the possible exception of some archaea & algae. (He didn't compare them parasites that need host species to reproduce, though.) Life/death has always been an either/or question in my mind. It's amazing how complicated such questions get with a little more knowledge!
I found it interesting that he never mentioned Richard Dawkins. I'm not sure if he thought the The Selfish Gene theory (1974) was a bit beyond this book or if there was another reason. He certainly mentioned other pioneers in the field & mentions meeting them. It wasn't name dropping; his descriptions of interactions with them enhanced the text. He had a couple of obvious places to advance the theory to support his text, but never did.
Table of Contents:
1. The Cell - Biology’s Atom:
2. The Gene - The Test of Time:
3. Evolution by Natural Selection - Chance and Necessity:
4. Life as Chemistry - Order from Chaos:
5. Life as Information::
- Working as a Whole:
- Changing the World:
- What is Life?:
It's in the final chapter that he gives his 3 criteria of life.
This is a pretty basic overview of biology with a lot of interesting anecdotes. It would probably work in a freshman (9th grade, 15 year old kids) biology course. He narrated the audiobook himself & did an excellent job. Definitely recommended.
November 9, 2020
An excellent popular science book on biology that I highly recommend. Written by Paul Nurse, a Nobel Prize winner, and well known science populariser in the UK media (not least during this 2020 CoVid pandemic).
I read it as someone who enjoys being abreast of the latest developments in the physical sciences and who’s had a career mainly involving mechanical engineering. I’m knowledgable on the inanimate but I’m profoundly ignorant of the Life Sciences, initially a consequence of my schooling. So this popular book read was intended to help remedy that omission in my education. And, on balance, it met my intent.
A word on the book’s structure may help the new reader as I was initially not sure of the intended level of the book. The first chapter entitled Cells, was brief and light on details, mostly happy to leave us with the knowledge that a cell is a ball of liquid chemistry encapsulated by a membrane. Similarly the subsequent chapters on Genes (and DNA), and then on Evolution, were brief and to the point. I thought at that stage that I hadn’t learnt much that was new to me, and that maybe the book might be too elementary. But the book really took flight for me in the subsequent chapters (eg Life as Chemistry and Life as Information) where these earlier basics are built on and combined as we are taken fully into the complexity of life’s detailed processes. We get details on how life from its building blocks to the multi-celled structures function, even a concluding chapter on how life may have originated.
I found it a satisfying and easy, well written, read. I realised that maybe I knew a little more biology than I thought I did but this book brought it all together for me, ‘under one roof’. Not a reference book for those after an academic foundation to biology but a comprehensive overview for the popular science reader.
The epitome of a good popular science book - not too detailed, light on jargon, a sensible length at 200 pages, and the fascinating details and anecdotes you’d expect from the first hand experience of a practising scientist. Enjoyable.
I read it as someone who enjoys being abreast of the latest developments in the physical sciences and who’s had a career mainly involving mechanical engineering. I’m knowledgable on the inanimate but I’m profoundly ignorant of the Life Sciences, initially a consequence of my schooling. So this popular book read was intended to help remedy that omission in my education. And, on balance, it met my intent.
A word on the book’s structure may help the new reader as I was initially not sure of the intended level of the book. The first chapter entitled Cells, was brief and light on details, mostly happy to leave us with the knowledge that a cell is a ball of liquid chemistry encapsulated by a membrane. Similarly the subsequent chapters on Genes (and DNA), and then on Evolution, were brief and to the point. I thought at that stage that I hadn’t learnt much that was new to me, and that maybe the book might be too elementary. But the book really took flight for me in the subsequent chapters (eg Life as Chemistry and Life as Information) where these earlier basics are built on and combined as we are taken fully into the complexity of life’s detailed processes. We get details on how life from its building blocks to the multi-celled structures function, even a concluding chapter on how life may have originated.
I found it a satisfying and easy, well written, read. I realised that maybe I knew a little more biology than I thought I did but this book brought it all together for me, ‘under one roof’. Not a reference book for those after an academic foundation to biology but a comprehensive overview for the popular science reader.
The epitome of a good popular science book - not too detailed, light on jargon, a sensible length at 200 pages, and the fascinating details and anecdotes you’d expect from the first hand experience of a practising scientist. Enjoyable.
July 15, 2024
سلام :)
اینجا اولین سرزمین از کهکشانی به اسم
•پُل نرسِ•
نمیدونم چیشد که سر از این سرزمین درآوردم
حتما بخشیش خودخواسته بوده و قلبم منو به اینجا اورده و بخشیش هم به جبر و داستانای زمینی ؛)
من اینجا تازه واردم
شاید نزدیک به سی روز کاملا قطعی باشه که ساکن پل نرس هستم
این اسم رو خودم روش گذاشتم
بخاطر تنها کتابی که دارم ازش (پل نرس) میخونم و اسمش هست `حیات چیست؟`
بنظرم با هم همخونی داشتن..
