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Echoes of Life

What Fossil Molecules Reveal about Earth History

By: Susan M. Gaines,Geoffrey Eglinton,Jurgen Rullkotter

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Echoes of Life

What Fossil Molecules Reveal about Earth History

By: Susan M. Gaines,Geoffrey Eglinton,Jurgen Rullkotter

In 1936 a German chemist identified certain organic molecules that he had extracted from ancient rocks and oils as the fossil remains of chlorophyll--presumably from plants that had lived and died millions of years in the past. It was another twenty-five years before this insight was developed and the term "biomarker" coined to describe fossil molecules whose molecular structures could reveal the presence of otherwise elusive organisms and processes.Echoes of Life is the story of these molecules and how they are illuminating the history of the earth and its life. It is also the story of how a few maverick organic chemists and geologists defied the dictates of their disciplines and--at a time when the natural sciences were fragmenting into ever-more-specialized sub-disciplines--reunited chemistry, biology and geology in a common endeavor. The rare combination of rigorous science and literary style--woven into a historic narrative that moves naturally from the simple to the complex--make Echoes of Life a book to be read for pleasure and contemplation, as well as education.

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Page Count

376

Publisher

Oxford University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0195176197

ISBN 13

9780195176193

Echoes of Life

What Fossil Molecules Reveal about Earth History

By: Susan M. Gaines,Geoffrey Eglinton,Jurgen Rullkotter

Write a review Read reviews Take a Quiz Solve Book Puzzle

Echoes of Life

What Fossil Molecules Reveal about Earth History

By: Susan M. Gaines,Geoffrey Eglinton,Jurgen Rullkotter

In 1936 a German chemist identified certain organic molecules that he had extracted from ancient rocks and oils as the fossil remains of chlorophyll--presumably from plants that had lived and died millions of years in the past. It was another twenty-five years before this insight was developed and the term "biomarker" coined to describe fossil molecules whose molecular structures could reveal the presence of otherwise elusive organisms and processes.Echoes of Life is the story of these molecules and how they are illuminating the history of the earth and its life. It is also the story of how a few maverick organic chemists and geologists defied the dictates of their disciplines and--at a time when the natural sciences were fragmenting into ever-more-specialized sub-disciplines--reunited chemistry, biology and geology in a common endeavor. The rare combination of rigorous science and literary style--woven into a historic narrative that moves naturally from the simple to the complex--make Echoes of Life a book to be read for pleasure and contemplation, as well as education.

Average ratings

N/A

5

0%

4

0%

3

0%

2

0%

1

0%

Solve jigsaw puzzle

Age

Page Count

376

Publisher

Oxford University Press

Published Date

ISBN 10

0195176197

ISBN 13

9780195176193