The Carbon Age: How Life's Core Element Has Become Civilization's Greatest Threat [Hardcover]

Eric Roston (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 24, 2008

The story of carbon—the building block of life that is, ironically, humanity’s great threat .
It could be said that all of us are a little alien—our bodies’ carbon atoms first shot forth from supernovas billions of years ago and far, far away. Carbon has always been the ubiquitous architect and chemical scaffolding of life and civilization; indeed, all living things draw carbon from their environments to stay alive, and the great cycle by which carbon moves through organisms, ground, water, and atmosphere has long been a kind of global respiration system that helps keep Earth in balance. And yet, when we hear the word today, it is more often than not in a crisis context: carbon dioxide emissions have sped up the carbon cycle; chlorofluorocarbons are destroying the ozone layer and warming the planet; the volatile Middle East explodes atop its stores of volatile hydrocarbons; carbohydrates threaten obesity and diabetes.
In The Carbon Age, Eric Roston evokes this essential element, its journey illuminating history from the Big Bang to modern civilization. Charting the science of carbon—how it was formed, how it came to Earth and built up—he chronicles the often surprising ways mankind has used it over centuries, and the growing catastrophe of the industrial era, leading us to now attempt to wrestle the Earth’s geochemical cycle back from the brink. Blending the latest science with original reporting, Roston makes us aware, as never before, of the seminal impact carbon has, and has had, on our lives.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Carbon atoms lead active lives, as Roston’s investigation into their ubiquitous presence attests. Created by nuclear fusion in stars, strewn through space by supernovas, and collecting on earth as a critical element of life, carbon also exercises a variety of roles in technology. Its natural and artificial guises inspire Roston to balance chapters on carbon’s function in each realm, for example in defense (carbon in shells and Kevlar) or in combustion (carbon in metabolism and in fossil fuels). Such versatility derives from the carbon atom’s atomic structure and chemical behavior, the scientific elucidation of which engages Roston’s capacious curiosity, as it has that of the physicists, geologists, molecular biologists, and chemical engineers whose discoveries he describes. A science journalist, Roston mediates technicalities well for a general-interest reader, impressing in particular how carbon cycles geo- and biochemically through earth’s natural processes, and how the current increase of carbon dioxide is accelerating the atmospheric cycle. If atomic number 6 could ever write its autobiography, the result might resemble Roston’s engaging presentation. --Gilbert Taylor

Review

“The story of carbon is our story, of course. It's an exciting journey—from cyanobacteria through the old and new gingko tree, to the intellectual wonder of organic synthesis, and our dangerous romance with the internal combustion engine. Eric Roston is a super storyteller!”—Roald Hoffmann, Frank H.T. Rhodes Professor of Humane Letters at Cornell University and 1981 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry

“In order to understand the issue of climate change—or, for that matter, almost any issue relating to energy and life—it’s necessary to understand carbon. Fortunately, it’s an absolutely fascinating element, as Eric Roston shows in this delightful book. His narrative is a wonderful way to relish some basic science as well as understand some of the most profound policy issues we face.”—Walter Isaacson, CEO of the Aspen Institute and author of Einstein: His Life and Universe

“With delightful verve and zest, Roston explores the awesomely cornucopian roles of carbon, ranging from cosmic to cellular, from climate to cancer. He also makes a compelling case that human destiny and carbon are now inextricably coupled.”—Dudley Herschbach, 1986 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry

“If you thought oxygen was important, wait till you read this brilliantly researched tale of carbon, the element that makes possible diamonds, the ‘lead’ in your pencil, even ‘you’— and the element that is likely to occupy many headlines in the years ahead because we can’t live without it and we may not be able to live with it.”—Norm Augustine, former chairman and CEO, Lockheed Martin Corporation, and chairman of the study, Rising Above the Gathering Storm

“Carbon, the citizen king of elements, governs who we are and what life is—but the king is going mad! Citizens, revolt against the despots, or all may be lost!”—James E. Hansen, director of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies

“A most accessible and thoroughly enjoyable way to gain real insight into a series of profoundly important subjects including, notably, the hellish risks we now face with climate change. I liked this book and plan to read it again.”—James Gustave Speth, dean of Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and author of The Bridge at the Edge of the World

“Eric Roston provides an unparalleled tour of carbon’s role in life. This is a journey that every reader will find surprising and thoroughly enjoyable."—Richard A. Meserve, President of the Carnegie Institution for Science