طی مکاشفاتی که توی این سرزمین داشتم به کشفیات زیر رسیدم
اینم بگم که فعلا اینجا موندگارم
معلوم نیست چند ساعت چند سال یا چند قرن طول بکشه که بتونم وارد سرزمین یا کهکشان بعدی بشم
تنها ابزار موجود اینجا علمِ
اولین چیزی که باهاش مواجه شدم
گستردگی ناتمام و جنس خاک اینجاست.
تو میتونی براحتی فرو بری و دوباره به سطح بیای
با هر قدم کوچیکی که روی این بستر برمیداری وارد یه هزارتوی دیگه میشی و میفهمی همه چیز بهم وابسته اس
هرچقدر بیشتر غرق بشی اطمینانی توی پایداری نتایجت نیست.
ولی نتیجه واقعی توی همون ابهام نهفتست
شبیه دریچه ایِ که میتونی گوشه ای از واقعیت رو با وضوح بالا مشاهده کنی
اما بی تعصب
انگار به یک تواضعی میرسی که از قدرت اومده
به یک خودباوری میرسی که از عدم قطعیت میاد
انگار متوجه جای پای خودت توی این جهان میشی
انگار به ارزشمند بودن موجودیت هر وجودی قبل از خودت میرسی
به یه صلح
به یه آرامش
به تسلیمی که پر از جنب و جوشِ و ایستایی توش بیمعناست.
انگار به محبت واقعی دست پیدا میکنی
به مفهوم زمان
به تصورات یه تیرکس کوچولو:)
به اینکه تو به عنوان انسان گونه ای هستی که نه تنها برتر نیست که در مقایسه با خیلی چیزای کوچولوتر از خودش پر از گافِ.
فقط میتونم بگم خیلی جذابه
منکه اول راه یادگرفتن توی این سرزمین جدیدم
اما میدونم، شانس تجربه کردن و احساس کردنِ این نگاه جدید
از من آدم جالب تری میسازه؛)
مثه همیشه خواستم اینجا ثبتش کنم
شاید دیدن این سیر تکاملی در سالهای پیش رو واسم خیلی جذاب تر بشه و برای شناخت بیشتر بهم کمک کنه
پس سلام میکنم به
جهانِ جدید در حال شکل گیری درونم
به ظاهر شدن و ملموس تر شدن واقعیات
به علم
به تلاش های بی ثمر
به ثمربخش ترین حدسیات
به خودم
آلیس در سرزمین عجایب :)
از: اولین سرزمینِ من پل نرس
2024.06.03
اینجا اولین سرزمین از کهکشانی به اسم
•پُل نرسِ•
نمیدونم چیشد که سر از این سرزمین درآوردم
حتما بخشیش خودخواسته بوده و قلبم منو به اینجا اورده و بخشیش هم به جبر و داستانای زمینی ؛)
من اینجا تازه واردم
شاید نزدیک به سی روز کاملا قطعی باشه که ساکن پل نرس هستم
این اسم رو خودم روش گذاشتم
بخاطر تنها کتابی که دارم ازش (پل نرس) میخونم و اسمش هست `حیات چیست؟`
بنظرم با هم همخونی داشتن..
طی مکاشفاتی که توی این سرزمین داشتم به کشفیات زیر رسیدم
اینم بگم که فعلا اینجا موندگارم
معلوم نیست چند ساعت چند سال یا چند قرن طول بکشه که بتونم وارد سرزمین یا کهکشان بعدی بشم
تنها ابزار موجود اینجا علمِ
اولین چیزی که باهاش مواجه شدم
گستردگی ناتمام و جنس خاک اینجاست.
تو میتونی براحتی فرو بری و دوباره به سطح بیای
با هر قدم کوچیکی که روی این بستر برمیداری وارد یه هزارتوی دیگه میشی و میفهمی همه چیز بهم وابسته اس
هرچقدر بیشتر غرق بشی اطمینانی توی پایداری نتایجت نیست.
ولی نتیجه واقعی توی همون ابهام نهفتست
شبیه دریچه ایِ که میتونی گوشه ای از واقعیت رو با وضوح بالا مشاهده کنی
اما بی تعصب
انگار به یک تواضعی میرسی که از قدرت اومده
به یک خودباوری میرسی که از عدم قطعیت میاد
انگار متوجه جای پای خودت توی این جهان میشی
انگار به ارزشمند بودن موجودیت هر وجودی قبل از خودت میرسی
به یه صلح
به یه آرامش
به تسلیمی که پر از جنب و جوشِ و ایستایی توش بیمعناست.
