{"product_id":"the-vital-question-energy-evolution-and-the-origins-of-complex-life-9780393088816","title":"The Vital Question: Energy  Evolution  and the Origins of Complex Life","description":"\u003cp\u003eTo explain the mystery of how life evolved on Earth  Nick Lane explores the deep link between energy and genes. The Earth teems with life: in its oceans  forests  skies and cities. Yet theres a black hole at the heart of biology. We do not know why complex life is the way it is  or  for that matter  how life first began. In The Vital Question  award-winning author and biochemist Nick Lane radically reframes evolutionary history  putting forward a solution to conundrums that have puzzled generations of scientists. For two and a half billion years  from the very origins of life  single-celled organisms such as bacteria evolved without changing their basic form. Then  on just one occasion in four billion years  they made the jump to complexity. All complex life  from mushrooms to man  shares puzzling features  such as sex  which are unknown in bacteria. How and why did this radical transformation happen? The answer  Lane argues  lies in energy: all life on Earth lives off a voltage with the strength of a lightning bolt. Building on the pillars of evolutionary theory  Lanes hypothesis draws on cutting-edge research into the link between energy and cell biology  in order to deliver a compelling account of evolution from the very origins of life to the emergence of multicellular organisms  while offering deep insights into our own lives and deaths. Both rigorous and enchanting  The Vital Question provides a solution to lifes vital question: why are we as we are  and indeed  why are we here at all?\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45647032483893,"sku":"ByrdShop_0393088812","price":22.54,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780393088816.jpg?v=1781686310","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/the-vital-question-energy-evolution-and-the-origins-of-complex-life-9780393088816","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}