Chemical Evolution: Origin of the Elements, Molecules, and Living Systems - Softcover

Mason, Stephen F.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0198557434 ISBN 13: 9780198557432

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 1993

Synopsis

This remarkable new book is for everyone interested in the origin and evolution of the universe. It relates the history of chemicals, from the earliest generation of the light elements in the Big Bang, to their transformation into heavier atoms and their subsequent molecular evolution into myriad forms, including life on Earth. Spanning both organic and inorganic chemical combinations, the survey thus covers billions of years and involves evidence coming from the analysis of long-extinct as well as ongoing processes. The techniques used in this fascinating study are also described. They include the analysis of many sources: isotopes from ancient nuclear reactions and still-active radionuclides; molecules from space--frozen in meteorites or continuously generated in vast interstellar clouds; and the detritus of volcanic and geochemical activity. This is also the story of the origin of life, which can be biochemically detected through the modern descendants of early microbial life-forms and from laboratory experiments in prebiotic chemistry. The author also describes the history of ideas in the study of chemistry and the development of modern theories on chemical evolution. This is a highly readable account of central issues and ideas in modern science that will be read with absorbing interest by a wide range of students, researchers, and general readers.

About this title

About the Author

Stephen F. Mason, Emeritus Professor of Chemistry, King's College, London, and Honorary Research Fellow in History and Philosophy of Science, University of Cambridge.

Review

`It is an intellectual tour de force which makes fascinating reading.' Times Higher Education Supplement

'This book is a delight ... It presents a state-of-the-art survey of the major fields that have developed out of 19th century chemistry ... It is difficult to survey so many diverse fields; Professor Mason has succeeded brilliantly.'
Chemistry in Britain

'A welcome paperback version. When first noticed (Ambix, 39 (1992), 153) the author's handling of stereochemical ideas was particularly praised.'
Journal of the Society for History of Alchemy and Chemistry, Vol. 40, March 1993

'The publishers of this book are to be congratulated on commissioning an author who has an established reputation in both fields and whose book deserves to be taken very seriously. One must be grateful for a book that is clearly written, well-illustrated ... Mason's book gives a lucid account
of many exciting developments in modern science.'
Colin A. Russell, Open University, Science and Christian Belief, Vol. 5, No. 2

Edition details

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 1993
• ISBN 10: 0198557434
• ISBN 13: 9780198557432
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 330