انگار به محبت واقعی دست پیدا میکنی
به مفهوم زمان
به تصورات یه تیرکس کوچولو:)
به اینکه تو به عنوان انسان گونه ای هستی که نه تنها برتر نیست که در مقایسه با خیلی چیزای کوچولوتر از خودش پر از گافِ.
فقط میتونم بگم خیلی جذابه
منکه اول راه یادگرفتن توی این سرزمین جدیدم
اما میدونم، شانس تجربه کردن و احساس کردنِ این نگاه جدید
از من آدم جالب تری میسازه؛)
مثه همیشه خواستم اینجا ثبتش کنم
شاید دیدن این سیر تکاملی در سالهای پیش رو واسم خیلی جذاب تر بشه و برای شناخت بیشتر بهم کمک کنه
پس سلام میکنم به
جهانِ جدید در حال شکل گیری درونم
به ظاهر شدن و ملموس تر شدن واقعیات
به علم
به تلاش های بی ثمر
به ثمربخش ترین حدسیات
به خودم
آلیس در سرزمین عجایب :)
از: اولین سرزمینِ من پل نرس
2024.06.03
November 24, 2025
سلول ژن انتخاب طبیعی، شیمی سلولی، اطلاعات و تنظیم ژنی
September 22, 2020
Какво е живот? Въпросът е станал заглавие на няколко книги в историята на науката. Отговорът първо е потърсен от физика Erwin Schrödinger (1944 г.), след това от еволюционния биолог J. B. S. Haldane (1947 г.), а тази година и от генетика и Нобелов лауреат Paul Nurse.
Paul Nurse печели най-престижната научна награда през 2001 г. за открития в механизмите на регулиране на клетъчното делене. В книгата си разглежда 5 основни принципа на биологията и живота изобщо:
1. Клетката като "атом" на живота
2. Гени и ДНК
3. Еволюция чрез естествен отбор
4. Животът като химия - ред сред хаоса
5. Животът като информация
Какво е живот? Как е възникнал? Какво ни очаква?
Прочетете книгата и ще научите какво мисли по тези въпроси един Нобелов лауреат.
Paul Nurse печели най-престижната научна награда през 2001 г. за открития в механизмите на регулиране на клетъчното делене. В книгата си разглежда 5 основни принципа на биологията и живота изобщо:
1. Клетката като "атом" на живота
2. Гени и ДНК
3. Еволюция чрез естествен отбор
4. Животът като химия - ред сред хаоса
5. Животът като информация
Какво е живот? Как е възникнал? Какво ни очаква?
Прочетете книгата и ще научите какво мисли по тези въпроси един Нобелов лауреат.
September 23, 2021
I bought this from the 'damaged goods' pile in Waterstones. It has coffee stains across half of it, and it cost £1. I'm glad that's all I spent - anyone with a GCSE Biology textbook could have written this.
(DISCLAIMER) the author is my uncle's brother-in-law so I have to be nicer apparently
This is a fantastic book and everyone should pay the RRP of £8.99 and read it and enjoy it!!!!
(DISCLAIMER) the author is my uncle's brother-in-law so I have to be nicer apparently
This is a fantastic book and everyone should pay the RRP of £8.99 and read it and enjoy it!!!!
March 13, 2024
¡Que buen libro! ¡que buena síntesis! ¡mejor autor imposible!
Encontré "What is life?" por casualidad mientras navegaba en el canal de televisión más grande de la historia, YouTube. Sí, así como lo leen. No me llego a través de recomendaciones en GoodReads, ni fue por alguien conocido o porque lo vi citado en otro libro. Es de esas coincidencias afortunadas, que de coincidencia no tiene realmente nada: YouTube (o Google) me escucho seguramente conversaciones en las que mencionaba que estaba haciendo un curso de astrobiología y termino recomendándomelo en YouTube.
Como sea, acertó.
Hace unos años había leído el que es considerado el pionero indiscutible de los textos que abordan con desparpajo y desde el título, una de las preguntas más difíciles que ha formulado la ciencia: ¿Qué es la vida?. Me refiero por supuesto al libro de Erwin Schrödinger homonimo de este libro "¿Qué es la vida?". En aquel documento pionero, Schrödinger logra identificar los elementos fundamentales que hacen a la materia viva distinta de otras formas complejas de materia. Lo más increíble es que lo hizo en una época en la que no había ocurrido la revolución molecular de la biología, que sucedió al descubrimiento por Rosalind Franklin, Francis Crick y James Watson, de la estructura del ADN y el desciframiento del código de la vida que realizaron estos dos últimos.
