Why I love this book
I have spent a lifetime researching the deep history of life.
All the books I’ve chosen demonstrate a convergence of exciting ideas, and I love the way Peter Brannen’s book joins the dots in a totally fresh way, showing how life gained energy at key stages, all involving CO2. It is the starting point for every living thing on the planet; it has regulated the climate throughout 4 billion years, and through the fossil remains of ancient photosynthesis has powered our world since the Industrial Revolution.
In a world seeking answers to deep-rooted problems, this is the most powerful message for the future that we need. I have never before been so mindblown by a book.
Why I love thi…
Why I love this book
I have spent a lifetime researching the deep history of life.
All the books I’ve chosen demonstrate a convergence of exciting ideas, and I love the way Peter Brannen’s book joins the dots in a totally fresh way, showing how life gained energy at key stages, all involving CO2. It is the starting point for every living thing on the planet; it has regulated the climate throughout 4 billion years, and through the fossil remains of ancient photosynthesis has powered our world since the Industrial Revolution.
In a world seeking answers to deep-rooted problems, this is the most powerful message for the future that we need. I have never before been so mindblown by a book.
Why I love this book
I like the way Paul Hawken focuses on the marvellous richness of the world that carbon made, effectively reversing the title and subtitle.
The book is a celebration of the cornucopia of riches that carbon’s astonishing fertility and diverse scope allow, when left to itself. Of the microbes, Hawken writes: “If the little things run the world, the littlest things of all may hold the greatest influence.”
On a human scale, Hawken is a champion of the wisdom of traditional culture that lives as part of nature rather than apart from it, as industrial man does. Rewilding will be an important part of the way forward for carbon, and Hawken is an eloquent advocate.
By Paul Hawken ,
Why should I read it?
1 author picked Carbon as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.
What is this book about?
A journey into the world of carbon, the most versatile element on the planet, by the New York Times bestselling author Paul Hawken
Carbon is the only element that animates the entirety of the living world. Though comprising a tiny fraction of Earth’s composition, our planet is lifeless without it. Yet it is maligned as the driver of climate change, scorned as an errant element blamed for the possible demise of civilization.
Here, Paul Hawken looks at the flow of life through the lens of carbon. Embracing a panoramic view of carbon’s omnipresence, he explores how this ubiquitous and essential…
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Why I love this book
I encountered the work of Geoffrey Ozin, a distinguished, award-winning chemist, some years ago, and was delighted to see him writing on this subject.
There are many angles to the story of CO2, and Ozin approaches the question as one of chemical engineering. Chemical engineers have known for decades how CO2 might be the basis of many industries that currently rely on fossil feedstocks.
This pioneering book on CO2, published back in 2020, starts from the premise that fossil feedstocks lie behind far more consumer products than most people imagine and that carbon dioxide can be used to replace them.
Since writing the book, Ozin has developed a significant new technique to enhance the economic viability of turning carbon dioxide into fuel, chemicals, and materials technologies.
By Geoffrey Ozin , Mireille Ghoussoub ,
Why should I read it?
1 author picked The Story of CO2 as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.
What is this book about?
The climate crisis requires that we drastically reduce carbon dioxide emissions across all sectors of society. The Story of CO2 contributes to this vital conversation by highlighting the cutting-edge science and emerging technologies - a number of which are already commercially available - that can transform carbon dioxide into a myriad of products such as feedstock chemicals, polymers, pharmaceuticals, and fuels. This approach allows us to reconsider CO2 as a resource, and to add “carbon capture and use” to our other tools in the fight against catastrophic climate change.
The Story of CO2 explores all aspects of carbon dioxide, from…
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Why I love this book
I love the way that Everything Evolves insists that the way that technology develops really is the same process as evolution in nature.
People have often used this idea metaphorically, but Vellend shows how the concept of evolution didn’t have to start in biology. It’s just that Darwin’s idea had maximum impact for obvious reasons.
The book reinforces the ideas in Peter Brannen’s, showing that there is now a fresh way of looking at, yes, Everything.
By Mark Vellend ,
Why should I read it?
1 author picked Everything Evolves as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.
What is this book about?
How the science of evolution explains how everything came to be, from bacteria and blue whales to cell phones, cities, and artificial intelligence
Everything Evolves reveals how evolutionary dynamics shape the world as we know it and how we are harnessing the principles of evolution in pursuit of many goals, such as increasing the global food supply and creating artificial intelligence capable of evolving its own solutions to thorny problems.
Taking readers on an astonishing journey, Mark Vellend describes how all observable phenomena in the universe can be understood through two sciences. The first is physics. The second is the…
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