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Description :
The what, why and how of life always intrigued human race. Scientists, philosophers and theologians all have tried to answer these questions in their own way.
In this interesting book, Eric Schneider and Dorion Sagan explain the basis of life by drawing a parallel between Life and the second law of thermodynamics. This second law refers to energy's inevitable tendency to change from being concentrated in one place to becoming spread out over time. In this scientific tour de force, the authors show how the second law is behind evolution, ecology, economics and even life's origin.
Working from the precept that "nature abhors a gradient," Into the Cool details how complex systems emerge, enlarge, and reproduce (a greatly ordered process) in a world tending toward disorder. From hurricanes here to life on other worlds, from human evolution to systems humans have created, this pervasive pull toward equilibrium governs life at its molecular base and at its peak in the elaborate structures of complex living systems. Schneider and Sagan organize their argument in a highly accessible manner, moving from descriptions of the basic physics behind energy flow to the organization of complex systems to the role of energy in life to the final section, which applies their concept of energy flow to politics, economics and even human health.
Into the Cool will be of interest to everyone who wonders at the organizing principles of existence, be it humanists or scientist, theologians or philosophers. Charles Darwin shook the world by showing the common ancestry of all life; Into the Cool shows the common roots in energy flow of all complex, organized and naturally functioning systems. The authors demystify thermodynamics and bring out its part in the creation of life, keeping the reader both disturbed and delighted!
Content :
Preface.
Acknowledgments
Introduction: Trouble at the EPA.
Part I: THE ENERGETIC
1. The Schrödinger Paradox.
2. Simplicity.
3. Eyes of Fire: Classical Energy Science.
4. The Cosmic Casino: Statistical Mechanics.
5. Nature Abhors a Gradient.
6. The River Must Flow: Open Systems.
7. Too Much, Not Enough: Cycles.
Part II: THE COMPLEX
8. Swirl World.
9. Physics' Own "Organisms".
10. Whirlpools and Weather.
Part III: THE LIVING
11. Thermodynamics and Life.
12. Brimstone Beginnings.
13. Blue Planet Blues.
14. Regress under Stress.
15. The Secret of Trees.
16. Into the Cool.
17. Trends in Evolution.
Part IV: THE HUMAN
18. Health, Vigor, and Longevity.
19. Economics.
20. Purpose in Life.
Appendix: Principles of Open Thermodynamic Systems.
References.
Index. No Related Books No other Books by the same author | |
AARON CHATTERJI