En "What is life?", el profesor Paul Nurse, Premio Nobel de Medicina y Fisiología vuelve sobre la pregunta fundamental pero con el beneficio de casi 7 décadas de descubrimientos científicos, incluyendo los suyos propios (Nurse recibió el Nobel en 2001 por sus aportes en el esclarecimiento de los mecanismos químicos que controlan la división celular).
Como menciona el subtítulo del libro, su versión de la respuesta a la pregunta de qué es la vida se desarrolla en 5 actos en los que presenta las que llama las ideas más importantes de la biología: la célula, el gen, la evolución, la vida como química y la vida como información.
El resultado es un fabuloso viaje, en no más de 200 página, por las ideas fundamentales de la biología, en un lenguaje sencillo y ameno, que no sacrifica sin embargo un ápice en el rigor científico. Las explicaciones contienen también, aquí y allá, algunas anécdotas interesantes, comentarios sobre las personas que hicieron algunos de los descubrimientos centrales de la biología y que el autor tuvo el placer de conocer. Estas historias le dan al libro un carácter de narración muy humana y lo convierten en una lectura aún más agradable.
¿Logra responder Nurse a la pregunta que formula en el título de su libro?. No. Nadie lo ha hecho todavía. Es decir, mientras no exista, como decía alguien, una teoría general de la vida, una que aplique a cualquier lugar del universo como las que tenemos por ejemplo sobre las partículas que constituyen el universo, no podremos dar una respuesta a la pregunta.
Aún así Nurse logra reducir al mínimo número de ideas posibles los elementos esenciales de la vida y hablar de esos elementos de forma que cualquiera con un conocimiento básico de las ciencias puede entender. Eso ya es mucha cosa.
Creo que allí radica justamente la idea de definir una cosa o un proceso que conoces ampliamente. El ejercicio es el de eliminar detalles hasta que si eliminas uno más ya no puedes reconocer el fenómeno del que estás hablando. ¡Eso es este libro!
Para mí, este libro se convierte automáticamente en la mejor referencia para entregar a mis estudiantes para que conozcan de un vistazo los elementos básicos de la vida, sin pasar por los innecesarios detalles que los libros de biología nos ofrecen.
Encontré "What is life?" por casualidad mientras navegaba en el canal de televisión más grande de la historia, YouTube. Sí, así como lo leen. No me llego a través de recomendaciones en GoodReads, ni fue por alguien conocido o porque lo vi citado en otro libro. Es de esas coincidencias afortunadas, que de coincidencia no tiene realmente nada: YouTube (o Google) me escucho seguramente conversaciones en las que mencionaba que estaba haciendo un curso de astrobiología y termino recomendándomelo en YouTube.
Como sea, acertó.
Hace unos años había leído el que es considerado el pionero indiscutible de los textos que abordan con desparpajo y desde el título, una de las preguntas más difíciles que ha formulado la ciencia: ¿Qué es la vida?. Me refiero por supuesto al libro de Erwin Schrödinger homonimo de este libro "¿Qué es la vida?". En aquel documento pionero, Schrödinger logra identificar los elementos fundamentales que hacen a la materia viva distinta de otras formas complejas de materia. Lo más increíble es que lo hizo en una época en la que no había ocurrido la revolución molecular de la biología, que sucedió al descubrimiento por Rosalind Franklin, Francis Crick y James Watson, de la estructura del ADN y el desciframiento del código de la vida que realizaron estos dos últimos.
En "What is life?", el profesor Paul Nurse, Premio Nobel de Medicina y Fisiología vuelve sobre la pregunta fundamental pero con el beneficio de casi 7 décadas de descubrimientos científicos, incluyendo los suyos propios (Nurse recibió el Nobel en 2001 por sus aportes en el esclarecimiento de los mecanismos químicos que controlan la división celular).
Como menciona el subtítulo del libro, su versión de la respuesta a la pregunta de qué es la vida se desarrolla en 5 actos en los que presenta las que llama las ideas más importantes de la biología: la célula, el gen, la evolución, la vida como química y la vida como información.
El resultado es un fabuloso viaje, en no más de 200 página, por las ideas fundamentales de la biología, en un lenguaje sencillo y ameno, que no sacrifica sin embargo un ápice en el rigor científico. Las explicaciones contienen también, aquí y allá, algunas anécdotas interesantes, comentarios sobre las personas que hicieron algunos de los descubrimientos centrales de la biología y que el autor tuvo el placer de conocer. Estas historias le dan al libro un carácter de narración muy humana y lo convierten en una lectura aún más agradable.
¿Logra responder Nurse a la pregunta que formula en el título de su libro?. No. Nadie lo ha hecho todavía. Es decir, mientras no exista, como decía alguien, una teoría general de la vida, una que aplique a cualquier lugar del universo como las que tenemos por ejemplo sobre las partículas que constituyen el universo, no podremos dar una respuesta a la pregunta.
