A game-changing book on the origins of life, called the most important scientific discovery 'since the Copernican revolution' in the Observer. 'More people should know about this guy's work' - Bill Gates.
Nick Lane has published four critically acclaimed books, translated into 20 languages; most recently The Vital Question. He was awarded the 2015 Biochemical Society Award for his outstanding contribution to the molecular life sciences. Life Ascending won the 2010 Royal Society Prize for Science Books. Nick is a biochemist in the Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment at University College London. 'Like his forebears in that same department - Steve Jones, JBS Haldane - he's that rare species, a scientist who can illuminate the bewildering complexities of biology with clear, luminous words.' - Observer 'One of the most exciting science writers of our time.' - Independent
An amazing inquiry into the origins of life. I loved it. -- Bill
Gates
He is an original researcher and thinker and a passionate and
stylish populariser. His theories are ingenious, breathtaking in
scope, and challenging in every sense ... intellectually what Lane
is proposing, if correct, will be as important as the Copernican
revolution and perhaps, in some ways, even more so. -- Peter Forbes
* Guardian *
Nick Lane...is emerging as one of the most imaginative thinkers
about the evolution of life on Earth...a scintillating synthesis of
a new theory of life -- Clive Cookson * Financial Times *
One of the deepest, most illuminating books about the history of
life to have been published in recent years. * The Economist *
One of the pleasures of good science writing is that it can awaken,
or feed, this kind of curiosity and engagement in the reader,
expanding his or her horizons in ways not previously imagined. And,
for those willing to make the effort with a sometimes demanding but
always clear text, Nick Lane's new book succeeds brilliantly ... I
cannot recommend The Vital Question too highly. Lane's vivid
descriptions and powerful reasoning will amaze and grip the reader
-- Caspar Henderson * Sunday Telegraph *
Nick Lane is not just a writer of words about science, he is also a
doer of experiments and a thinker of thoughts. And these days he is
hot on the trail of one of the biggest ideas in the universe: the
meaning of the word "life". In this, his third book about energy
and life, he comes triumphantly close to cracking the secret of why
life is the way it is, to a depth that would boggle any ancient
philosopher's mind. Solving this mystery leads Lane into a world of
ideas that only Lewis Carroll could make sense of. Six impossible
things become believable before breakfast when you are reading a
Lane book, and there are plenty here... Like the best science
writers, Lane never glosses over the detail. Instead he turns it
into a series of detective stories. Poirot-like he leads you from
the crime to the perpetrator, from the puzzle to the solution. The
difference from a detective story is that these tales are real, and
fundamental to life itself -- Matt Ridley * Times *
this is a book of vast scope and ambition, brimming with bold and
important ideas...The arguments are powerful and persuasive...If
you're interested in life, you should read this book...it does tell
an incredible, epic story -- Michael Le Page * New Scientist *
Lane highlights what I think should be a fourth grand theory of
life, one that is often overlooked as we remain bewitched by DNA
and its several powers. Simply, the idea that life is a chemical
reaction... The Vital Question is a bold, eloquent, confident book,
and not an easy ride...Don't let that put you off; even The Origin
of Species has its chewy sections. Like all great works, it
requires effort, and Lane offers no quarter for the casual
reader...Nick Lane is not only a master storyteller, but this is
his research...he's that rare species, a scientist who can
illuminate the bewildering complexities of biology with clear,
luminous words -- Adam Rutherford * Observer *
A tour de force of inventive science -- Philip Ball * Prospect
*
Intellectually thrilling -- Mark Haddon
A potent book, one that not only brings you up to date with biology
but also stuns you with the wonder of it all -- Bryan Appleyard *
Sunday Times *
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