New York Times bestseller - Life on the Edge alters our
understanding of our world's fundamental dynamics through the use of
quantum mechanics.
Life is the most extraordinary phenomenon in the known universe; but how
did it come to be? Even in an age of cloning and artificial biology, the
remarkable truth remains: nobody has ever made anything living entirely
out of dead material. Life remains the only way to make life. Are we
still missing a vital ingredient in its creation?
Using first-hand experience at the cutting edge of science, Jim
Al-Khalili and Johnjoe Macfadden reveal that missing ingredient to be
quantum mechanics. Drawing on recent ground-breaking experiments around
the world, each chapter in Life on the Edge illustrates one of life's
puzzles: How do migrating birds know where to go? How do we really smell
the scent of a rose? How do our genes copy themselves with such
precision? Life on the Edge accessibly reveals how quantum mechanics
can answer these probing questions of the universe.
Guiding the reader through the rapidly unfolding discoveries of the last
few years, Al-Khalili and McFadden describe the explosive new field of
quantum biology and its potentially revolutionary applications, while
offering insights into the biggest puzzle of all: what is life? As they
brilliantly demonstrate in these groundbreaking pages, life exists on
the quantum edge.
Winner, Stephen Hawking Medal for Science Communication
