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Light and Life by Michael Gross (2003, Hardcover)

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About this product

Product Identifiers

PublisherOxford University Press, Incorporated

ISBN-100198564805

ISBN-139780198564805

eBay Product ID (ePID)2387341

Product Key Features

Book TitleLight and Life

Number of Pages174 Pages

LanguageEnglish

TopicLife Sciences / Ecology, Life Sciences / Biology

Publication Year2003

IllustratorYes

GenreScience

AuthorMichael Gross

FormatHardcover

Dimensions

Item Height0.7 in

Item Weight10.6 Oz

Item Length8.5 in

Item Width5.4 in

Additional Product Features

Intended AudienceTrade

LCCN2003-273463

ReviewsIntroduction 1. The right place at the right time 2. The oxygen revolution 3. Creatures that glow in the dark 4. Like a moth to the flame 5. Seeing and perceiving 6. Changing ideas about light Bibliography and further reading Index

Dewey Edition21

Dewey Decimal571.455

Table Of ContentIntroduction1. The right place at the right time2. The oxygen revolution3. Creatures that glow in the dark4. Like a moth to the flame5. Seeing and perceiving6. Changing ideas about lightFurther readingIndex

SynopsisThere would be no life on Earth without light from the Sun, and life would not be as highly evolved as it is had it not made the best use of light's energy and information for using photosynthesis, biological clocks, and vision. In Light and Life, Michael Gross explores six major aspects of the complex and fascinating interplay between light and life, ranging from the mythical role of the Sun in ancient cultures to the latest advances in scientific research, coveringphotosynthesis, bioluminescence, vision, perception, and biological clocks., Light, more than any other physical phenomenon, lies at the heart of almost every aspect of life. To give just one example: photosynthesis, which converts sunlight into usable energy, creates the calories that sustain you, the oxygen you breathe, even the ozone layer that protects you from dangerous radiation. Biochemist Michael Gross takes us on a fascinating, far reaching exploration of light and life, ranging from the big bang to the impact of a single photon on the human retina. Light and Life ranges from the formation of the solar system and the conditions that allowed life to arise on earth, to the ever-deepening interaction between light and life in all its myriad forms. In a breezy and informative style, Gross explains the "oxygen revolution," when photosynthesis changed not only life but the planet itself (by pumping oxygen into the atmosphere and creating the ozone layer, among other things). He describes the workings of chloroplasts, and the most bizarre aspect of light's relationship to life: bioluminescence, the generation of light by plants and animals (from the flashlight fish, which hunts with its own high-beams, to a photoplankton that lights up to attract predators of its predators). Gross is at his most illuminating as he explores the relationship of the human body to light, from the structure of the eye, to vitamin D synthesis, to circadian rhythms. He concludes with a thoughtful rumination on the historically central place of the sun and light in human cultures. Packed with eye-catching illustrations and boxed features on important scientific topics, Light and Life is science writing at its brightest., Light, like no other physical phenomenon, is linked in a wide variety of ways with the biological phenomenon of life. We can read this page because light is reflected from it, and carries the information to the retina; the oxygen we breathe was produced by photosynthesis; our sense of alertness relies on our biological clock, set using the cues of light and dark. Michael Gross explores the symbiotic relationship of light and life in this intriguing and entertaining book. Starting with astronomy and our relationship with the Sun and dependence on photosynthesis, he then turns to some of the stranger outcomes of the relationship - bioluminescent creatures, and their evolutionary significance. Finally he looks at the influence of light on biological time-keeping, the focus of much current scientific research. Life would not be here without light, and it would not have evolved as it has done had it not made the best possible use of light's energy and information content for using photosynthesis, biological clocks, and vision. This book explores all these aspects of the fascinating interplay of these two phenomena in a lively manner using many intriguing examples.

LC Classification NumberQH515