Biocivilisations (Paperback)
Language: English
Published by Chelsea Green Publishing Co, White River Junction, 2023
- Softcover
- New
Seller: AussieBookSeller, Truganina, VIC, AustraliaAussieBookSeller
AbeBooks seller since June 22, 2007
Condition: New
US$ 46.42
Quantity: 1 available
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Paperback. 'A brilliant book [that] shows a way out of the destructive trap of Anthropocentric arrogance.' Vandana Shiva, from the Foreword'Read this book if you would like to understand the intelligence of living systems.' Dr Denis Noble, University of Oxford'A welcoming yet fiercely challenging and provocative read shining a light on the way we look at the science of life.' LoveReadingWhat is life? This is arguably the fundamental question in all of science, and yet many scientists believe that life can be reduced to mechanistic factors, such as genes and information codes. But in a world as rich and complex as this one, can such an assertion really be true? Biocivilisations is a thrillingly original look at the mystery of life and a recognition of the complex civilisations of bacteria, viruses, fungi, plants and animals that have preceded the human world by billions of years. Dr Predrag Slijepcevic, senior lecturer in the Department of Life Sciences at Brunel University, reconsiders the limited scope and timeframe of our current 'scientific revolution' and shares how - from the tiniest bacteria to the largest mammals - the living world has long fostered ancient biocivilisations: how ants practice agriculture, how insects perform surgery, how trees conduct research, how slime moulds build networks as complex as our modern transportations systems and more. More than 99.99 percent of life on Earth has existed without humanity and life will continue without humans long into the future.Biocivilisations challenges us to reconsider the limited scope and time-window of our current 'scientific revolution' and to fundamentally reimagine what we call 'life on Earth' by posing a powerful question: Are we really the intelligent masters over nature we think we are? Shipping may be from our Sydney, NSW warehouse or from our UK or US warehouse, depending on stock availability.…
Seller Inventory # 9781645021384
- Title
- Biocivilisations (Paperback)
- Author
- Predrag B. Slijepcevic
- Publisher
- Chelsea Green Publishing Co, White River Junction
- Publication year
- 2023
- Condition
- new
- Binding
- Paperback
- Language
- English
- ISBN 10
- 1645021386
- ISBN 13
- 9781645021384
"A brilliant book [that] shows a way out of the destructive trap of Anthropocentric arrogance."—Vandana Shiva, author of Terra Viva
"An unusually thought-provoking and ambitious book."—Dr. James A. Shapiro, author of Evolution: A View from the 21st Century
Biocivilisations is an important, original rethinking of the mystery of life and its deep uncertainty, exploring the complex civilisations that existed on Earth long before humans.
What is life? Many scientists believe life can be reduced to ‘mechanistic’ factors, such as genes and information codes. Yet there is a growing army of scientists, philosophers and artists who reject this view. The gene metaphor is not only too simplistic but deeply misleading. If there is a way to reduce life to a single principle, that principle must acknowledge the creativity of life, turning genetic determinism on its head.
The term biocivilisations is the acknowledgement of this uncertainty of life, as opposed to a quasi-certainty of the human position governed by a narrow time window of the scientific revolution. Life existed without humans for more than 99.99 percent of the Earth’s existence. Life will also continue without humans long after our inevitable extinction.
In Biocivilisations, Dr Predrag Slijepčević shows how bacteria, amoebas, plants, insects, birds, whales, elephants and countless other species not only preceded human beings but demonstrate elements of how we celebrate human civilisation – complex communication, agriculture, science, art, medicine and more.
Humans must try to adopt this wisdom from other biocivilisations that have long preceded our own. By rethinking the current scientific paradigm, Dr Slijepčević makes clear that a transformation – from a naïve young species into a more mature species in tune with its surroundings – will save us from our own violence and the violence we inflict on the rest of our living planet.
"Read this book if you would like to understand the intelligence of living systems."—Dr Denis Noble, University of Oxford
"Synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
About the Author
Vandana Shiva is a world-renowned environmental thinker and activist, a leader in the International Forum on Globalisation, and of the Slow Food Movement. Director of Navdanya and of the Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology, and a tireless crusader for farmers’, peasants’, and women’s rights, she is the author and editor of a score of influential books, among them Oneness vs. the 1%; Making Peace with the Earth; Soil Not Oil; Globalization’s New Wars; Seed Sovereignty, Food Security: Women in the Vanguard; and Who Really Feeds the World?
Shiva is the recipient of over twenty international awards, including the Right Livelihood Award (1993); the Medal of the Presidency of the Italian Republic (1998); the Horizon 3000 Award (Austria, 2001); the John Lennon-Yoko Ono Grant for Peace (2008); the Save the World Award (2009); the Sydney Peace Prize (2010); the Calgary Peace Prize (2011); and the Thomas Merton Award (2011). She was the Fukuoka Grand Prize Laureate in 2012.
"About the title" may belong to another edition of this title.
AussieBookSeller
Truganina, VIC, Australia
AbeBooks seller since June 22, 2007
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