The Earth teems with life: in its oceans, forests, skies and cities. Yet there's a black hole at the heart of biology. We do not know why complex life is the way it is, or, for that matter, how life first began. In The Vital Question, award-winning author and biochemist Nick Lane radically reframes evolutionary history, putting forward a solution to conundrums that have puzzled generations of scientists. For two and a half billion years, from the very origins of life, single-celled organisms such as bacteria evolved without changing their basic form. Then, on just one occasion in four billion years, they made the jump to complexity. All complex life, from mushrooms to man, shares puzzling features, such as sex, which are unknown in bacteria. How and why did this radical transformation happen? The answer, Lane argues, lies in energy: all life on Earth lives off a voltage with the strength of a lightning bolt. Building on the pillars of evolutionary theory, Lane's hypothesis draws on cutting-edge research into the link between energy and cell biology, in order to deliver a compelling account of evolution from the very origins of life to the emergence of multicellular organisms, while offering deep insights into our own lives and deaths. Both rigorous and enchanting, The Vital Question provides a solution to life's vital question: why are we as we are, and indeed, why are we here at all?
Excellent and imaginative. . . . A fascinating book for anyone interested in life and evolution, and how these discoveries were made. --Lewis Wolpert"
Lane . . . writes about tricky topics like the chemistry of photosynthesis with grace and ease. . . . He not only reports on the latest research on each topic but also sometimes steps in with intriguing ideas of his own. --Carl Zimmer"
With clarity and vigor . . . Lane shows how the critical components and mechanisms of complex life . . . could have developed. --Peter Dizikes"
[Nick Lane] proves an able guide through treacherous scientific terrain. He writes in lucid, accessible prose, and while the science may get dense, the reader will be rewarded with a strikingly unconventional view of biology.--Tim Requarth
What is life? How and where did it begin, even before the advent of eukaryotes? Lane tackles those and other burning issues (sex and death) in a book as brimming with fascination as could be.--Ray Olson
One of the deepest, most illuminating books about the history of life to have been published in recent years.
Masterful . This terribly important book is a manifesto for the future of basic biology.--Adam Rutherford"
Comes triumphantly close to cracking the secret of why life is the way it is, to a depth that would boggle any ancient philosopher's mind.--Matt Ridley
A scintillating synthesis of a new theory of life.--Clive Cookson
An exciting tale, thrillingly told . This is a potent book, one that not only brings you up to date with biology but also stuns you with the wonder of it all.--Bryan Appleyard"
