{"title":"Nick Lane","description":"\u003cp\u003eNick Lane’s works delve into the intricacies of biology and evolution, offering profound insights into life’s most fundamental processes. His writing makes complex scientific ideas accessible and engaging, exploring themes such as energy, cellular function, and the origins of life.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eReaders can expect thought-provoking narratives that blend rigorous research with clear explanation, illuminating topics that lie at the heart of science and nature. Lane’s books invite reflection on the mysteries of existence through the lens of modern biology.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"the-vital-question-by-nick-lane-9781781250372","title":"The Vital Question","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eOne of the most exciting science writers of our time.\u003c\/em\u003e - \u003ci\u003eIndependent\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWhy is life the way it is? Bacteria evolved into complex life just once in four billion years of life on earth—and all complex life shares many strange properties, from sex to ageing and death. If life evolved on other planets, would it be the same or completely different?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn \u003cem\u003eThe Vital Question\u003c\/em\u003e, Nick Lane radically reframes evolutionary history, putting forward a cogent solution to conundrums that have troubled scientists for decades. The answer, he argues, lies in energy: how all life on Earth lives off a voltage with the strength of a bolt of lightning. In unravelling these scientific enigmas, making sense of life's quirks, Lane's explanation provides a solution to life's vital questions: why are we as we are, and why are we here at all?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis is ground-breaking science in an accessible form, in the tradition of Charles Darwin's \u003cem\u003eThe Origin of Species\u003c\/em\u003e, Richard Dawkins' \u003cem\u003eThe Selfish Gene\u003c\/em\u003e, and Jared Diamond's \u003cem\u003eGuns, Germs and Steel\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Allen \u0026 Unwin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46522720321772,"sku":"9781781250372","price":32.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/5204343482822.jpg?v=1749042674"},{"product_id":"transformer-by-nick-lane-9781788160544","title":"Transformer","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor decades, biology has been dominated by information—the power of genes. Yet in terms of information, there is no difference between a living cell and one that died a moment ago. What really animates cells and sets them apart from non-living matter? This question goes back to the flawed geniuses and heroic origins of modern biology. The answer could turn our picture of life on Earth upside down.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eTransformer\u003c\/i\u003e, Nick Lane captures a scientific renaissance that is hiding in plain sight. At its core is a cycle of reactions that transforms inorganic molecules into the building blocks of life, and the reverse—the iconic Krebs cycle that sits at the heart of metabolism. This conflicted merry-go-round of energy and matter has long taunted true understanding. Nick Lane is in the vanguard of scientists now tracing its ramifications across the tree of life.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTo grasp the Krebs cycle is to fathom the deep coherence of biology. It connects the first photosynthetic bacteria with our own peculiar cells. It links the emergence of consciousness with the inevitability of death. And it puts the subtle differences between individuals in the same grand story as the rise of the living world itself.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eLife is at root a chemical phenomenon: this is its deep logic.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Allen \u0026 Unwin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46556531327212,"sku":"9781788160544","price":63.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/18134483482824.jpg?v=1750156290"},{"product_id":"transformer-by-nick-lane-9781788160551","title":"Transformer","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eOne of my favourite science writers\u003c\/em\u003e - Bill Gates\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eHugely important\u003c\/em\u003e - Jim Al-Khalili\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFor decades, biology has been dominated by information—the power of genes. Yet there is no difference in information content between a living cell and one that died a moment ago. A better question goes back to the formative years of biology: what processes animate cells and set them apart from lifeless matter?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn \u003cem\u003eTransformer\u003c\/em\u003e, Nick Lane turns the standard view upside down, capturing an extraordinary scientific renaissance that is hiding in plain sight. At its core is an amazing cycle of reactions that uses energy to transform inorganic molecules into the building blocks of life—and the reverse. To understand this cycle is to fathom the deep coherence of the living world. It connects the origin of life with the devastation of cancer, the first photosynthetic bacteria with our own mitochondria, sulphurous sludges with the emergence of consciousness, and the trivial differences between ourselves with the large-scale history of our planet.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Gardners Books Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46556531687660,"sku":"9781788160551","price":26.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/18134553482824.jpg?v=1750156385"},{"product_id":"power-sex-suicide-by-nick-lane-9780198831907","title":"Power, Sex, Suicide","description":"Mitochondria are tiny structures located inside our cells that carry out the essential task of producing energy for the cell. They are found in all complex living things, and in that sense, they are fundamental for driving complex life on the planet. But there is much more to them than that. Mitochondria have their own DNA, with their own small collection of genes, separate from those in the cell nucleus. It is thought that they were once\nbacteria living independent lives. Their enslavement within the larger cell was a turning point in the evolution of life, enabling the development of complex organisms and, closely related, the origin of\ntwo sexes. Unlike the DNA in the nucleus, mitochondrial DNA is passed down exclusively (or almost exclusively) via the female line. That's why it has been used by some researchers to trace human ancestry daughter-to-mother, to 'Mitochondrial Eve'. Mitochondria give us important information about our evolutionary history. And that's not all. Mitochondrial genes mutate much faster than those in the nucleus because of the free radicals produced in their energy-generating role. This high mutation\nrate lies behind our ageing and certain congenital diseases. The latest research suggests that mitochondria play a key role in degenerative diseases such as cancer, through their involvement in\nprecipitating cell suicide. Mitochondria, then, are pivotal in power, sex, and suicide. In this fascinating and thought-provoking book, Nick Lane brings together the latest research findings in this exciting field to show how our growing understanding of mitochondria is shedding light on how complex life evolved, why sex arose (why don't we just bud?), and why we age and die. This understanding is of fundamental importance, both in understanding how we and all other\ncomplex life came to be, but also in order to be able to control our own illnesses, and delay our degeneration and death. Oxford Landmark Science books are 'must-read' classics of\nmodern science writing which have crystallized big ideas, and shaped the way we think.","brand":"Gardners Books Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47401891987692,"sku":"9780198831907","price":49.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/51Mmyq_orEL._SL1500.jpg?v=1773802511"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookhero.pro\/collections\/nick-lane.oembed","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}