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Lynn Margulis, one of the most original
and perceptive scientific thinkers of our time, and the
writer Dorion Sagan here present a selection from their
many essays published in the last decade and a half. This
collection includes an extraordinary memoir of Margulis'
encounter with J. Robert Oppenheimer as well as provocative
ideas on Gaia theory, symbiosis, individuality, and the
way scientific research is conducted today.
Lynn Margulis is best known for her suggestion
that mitochondria and chloroplasts, the energy-producing
components of plant and animal cells, originally evolved
as separate organisms (bacteria) and then merged with other
cells in a symbiotic union. She is also one of the founders,
with James Lovelock, of Gaia theory, the idea that the entire
biosphere is a self-regulating meta-organism. More than
in any of her and Dorion Sagan's previous books, these essays
explore the more far-reaching implications of symbiosis
as an evolutionary force. We see, for instance, how it may
have played a crucial role in brain development and how
symbiotic communities call into question the very idea of
the "individual." Taking symbiosis to its logical
conclusion, we see that if self-regulating communities are
the norm in nature, then Gaia becomes a natural expectation.
It is simply the largest example of the form living systems
take.
The collaboration of Lynn Margulis and Dorion
Sagan, scientist and writer, is unique in all of science
writing. Slanted Truths shows them at their multifaceted
best: an open challenge to conventional scientific thinking,
it is a daring and provocative introduction to some of the
most important ideas of our time.
Lynn Margulis is Distinguished University
Professor in the Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts,
Amherst. Dorion Sagan is a writer who lives in Northampton,
Mass. This is their fifth book. They have previously collaborated
on Microcosmos, Origins of Sex, The Garden
of Microbial Delights, and What Is Life? and are
at work on a new book, What Is Sex?
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