Planet of microbes : the perils and potential of Earth's essential life forms / Ted Anton.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Anton, Ted, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Microorganisms--Popular works.

Microorganisms.

Environmental Microbiology.

Medical Subjects:

Environmental Microbiology.

Local Subjects:

Microorganisms.

Genre:

Popular works.

Physical Description:

vi, 327 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Chicago : The University of Chicago Press, 2017.

Summary:

This book takes readers into the latest discoveries about early microbial life, where findings from the earth's furthest extremes are seeking to reshape the future of our planet and ourselves. As scientists take the next step in applying the lessons of popular and controversial research, the world's tiniest, and sometimes most dangerous, microorganisms are being tapped as allies in achieving better health and sustainable energy, while revealing fundamental clues to the mystery of where we came from. --Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Out of the air: searching for life's origin. Lightning in the lab

The instigator

In the hot vents with RNA

Return of the ancient ones

Shooting stars

Turning the tide: seeking better health. Killer membranes: the labs where life is made

Relics of the deep: future from the past

In the garden: microbes, power, and health

Lost city: at the alkaline seeps

Moonlight: symbiosis, the squid, and a new science

Microbes and money: a sustainable future. The universe within: the new microbial medicine

Martian chronicles: killer microbes from outer space

Sustainability: toward a microbe economy

A river runs through it: the hope and hype of microbes.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 277-311) and index.

ISBN:

9780226353944

022635394X

OCLC:

983799176