rdf-syntax-grammar
mods:
  schema location: http://www.loc.gov/mods/v3 http://www.loc.gov/standards/mods/v3/mods-3-2.xsd
  title info:
    non sort: The
    title: Cosmic Zoo
    sub title: Complex Life on Many Worlds
  name:
    name part: Schulze-Makuch, Dirk.
    role:
      role term: creator
    role:
      role term: author.
  name:
    name part: Bains, William.
    role:
      role term: author.
  name:
    name part: SpringerLink (Online service)
  type of resource: text
  origin info:
    place:
      place term: gw
    date issued: 2017
    issuance: monographic
  language:
    language term: eng
  physical description:
    form: electronic
    form: electronic resource
    reformatting quality: access
    form: remote
    extent: XII, 232 p. 33 illus., 31 illus. in color. online resource.
  abstract: Are humans a galactic oddity, or will complex life with human abilities develop on planets with environments that remain habitable for long enough? In a clear, jargon-free style, two leading researchers in the burgeoning field of astrobiology critically examine the major evolutionary steps that led us from the distant origins of life to the technologically advanced species we are today. Are the key events that took life from simple cells to astronauts unique occurrences that would be unlikely to occur on other planets? By focusing on what life does - it's functional abilities - rather than specific biochemistry or anatomy, the authors provide plausible answers to this question. Systematically exploring the various pathways that led to the complex biosphere we experience on planet Earth, they show that most of the steps along that path are likely to occur on any world hosting life, with only two exceptions: One is the origin of life itself – if this is a highly improbable event, then we live in a rather “empty universe”. However, if this isn’t the case, we inevitably live in a universe containing a myriad of planets hosting complex as well as microbial life - a “cosmic zoo”. The other unknown is the rise of technologically advanced beings, as exemplified on Earth by humans. Only one technological species has emerged in the roughly 4 billion years life has existed on Earth, and we don’t know of any other technological species elsewhere. If technological intelligence is a rare, almost unique feature of Earth's history, then there can be no visitors to the cosmic zoo other than ourselves. Schulze-Makuch and Bains take the reader through the history of life on Earth, laying out a consistent and straightforward framework for understanding why we should think that advanced, complex life exists on planets other than Earth. They provide a unique perspective on the question that puzzled the human species for centuries: are we alone? .
  table of contents: Preface -- Introduction -- Part I – The Cosmic Zoo Hypothesis -- Part II – Major Transitions in Earth’s Life History.- Part III -- Are there Visitors in the Cosmic Zoo? .
  note: by Dirk Schulze-Makuch, William Bains.
  subject:
    topic: Popular works
  subject:
    topic: Evolutionary biology
  subject:
    topic: Astrobiology
  subject:
    topic: Astronomy
  subject:
    topic: Earth
  subject:
    topic: Geology
  subject:
    topic: Popular Science
  subject:
    topic: Popular Science in Astronomy
  subject:
    topic: Popular Life Sciences
  subject:
    topic: Astrobiology
  subject:
    topic: Evolutionary Biology
  subject:
    topic: Popular Earth Science
  classification: QB1-991
  classification: 520
  related item:
    title info:
      title: Springer eBooks
  identifier: 9783319620459
  identifier: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-62045-9
  record info:
    record creation date: 171120
    record change date: 20171120075934.0
    record identifier: 978-3-319-62045-9