A world from dust : how the periodic table shaped life / Ben McFarland ; illustrations by Gala Bent and Mary Anderson.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

McFarland, Ben (Benjamin J.), author.

Contributor:

Bent, Gala, illustrator.

Anderson, Mary, illustrator.

Series:

Oxford scholarship online.

Oxford scholarship online

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Chemical elements.

Periodic law.

Periodic table of the elements.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (353 p.)

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York, New York : Oxford University Press, 2016.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

'A World From Dust' describes how a set of chemical rules combined with the principles of evolution in order to create an environment in which life as we know it could unfold. With simple mathematics, these predictable rules led to the advent of the planet itself, as well as cells, organs and organelles, ecosystems, and increasingly complex life forms. It provides an accessible discussion of a geological history as well, describing how the inorganic matter on Earth underwent chemical reactions with air and water, allowing for life to emerge from the world's first rocks.

Contents:

Cover

A World from Dust

Copyright

Dedication

Contents

Acknowledgments

Author's Note

1. Arsenic Life?

2. Predicting the Chemistry inside a Cell

3. Unfolding the Periodic Table

4. The Triple-​Point Planet

5. Seven Chemical Clues to First Life

6. Wheels within Wheels

7. The Risk and Reward of Sunlight

8. One Step Back, Two Steps Forward

9. Cracked Open and Knit Together by Oxygen

10. The Return of the Exiled Elements

11. How Chemistry Shaped History

12. A Familiar Refrain

Glossary

References

Index.

Notes:

Previously issued in print: 2016.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

0-19-027503-0

0-19-755960-3

0-19-027502-2

OCLC:

957125408