The Life Era: Cosmic Selection and Conscious Evolution

Chaisson, Eric

ISBN 10: 0871130629 / ISBN 13: 9780871130624

Published by Atlantic Monthly Pr, 1987

About this Item

First Edition, First Printing. Not price-clipped ($19.95 price intact). Published by Atlantic Monthly Press, 1987. Octavo. Gray cloth over red boards stamped in gold. Book is like new; clean with no writing or names. Sharp corners and spine straight. Binding tight and pages crisp. Dust jacket is like new with light shelf wear and a few nicks. 260 pages. ISBN: 0871130629. 100% positive feedback. 30 day money back guarantee. NEXT DAY SHIPPING! Excellent customer service. Please email with any questions or if you would like a photo. All books packed carefully and ship with free delivery confirmation/tracking. All books come with free bookmarks. Ships from Southampton, New York. We Buy Books! Individual titles, libraries, collections. Message us if you have books to sell!

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Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Life Era: Cosmic Selection and Conscious Evolution
• Publisher: Atlantic Monthly Pr
• Publication Date: 1987
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0871130629
• ISBN 13: 9780871130624
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: First Edition.
• Condition: Like New
• Dust Jacket Condition: Like New
• Seller catalogs:
  • Science & Nature

About this title

Synopsis

Looks at the three stages of cosmic evolution, discusses the idea of change, and examines our influence on the fate of our world

Reviews

This provocative "book length essay" is the second in a projected trilogy, following Cosmic Dawn, which examined the origins of matter and life and pointed the way to the Chaisson's view that, as matter grew out of cosmic energy, so in our time this process of "cosmic selection" has led to a "Life Era" that will see humans, through technology, give creative direction to evolutionincluding, perhaps, that of the cosmos. The author, an associate professor at Harvard and a researcher in astrophysics at MIT, is caught up in those ultimate questions that distinguish philosophers and theologians such as Kant, Descartes, Teilhard, Tillich, and he is in the tradition of moderns like Carl Sagan, J. S. Trefil, George Wald, Jacques Monod and others who urge science into new dimensions. Chaisson is a bedrock scientist, however, and what some might dismiss as mysticism disguised as freewheeling physics is, in fact, hard science with enriching overtones. His study of cosmic change is followed by an appended "mathematical guide" that is dazzling. Macmillan Book Clubs alternate.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

This is a fascinating and personal statement on "cosmic evolution," which the author defines as "the study of the many varied changes in the assembly and composition of energy, matter, and life in the Universe." Throughout his book, Chaisson ( Cosmic Dawn ) focuses on three interrelated questions: Where and how did the idea of "cosmic evolution" originate? How can order (via evolution) emerge from the chaotic stuff of the universe? What is the origin of the primal energy of the original universe? He believes humans are about to enter a new era that will determine their survival. This is a provocative book, and one that deals with topics of increasing interest to both laypeople and professionals. Warmly recommended for public libraries. Robert Paul, History of Science Program, Dickinson Coll., Carlisle, Penn.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.