000			02465cam a2200337Ii 4500
001			on1200577631
003			OCoLC
007			ta
008			210128s2020 mauab e 001 0 eng d
020			_a9780262044486
020			_a026204448X
035			_a(OCoLC)1200577631
050			_aQH325 _b.T39 2020
100	1		_aTaylor, Marianne, _d1972-
245	1	4	_aThe story of life in 10 1/2 species / _cMarianne Taylor.
246	1		_aStory of life in ten and a half species
246	1		_aStory of life in ten and one half species
246	1		_aStory of life in ten 1/2 species
260			_aCambridge, Massachusetts : _bThe MIT Press, _c2020.
300			_a256 p. : _bill. (some col.), maps.
500			_aIncludes index.
505	0		_aFern -- Virus -- Nautilus -- Stick insect -- Sponge -- Human -- Giraffe -- Dusky seaside sparrow -- Soft-shelled turtle -- Darwin's finches -- Artificial life.
520			_aIf an alien visitor were to collect ten souvenir life forms to represent life on earth, which would they be? This is the thought-provoking premise of Marianne Taylor's The Story of Life in 10 and a Half Species. Each life forms explains a key aspect about life on Earth. From the sponge that seems to be a plant but is really an animal to the almost extinct soft-shelled turtle deemed extremely unique and therefore extremely precious, these examples reveal how life itself is arranged across time and space, and how humanity increasingly dominates that vision. Taylor, a prolific science writer, considers the chemistry of a green plant and ponders the possibility of life beyond our world; investigates the virus in an attempt to determine what a life form is; and wonders if the human--"a distinct and very dominant species with an inevitably biased view of life"-- could evolve in a new direction. She tells us that the giraffe was one species, but is now four; that the dusky seaside sparrow may be revived through "re-evolution," or cloning; explains the significance of Darwin's finch to evolution; and much more. The "half" species is artificial intelligence. Itself an experiment to understand and model life, AI is central to our future--although from the alien visitor's standpoint, unlikely to inherit the earth in the long run.
650		4	_aLife _xOrigin.
650		4	_aEvolution (Biology)
650		4	_aNatural history.
650		4	_aSpecies.
650		4	_aBiodiversity.
650		4	_aBiology _xClassification.
942			_2lcc _cBK
999			_c329 _d329