Aún así Nurse logra reducir al mínimo número de ideas posibles los elementos esenciales de la vida y hablar de esos elementos de forma que cualquiera con un conocimiento básico de las ciencias puede entender. Eso ya es mucha cosa.
Creo que allí radica justamente la idea de definir una cosa o un proceso que conoces ampliamente. El ejercicio es el de eliminar detalles hasta que si eliminas uno más ya no puedes reconocer el fenómeno del que estás hablando. ¡Eso es este libro!
Para mí, este libro se convierte automáticamente en la mejor referencia para entregar a mis estudiantes para que conozcan de un vistazo los elementos básicos de la vida, sin pasar por los innecesarios detalles que los libros de biología nos ofrecen.
November 30, 2021
2,5
Obwohl der Autor, der übrigens Nobelpreisträger ist, eingangs versichert, dass der Leser keine Vorkenntnisse benötigt, fand ich den Inhalt doch anspruchsvoll. Zwar werden immer wieder persönliche Anekdoten eingestreut, was dem Stil einen lockeren Ton verleiht, allerdings habe ich gewisse Abschnitte vier oder fünf mal gehört und dennoch nicht verstanden, besonders was die chemischen Grundlagen betraf. Gut, Chemie war nie meine Stärke aber einige Rezensionen titulieren "Für Laien verständlich". Das kann ich trotz seinerzeit Biologie Leistungskurs nicht bestätigen. Das ist aber auch schon wieder 30 Jahre her. Dieses Buch hat zwar sehr wohl ein Teil meines Wissens aufgefrischt und ausgebildet. Aus meiner Sicht ist dies dennoch eher eine Lektüre für naturwissenschaftlich Vorgebildete.
Obwohl der Autor, der übrigens Nobelpreisträger ist, eingangs versichert, dass der Leser keine Vorkenntnisse benötigt, fand ich den Inhalt doch anspruchsvoll. Zwar werden immer wieder persönliche Anekdoten eingestreut, was dem Stil einen lockeren Ton verleiht, allerdings habe ich gewisse Abschnitte vier oder fünf mal gehört und dennoch nicht verstanden, besonders was die chemischen Grundlagen betraf. Gut, Chemie war nie meine Stärke aber einige Rezensionen titulieren "Für Laien verständlich". Das kann ich trotz seinerzeit Biologie Leistungskurs nicht bestätigen. Das ist aber auch schon wieder 30 Jahre her. Dieses Buch hat zwar sehr wohl ein Teil meines Wissens aufgefrischt und ausgebildet. Aus meiner Sicht ist dies dennoch eher eine Lektüre für naturwissenschaftlich Vorgebildete.
May 22, 2025
Na prvý pohľad som si nebola istá, či to bude „moja šálka kávy“. Stačilo však pár strán a mala som pocit, akoby som objavila tajnú záhradu plnú života, poznania a tichého úžasu.
Paul Nurse, vedec a nositeľ Nobelovej ceny, píše so zvláštnou ľahkosťou, ktorá vás vťahuje a pritom necháva dostatok priestoru na tiché premýšľanie. Príbeh o žltom motýľovi, ktorý ho priviedol k vede, je nežnou spomienkou na to, ako aj ten najmenší okamih môže zmeniť smer nášho života.
Kniha je rozdelená do piatich častí a každá z nich je ako ďalší kúsok skladačky, ktorá postupne odhaľuje fascinujúci obraz života. Nie je to učebnica, a už vôbec nie náročné vedecké čítanie. Skôr pozvanie zamyslieť sa nad tým, čo vlastne znamená byť súčasťou tohto neuveriteľného, dômyselného systému zvaného život.
Vo svete biológie som sa doteraz pohybovala skôr ako zvedavý návštevník než znalý sprievodca. Pri čítaní som však mala pocit, akoby ma autor jemne viedol za ruku cez krajinu plnú zázrakov, kde aj tie najmenšie detaily stoja za obdiv. Kniha je písaná zrozumiteľne a s jemnosťou, ktorá neprináša zbytočné komplikácie, ale naopak – otvára dvere ku krásam biológie aj tým, ktorí si mysleli, že je pre nich tento svet príliš zložitý.
Čo je život je kniha, ktorú si nechám vo svojej knižnici ako tiché pripomenutie toho, že svet okolo nás je neuveriteľne prepracovaný, nežný aj zložitý zároveň – a že vždy stojí za to pýtať sa, skúmať a neprestávať žasnúť.
