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(3 reviews)
Author: Enrico Coen
ISBN : 0691149674
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Free download Free Cells to Civilizations: The Principles of Change That Shape Life [Hardcover]
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Cells to Civilizations is the first unified account of how life transforms itself--from the production of bacteria to the emergence of complex civilizations. What are the connections between evolving microbes, an egg that develops into an infant, and a child who learns to walk and talk? Award-winning scientist Enrico Coen synthesizes the growth of living systems and creative processes, and he reveals that the four great life transformations--evolution, development, learning, and human culture--while typically understood separately, actually all revolve around shared core principles and manifest the same fundamental recipe. Coen blends provocative discussion, the latest scientific research, and colorful examples to demonstrate the links between these critical stages in the history of life.
Coen tells a story rich with genes, embryos, neurons, and fascinating discoveries. He examines the development of the zebra, the adaptations of seaweed, the cave paintings of Lascaux, and the formulations of Alan Turing. He explores how dogs make predictions, how weeds tell the time of day, and how our brains distinguish a Modigliani from a Rembrandt. Locating commonalities in important findings, Coen gives readers a deeper understanding of key transformations and provides a bold portrait for how science both frames and is framed by human culture.
A compelling investigation into the relationships between our biological past and cultural progress, Cells to Civilizations presents a remarkable story of living change.
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- Hardcover: 344 pages
- Publisher: Princeton University Press (May 7, 2012)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0691149674
- ISBN-13: 978-0691149677
- Product Dimensions: 1 x 6.3 x 9.5 inches
- Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Free Cells to Civilizations: The Principles of Change That Shape Life
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The main recurring theme of the book is the "double feedback loop", viz. a system that bears mechanisms which simultaneously but separately reinforce and inhibit certain configurations. Obviously this will lead to comparatively stable entities. These entities will transform and evolve, based on those reinforcing and inhibiting factors, but their transformation will depend on the context as well, i.e. their surroundings and environment. Such transformations can be viewed as journeys within an abstract space, and these journeys take place both in space and time.
The first half of the book is particularly exciting. It describes the nature of developmental biology at the molecular level with clarity and without oversimpification. Reading it, one does feel that one understands how an embryo can become a fully developed organism. The second half of the book is on the process of learning and ultimately culture and civilizations.
A interesting feature is the constant usage of art, paintings to be precise, to illustrate its themes. It appears that the author quite admires Cézanne, but works of other artists like Stubbs, Modigliani, Rembrandt, Picasso, and Dürer are used to liven up the text as well.
By W. Cheung
A grand scheme indeed, but I couldn't figure out how it could be applied in the real world. It falls somewhere between a revolutionary solution to all problems and complete madness. But that's what they said about Powell's contributions to theoretical anthropology. Coen seems never to have heard of anthropology by the way.
By Alan R. Beals
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