Gaia's Body: Toward a Physiology of Earth [Paperback]

Tyler Volk (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0262720426 | ISBN-13: 978-0262720427 | Publication Date: March 28, 2003

The concept of Gaia resonates with a wide range of people -- from nature lovers, theologians, and philosophers to environmental and earth systems scientists. The term, which scientist James Lovelock, originator of the Gaia hyposthesis, borrowed from Greek mythology, refers to the interacting system of life, soil, atmosphere, and ocean. Like the interiors of organisms, Gaia contains complex cycles and material transformations driven by biological energy. Gaia's inclusion of life means that from some perspectives it resembles life. But Gaia also differs from organisms in significant ways. Although it has changed through time, it does not evolve in a Darwinian sense. Whereas organisms are open, flow-through systems, Gaia is relatively closed to material transfer across its borders. It exists according to its own level of operating rules, a level as complex as that of organisms and the subject of the emerging field known as Earth physiology, or geophysiology.Blending science and evocative imagery, Gaia's Body offers an engaging introduction to this new field. It explains how every important chemical in the atmosphere is regulated by living processes -- why, for example, strange, spaghetti-like bacteria off the coast of Chile have an intimate connection with the plants in Long Island backyards; why "biochemical guilds" may be Earth's most important unit of life; and how scientists have detected the biosphere's "breathing." The book includes a Preface written for the paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Full of fresh and stimulating perspectives on Earth System science for any student or teacher in that field." Bill Chaloner Biologist

" Gaia"s Body is an outstanding contribution to global ecology...it brings the Gaia concept to the heart of science." Peter Westbroek Nature

"Volk writes splendidly and passionately, but avoids the trap of letting his command of language stand in for scientific clarity." Fred Pearce New Scientist

"Volk... weaves a tapestry of solar radiation, plate tectonics, and atmospheric chemistry, all bound by engaging prose..." Joel D. Gunn Quarterly Review of Biology

About the Author

Tyler Volk is Science Director of Environmental Studies and Associate Professor of Biology at New York University. He is the author of Gaia's Body: Toward a Physiology of the Earth (MIT Press, 2003), Metapatterns: Across Space, Time, and Mind, and other books.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 291 pages
• Publisher: The MIT Press (March 28, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0262720426
• ISBN-13: 978-0262720427
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #897,385 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Tyler Volk is Science Director for Environmental Studies and Professor of Biology at New York University. Recipient of the NYU All-University Distinguished Teaching Award, Volk lectures and travels widely, communicates his ideas in a variety of media, plays lead guitar for the science-inspired rock band The Amygdaloids, and is an avid outdoorsman. Volk's previous books include CO2 Rising: The World's Greatest Environmental Challenge; Metapatterns Across Space, Time, and Mind; and Gaia's Body: Toward a Physiology of Earth.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A highly readable account of how Gaia's parts interact., December 15, 1998

By 

David Schwartzman ([e-mail]) (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gaia's Body: Toward a Physiology of Earth (Copernicus) (Hardcover)

This book is required reading for all those interested in how the parts of global biosphere ("Gaia") interact. It is pleasure to read, thanks to the knowledge and writing talent of the author. Volk introduces the concept of a metabolizing Gaia, with its parts consisting of kingdoms, cycles, pools, etc., depending on the perspective of the observer. He suggests the fundamental "actors" in this metabolism are biochemical "guilds", such as nitrogen fixers, and respirers, which cut across divisions such as kingdoms. In Volk's interpretation, Gaia is not a living organism, nor does it or its parts necessarily remain at homeostasis, but it has a metabolism, a geophysiology. His calculations of the phenomenal surface areas of bacteria and fungi demonstrate the potential of life as a powerful geological force. I am proud to say that some of Volk's discussion draws on our very fruitful collaboration studying the biotic influence on weathering and climate, which started from our first meeting at the historic American Geophysical Union conference on Gaia in 1988.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Unity of Life, March 16, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Gaia's Body: Toward a Physiology of Earth (Copernicus) (Hardcover)

Volk takes an appealingly folksy and romantic concept and turns it into the stuff that even scientists can't scoff at. Seeing the interdependence of all living organisms in a system helps drive home the point that no human act is without repercussions. Volk's prose is vivid enough to please an English major, and substantive enough to subdue biogeochemists and their ilk the world over. Read Gaia's Body and see how molecular mechanisms can make meaning and metaphor for both poets and scientists.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gaia explained, March 20, 2000

By 

Kevin Harrison (Newton, MA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gaia's Body: Toward a Physiology of Earth (Copernicus) (Hardcover)

Tyler Volk created a thoughtful and well written book that clearly defines the biogeochemical mechanisms that govern the biosphere. Reading this book is like reading a gripping who-dunit - you don't want to put it down.

The "Gaia in Time" chapter captivated me with its analogy of viewing atmospheric carbon dioxide levels as an integral of a complex web of biogeochemical cycles. How this proxy was shifted by cryptogamic microbial crusts, photosynthetic organisms, nitrogen fixers, non-photosynthetic sulfide oxidizers, land plants, and calcareous plankton fascinated me.

If you read one book on the Gaia hypothesis, this should be it.