Paul Nurse, vedec a nositeľ Nobelovej ceny, píše so zvláštnou ľahkosťou, ktorá vás vťahuje a pritom necháva dostatok priestoru na tiché premýšľanie. Príbeh o žltom motýľovi, ktorý ho priviedol k vede, je nežnou spomienkou na to, ako aj ten najmenší okamih môže zmeniť smer nášho života.
Kniha je rozdelená do piatich častí a každá z nich je ako ďalší kúsok skladačky, ktorá postupne odhaľuje fascinujúci obraz života. Nie je to učebnica, a už vôbec nie náročné vedecké čítanie. Skôr pozvanie zamyslieť sa nad tým, čo vlastne znamená byť súčasťou tohto neuveriteľného, dômyselného systému zvaného život.
Vo svete biológie som sa doteraz pohybovala skôr ako zvedavý návštevník než znalý sprievodca. Pri čítaní som však mala pocit, akoby ma autor jemne viedol za ruku cez krajinu plnú zázrakov, kde aj tie najmenšie detaily stoja za obdiv. Kniha je písaná zrozumiteľne a s jemnosťou, ktorá neprináša zbytočné komplikácie, ale naopak – otvára dvere ku krásam biológie aj tým, ktorí si mysleli, že je pre nich tento svet príliš zložitý.
Čo je život je kniha, ktorú si nechám vo svojej knižnici ako tiché pripomenutie toho, že svet okolo nás je neuveriteľne prepracovaný, nežný aj zložitý zároveň – a že vždy stojí za to pýtať sa, skúmať a neprestávať žasnúť.
Read
January 16, 2026Dette ga meg en deilig bekreftelse på at jeg faktisk har lært ett og annet etter halvannet år på biologi. Kanskje det er det som er hele meninga med populærvitenskap?
September 29, 2022
Mir fehlte in dem Buch der Aha Moment auf den es hinauslaufen wollte. Es beginnt mit einer etwa hundert seitigen Erklärung des Lebenszyklus der Zelle. Es ist sehr gut erklärt, doch wenn man im Bio Abi etwas aufgepasst hat, wird es hier sehr wenig zu lernen geben. Jeder Abschnitt wird mit einem passenden Bericht aus seiner Forschung zu eben diesem Thema beendet. Das war tatsächlich ganz cool, immerhin hat er dafür auch einen Nobelpreis bekommen.
Ich hatte nun erwartet, dass er nach dieser Erklärung, jetzt wo alle Leser auf dem selben Stand sind, eine tolle Antwort auf den Namen des Buchs geben würde. Zuerst ging es aber um Entwicklungen in der Biologie (Gen-Editing von Embryos, Antibiotikaresistenz, etc.), die die Welt und Gesellschaft verändern können, und dass wir alle darüber diskutieren sollten wie wir damit umgehen wollen. Auch hier nix neues wenn man sich schonmal etwas mit dem Thema auseinandergesetzt hat (und bspw. Harari gelesen hat). Das letzte Kapitel ist jetzt die erwartete Antwort auf die namensgebende Frage, aber auch die war nicht gerade spannend beantwortet. Tbh, wie auch? Spoiler: Für ihn lebt etwas wenn es
1. mittels natürlicher Selektion evolven kann
2. ein abgeschlossenes physikalisches System ist (bspw Zelle, aber nicht Computerprogramm)
3. eine chemische, physikalische und informationsverarbeitende Maschine ist.
Im Grunde ist das Buch eine schöne Auffrischung oder Einstieg in die Zellbiologie. Es ist alles einfach erklärt und immer wieder auch praktisch bezogen. Mehr ist es aber auch nicht.
Ich hatte nun erwartet, dass er nach dieser Erklärung, jetzt wo alle Leser auf dem selben Stand sind, eine tolle Antwort auf den Namen des Buchs geben würde. Zuerst ging es aber um Entwicklungen in der Biologie (Gen-Editing von Embryos, Antibiotikaresistenz, etc.), die die Welt und Gesellschaft verändern können, und dass wir alle darüber diskutieren sollten wie wir damit umgehen wollen. Auch hier nix neues wenn man sich schonmal etwas mit dem Thema auseinandergesetzt hat (und bspw. Harari gelesen hat). Das letzte Kapitel ist jetzt die erwartete Antwort auf die namensgebende Frage, aber auch die war nicht gerade spannend beantwortet. Tbh, wie auch? Spoiler: Für ihn lebt etwas wenn es
1. mittels natürlicher Selektion evolven kann
2. ein abgeschlossenes physikalisches System ist (bspw Zelle, aber nicht Computerprogramm)
3. eine chemische, physikalische und informationsverarbeitende Maschine ist.
Im Grunde ist das Buch eine schöne Auffrischung oder Einstieg in die Zellbiologie. Es ist alles einfach erklärt und immer wieder auch praktisch bezogen. Mehr ist es aber auch nicht.
