After this, the only way is up, and we head forward through time to review the emergence of more complex organisms later chapters discuss the oxygenation of the atmosphere, emergence of eukaryotes and the Cambrian Explosion, ending with a brief look for life on other planets and the controversies of the Martian meteorite ALH84001. We then move even further back to the very beginning to discuss the origin of life, covering the different theories and the problems associated with life emerging from simple chemical beginnings.
The story is enlivened by the author’s personal experience, without overshadowing the main themes.Īfter providing the reader with a solid grounding in the relationship of organisms in the tree of life, the author takes us to the Proterozoic of Spitsbergen, explaining how we recognize and tease out information from the smallest preserved fossils to understand how they lived, before moving on to more challenging arguments for life in deep time in the Archaean rocks of Western Australia and South Africa.
Andrew Knoll successfully brings these seemingly disparate topics together into an engaging and well-structured account. The origin and evolution of life on Earth covers a vast range of scientific ideas from prebiotic chemistry to ancient climatology.
Life on a Young Planet presents a review of life on Earth from origins to the emergence of animals.
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