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Walker & Company; First Edition edition (June 24, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802715575
• ISBN-13: 978-0802715579
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.4 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,125,249 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #100 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Chemistry > Organic > Organometallic Compounds

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Very Smart Book, August 28, 2008

By 

K. Bailey "Kay Bailey" (Arlington, Virginia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Carbon Age: How Life's Core Element Has Become Civilization's Greatest Threat (Hardcover)

This is an insanely smart book. The author has done his homework - there is more research in each sentence than I've ever seen in any other book that I would actually read. One Amazon.com reviewer complained that the book was not deep enough. That person missed the point. The Carbon Age is about the breadth of carbon's influence in our world. The author dances from theoretical stovepipe to theoretical stovepipe - from the history of the Earth to the human genome to economics in the post-industrial age, drawing parallels on every level and uniting them all. The overarching themes that he pulls out are not just about carbon. Roston's ability to make sense out of a world of information, with sharp insight and subtle humor, is what sets this book apart.

More than the famed C element, this book is about the evolution of systems. That's why it's so useful. In each chapter, he broaches a new topic (first the creation of the Earth from galactic matter, then the origins of life on Earth, etc.) and provides an interesting history of how it all happened, how it all works. In every case, the system starts with a little thing - some space dust, a carbon molecule, a mutation in human physiognomy, an economic truism - and that little thing guides the development of something much bigger. The composition of somebody's DNA physically determines the shape and characteristics of the animal built around it. Teeny microorganism bodies build up on the ocean floor, gradually becoming a huge layer of carbon which we can tap for fuel zillions of years later. The variety, and yet the consistency, of all these factors sets the stage for us to finally understand our own human context.

And what a doozie. When Roston gets to the part about modern humans, about the industrial revolution, about cars (how Daimler and Ford and Toyota have literally changed the world), it's mind-boggling. He shows how evolutionary principles merge with economic ones, with computer systems, with scientific research. He paints a big picture of how radically Earth's systems have changed in the last 150 years, something our limited lifespans have kept secret from us all this time. It's at once fascinating and terrifying. In a measured, apolitical way, Roston makes me fear for the future of my unborn children's planet. It's humbling to realize the unprecedented power that the human race exerts on our surroundings. And it's shameful how we have let our basest human nature have its way with them.

It makes me want to plant a tree. I'll talk to it, get rid of my own carbon dioxide, it'll photosynthesize it, and pure oxygen will come out. Hey, it's not much, but I've heard that big changes are built from little changes. It's worth a shot.

You should get this book.

25 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Revealing Look at One of Life's Most Important Elements, June 30, 2008

By 

Michael - An Avid Reader (Washington, D.C.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Carbon Age: How Life's Core Element Has Become Civilization's Greatest Threat (Hardcover)

Carbon is everywhere. While many people have gone through life without realizing this basic fact, this captivating new book shows us why it is time to reconsider this position. Roston opens the door to the world of carbon - an element that impacts everything from global warming to your new bike. A former Time magazine reporter, Roston writes in an engaging, clear and accessible style carrying us from the beginning of the universe to today's debates around carbon emissions. This is a must-read for anyone looking to learn more about the universe and where it is going. Carbon ... who knew!?!

10 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Awful editing and writing make for an awful book, July 3, 2009

By 

L. Byrne (RI United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Carbon Age: How Life's Core Element Has Become Civilization's Greatest Threat (Paperback)

Understanding the carbon cycle and carbon's basic chemistry are vital to understanding global climate change and energy issues. I love learning about these issues. Thus, I was excited for this book. The title and back cover made it sound like it was going to be an engaging read. I was sorely disapointed. The writing and editing were just awful--shockingly awful. Adjacent paragraphs that don't belong together topically. Long random tangents throughout the book that the author fails to relate directly back to his thesis. (For example, in chapter 11 about biological fuels, a lot of information is discussed about basic genetics and the human genome project. Exactly why was never revealed and the chapter never presented in-depth info about biofuels.) The lack of a strong conclusion or forward-looking set of recommendations made the book end on a very unsatisfying note. These among other problems made for a less than spectacular read. I found myself skipping through big sections because I was so frustrated with the poor writing, both structurally and topically. One will obtain a better basic sense of the global carbon cycle from the Wikipedia entry than from this book. I don't recommend it in the least.