June 19, 2021
What is life? Its a question that different people have tried to answer in different ways - Metaphysically, philosophically or in this case, biologically/biochemically. Nurse has tried to describe life by focusing on 5 different aspects that underpin it. In doing so, he manages to leave the reader completely awestruck with the complexity of the biochemical processes that drive and sustain life and eventually coming up with his answer to what defines life and what makes something "alive". A book in the mold of Gene by Siddharth Mukherjee, its works on a similar landscape, but with a different focus and does so in a much shorter package. The entire book can be read in less than 3 hours and is virtually unputdownable. Highly recommended to people of all ages who are interested in science.
July 26, 2025
ah.
bu kitap beni üzdü, çünkü beğenmeyi gerçekten çok istiyordum. kitapta bir sorun yok bence, sorun benim eşşekliğim, bazı yorumlara inanıp almam. derslerde gördüğüm şeyleri anlatacağını BİLİYORDUM ama 130 sayfa boyunca olacağını BİLMİYORDUM. bu kitap 5 günde bitirilecek bir kitap değil, çok daha kısa bir zamanda bitirirsiniz. ama benim için çok acı verici bir okumaydı, sıkıntıdan patladım, az kalsın kitap okumaktan soğuyordum. maalesef 1, o da okuma deneyimim kötü olduğu için. yoksa, mbg okumak isteyen, veya bilime ilgi duyan herkese öneririm. temel bilim öğrencileri almasın ama, sıkıntıdan ölebilirsiniz.
bu kitap beni üzdü, çünkü beğenmeyi gerçekten çok istiyordum. kitapta bir sorun yok bence, sorun benim eşşekliğim, bazı yorumlara inanıp almam. derslerde gördüğüm şeyleri anlatacağını BİLİYORDUM ama 130 sayfa boyunca olacağını BİLMİYORDUM. bu kitap 5 günde bitirilecek bir kitap değil, çok daha kısa bir zamanda bitirirsiniz. ama benim için çok acı verici bir okumaydı, sıkıntıdan patladım, az kalsın kitap okumaktan soğuyordum. maalesef 1, o da okuma deneyimim kötü olduğu için. yoksa, mbg okumak isteyen, veya bilime ilgi duyan herkese öneririm. temel bilim öğrencileri almasın ama, sıkıntıdan ölebilirsiniz.
October 26, 2022
Wissenschaftlich und verständlich
May 3, 2021
A short book by a Nobel Prize winning biologist that examines five facets of life: cells, genes, evolution, chemistry and information. The chapters are a combination of going through fairly standard accounts (Mendel's discovery of genes, the double helix, a few pages on how epigenetics mostly does not change anything, Darwin, etc.) but gets a little more speculative and conceptual when it comes to chemistry and especially life as information. That last, of course, was the centerpiece of a book also called What Is Life? with Mind and Matter and Autobiographical Sketches by Erwin Schrödinger (I've also read a third book with the same title, What Is Life?: Investigating the Nature of Life in the Age of Synthetic Biology that was quite interesting albeit journalistic).
There are a lot more pop science books by Nobel Prize winning physicists than biologists. This book was perfectly good entry to the genre but most of it was not profoundly original. In some ways the parts that were the most interesting were describing his own research on yeast, how he pieced together various discoveries and the excitement and serendipity. I wish there had been more of that.
There are a lot more pop science books by Nobel Prize winning physicists than biologists. This book was perfectly good entry to the genre but most of it was not profoundly original. In some ways the parts that were the most interesting were describing his own research on yeast, how he pieced together various discoveries and the excitement and serendipity. I wish there had been more of that.
May 12, 2025
ชีวิตคืออะไร?
