The newest addition to John Brockman’s Edge.org series explores life
itself, bringing together the world’s leading biologists, geneticists, and
evolutionary theorists—including Richard Dawkins, Edward O. Wilson, J.
Craig Venter, and Freeman Dyson. Scientists’ understanding of life is
progressing more rapidly than at any point in human history, from the
extraordinary decoding of DNA to the controversial emergence of
biotechnology. Featuring pioneering biologists, geneticists, physicists,
and science writers, Life explains just how far we’ve come—and takes a
brilliantly educated guess at where we’re heading. Richard Dawkins and J.
Craig Venter compare genes to digital information, and sketch the frontiers
of genomic research. Edward O. Wilson reveals what ants can teach us about
building a superorganism—and, in turn, about how cells build an organism.
Elsewhere, David Haig reports new findings on how mothers and fathers
individually influence the human genome, while Kary Mullis covers cutting
edge treatments for dangerous viruses. And there’s much more in this
fascinating volume. We may never have all the answers. But the thinkers
collected in Life are asking questions that will keep us dreaming for
generations.