เหมือนจะเป็นคำถามง่าย ๆ เรามีชีวิต ใช้ชีวิตอยู่ทุกวัน แท้จริงแล้วชีวิตคืออะไร
เล่มนี้ตอบคำถามเรื่องชีวิตผ่านมุมมองของนักชีววิทยาที่เล่าเรื่องที่เรารู้สมัยเรียนชีววิทยา จาก DNA, chromosomes, genes, cell ปฏิกิริยาเคมี, ฟิสิกส์ต่าง ๆ ที่เกิดขึ้นในร่างกาย วิวัฒนาการยาวนานนับล้านปีจนมาประกอบกันเป็นชีวิต
มันเป็นเรื่องจริงเดิม ๆ แต่ทำให้รู้สึกอัศจรรย์ใจได้เสมอ สิ่งมีชีวิตผ่านความบังเอิญมามากมายจนกลายเป็นชีวิตในปัจจุบัน และรหัสพันธุกรรมบางอย่างยังคงเดิมไม่เปลี่ยนแปลงจากสามพันล้านปี ขนลุก!! จะมีสักกี่อย่างที่คงทนยาวนานผ่านกาลเวลาได้ขนาดนั้น
ชีวิตในปัจจุบันมีอายุขัยยาวนานขึ้นมาก เราสามารถต่อสู้กับเชื้อโรค ตัดแต่งพันธุกรรม ปลูกถ่ายอวัยวะ ไปจนถึงทฤษฎีที่จะย้อนทวนความแก่ชรา แช่แข็งร่างกายเพื่อรอวันฟื้นคืนชีพ
เราจึงต้องมาตอบคำถามว่าชีวิตคืออะไร
เพราะถ้าเราเข้าใจ เราจะปกป้อง ดูแล รักษามันได้อย่างถูกต้อง
การที่เราไปยุ่งเกี่ยวกับธรรมชาติ โดยไม่มีความเข้าใจมากพอ อาจสร้างความเสียหายโดยไม่อาจย้อนคืน เฉกเช่นปัญหามากมายในปัจจุบัน
เหมือนจะเป็นคำถามง่าย ๆ เรามีชีวิต ใช้ชีวิตอยู่ทุกวัน แท้จริงแล้วชีวิตคืออะไร
เล่มนี้ตอบคำถามเรื่องชีวิตผ่านมุมมองของนักชีววิทยาที่เล่าเรื่องที่เรารู้สมัยเรียนชีววิทยา จาก DNA, chromosomes, genes, cell ปฏิกิริยาเคมี, ฟิสิกส์ต่าง ๆ ที่เกิดขึ้นในร่างกาย วิวัฒนาการยาวนานนับล้านปีจนมาประกอบกันเป็นชีวิต
มันเป็นเรื่องจริงเดิม ๆ แต่ทำให้รู้สึกอัศจรรย์ใจได้เสมอ สิ่งมีชีวิตผ่านความบังเอิญมามากมายจนกลายเป็นชีวิตในปัจจุบัน และรหัสพันธุกรรมบางอย่างยังคงเดิมไม่เปลี่ยนแปลงจากสามพันล้านปี ขนลุก!! จะมีสักกี่อย่างที่คงทนยาวนานผ่านกาลเวลาได้ขนาดนั้น
ชีวิตในปัจจุบันมีอายุขัยยาวนานขึ้นมาก เราสามารถต่อสู้กับเชื้อโรค ตัดแต่งพันธุกรรม ปลูกถ่ายอวัยวะ ไปจนถึงทฤษฎีที่จะย้อนทวนความแก่ชรา แช่แข็งร่างกายเพื่อรอวันฟื้นคืนชีพ
เราจึงต้องมาตอบคำถามว่าชีวิตคืออะไร
เพราะถ้าเราเข้าใจ เราจะปกป้อง ดูแล รักษามันได้อย่างถูกต้อง
การที่เราไปยุ่งเกี่ยวกับธรรมชาติ โดยไม่มีความเข้าใจมากพอ อาจสร้างความเสียหายโดยไม่อาจย้อนคืน เฉกเช่นปัญหามากมายในปัจจุบัน
April 16, 2022
Nobel Prize winner Paul Nurse writes about the basics of Biology in this short nonfiction book "What is Life?" Nurse covers five fundamentals of biology in a readable and accessible manner. His style is warm and humorous. His excitement and curiosity are infectious.
I like this little book. It is an excellent overview of the core concepts for people who don't have much background in biology. And any book that makes me want to crack open my old Biochemistry textbook and dust off the cobwebs is an immediate 5 stars.
I like this little book. It is an excellent overview of the core concepts for people who don't have much background in biology. And any book that makes me want to crack open my old Biochemistry textbook and dust off the cobwebs is an immediate 5 stars.
May 13, 2021
Lovely short book by a senior scientist explaining the basics of life using everyday language. Even if you know a lot of this material he writes in such lovely uncomplicated prose that it’s a joy to read. Brief memories of his childhood and career give great perspectives on the material and add a lot of humanity.
As I so often seem to think, the last couple “summing up” chapters seemed a bit weaker than the rest. Ah well, that’s ok.
As I so often seem to think, the last couple “summing up” chapters seemed a bit weaker than the rest. Ah well, that’s ok.
July 24, 2021
Simple and concise narrative on the importance of biology and our understanding of it that is needed for the Earth’s future. As a biology major and teacher, I found the concepts simplified yet reimagined, and I found them to be easily grasped by those who are not as familiar with biological sciences. Totally recommend!
January 31, 2021
Up to date on the latest science and highly acessible through 5 easy to understand lenses. It's a quick path for the everyday person to become an armchair expert in biology in a mere 160 pages. Easy and engaging.
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