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Eric Chaisson

Cosmic Evolution: The Rise of Complexity in Nature

by Eric J. Chaisson (Author)

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We are connected to distant space and time not only by our imaginations but also through a common cosmic heritage. Emerging now from modern science is a unified scenario of the cosmos, including ourselves as sentient beings, based on the time-honored concept of change. From galaxies to snowflakes, from stars and planets to life itself, we are beginning to identify an underlying ubiquitous pattern penetrating the fabric of all the natural sciences--a sweepingly encompassing view of the order and structure of every known class of object in our richly endowed universe.

This is the subject of Eric Chaisson's new book. In Cosmic Evolution Chaisson addresses some of the most basic issues we can contemplate: the origin of matter and the origin of life, and the ways matter, life, and radiation interact and change with time. Guided by notions of beauty and symmetry, by the search for simplicity and elegance, by the ambition to explain the widest range of phenomena with the fewest possible principles, Chaisson designs for us an expansive yet intricate model depicting the origin and evolution of all material structures. He shows us that neither new science nor appeals to nonscience are needed to understand the impressive hierarchy of the cosmic evolutionary story, from quark to quasar, from microbe to mind.

ISBN-10

0674009878
ISBN-13

978-0674009875
Publisher

Harvard University Press
Publication date

October 15, 2002
Language

English
Dimensions

6 x 0.6 x 9 inches
Print length

274 pages
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“Chaisson conducts an intriguing tour over vast realms of time and space. A lucid and sprightly guide, he brings forth original and provocative observations, while gathering a host of wonders in his cosmic embrace.”―Dudley Herschbach, 1986 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry

“Using the leitmotif of rising complexity and order, Eric Chaisson delivers the epic of creation as understood by modern science, from microsecond zero to the origin of life on Earth. His command of the subject and clarity of exposition are admirable.”―E. O. Wilson

“Eric Chaisson has written a definitive synthesis of what he calls a golden age of astrophysics and biochemistry. Cosmic Evolution presents a dramatic new world view for the twenty-first century, which provides a potential guide for understanding the nature of all material things. Every scientist, indeed anyone interested in humanity’s future, should read this masterly and unique book.”―Brian Fagan, University of California, Santa Barbara

“Chaisson’s book provides exciting new testimony to the increasing power of non-equilibrium thermodynamics to change how we see ourselves and the world.”―Lynn Margulis, Times Higher Education Supplement

“Eric Chaisson has thought deeply about the growth of complexity in the universe, as life and intelligence appear to have emerged from chaos. An astronomer whose lucid lectures draw a wide audience, Chaisson here tackles the issue head on, with conclusions that are as fascinating as life itself.”―George Field, Harvard University

“A superb synthesis. Chaisson convincingly shows that free energy processing rates spurred the growth of complexity in the cosmos. Highly recommended.”―Hubert Reeves, Astrophysicist, CNRS, France

“This century ushers in a new unified view of Nature. We can see that the mechanisms of the stars and the structure of bacteria are governed by the same fundamental processes. We can detect the link between the hottest fusion reactions in gamma bursters and the essential metabolic reactions which give rise to and sustain life. Eric Chaisson has long been one of our most passionate and articulate informants about this emerging conception of the cosmos. Cosmic Evolution tells this new story in language anyone can understand.”―Gerald Soffen, Senior Astrobiologist, NASA

“A fascinatingly synthetic book that unifies evolution from the Big Bang through biology and human culture. Chaisson is at once quantitative and poetic, grounding his work in physics while celebrating intelligence as ‘the animated conduit through which the Universe comes to know itself.’ Cosmic Evolution shows us a universe teeming with the complex products of evolution, including ourselves.”―Richard Wolfson, Professor of Physics, Middlebury College

“Chaisson argues that rising complexity can be explained…by the laws of nonequilibrium thermodynamics, without any need to postulate new kinds of science or mysticism… What is most original about Chaisson’s argument is his proposal of a quantitative way to measure complexity, and to plot the course of cosmic evolution using this measure.”―Chet Raymo, Boston Globe

“An illuminating book, and one that should appeal to both scientists and general readers… This is a book that will encourage a greater energy flow between astrophysics and bioscience.”―John D. Barrow, New Scientist

“Chaisson’s project―the search for unifying patterns of change across the largest temporal and spatial scales―is a worthy one… [His] theory has the ring of rightness.”―Daniel W. McShea, American Scientist

“So Chaisson defines life as an ‘open, coherent, space–time structure maintained far from thermodynamic equilibrium by a flow of energy through it.’ …Chaisson’s approach leaves one wondering, perhaps absurdly… In this creative, thought-provoking book, Chaisson shows how difficult even the most basic scientific question can turn out to be.”―Charles Seife, Wilson Quarterly

“Surveys the grand scenario of cosmic evolution by examining natural changes among radiation, matter, and life within the context of big-bang cosmology. Using non-equilibrium thermodynamics and a suite of interdisciplinary arguments, the author follows the changes in energy within numerous well-known structures, including galaxies, stars, planets, and life.”―The Astronomical Society of the Pacific

“[Chaisson’s] discourse covers a wide range, from the physics of the early Universe to the origin and nature of life, touching on issues such as the ‘anthropic principle’ in cosmology, the thermodynamics of non-equilibrium systems, Darwinian views on the evolution of life seen in the context of present-day molecular biology, and issues of cultural development. Thus, he takes seriously the modern biological synthesis and also places it in its proper physical and cosmological context, emphasizing interesting causal links.”―George Ellis, Nature

About the Author

Eric J. Chaisson is a Research Associate at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. He is the author of Cosmic Dawn, nominated for the National Book Award for distinguished science writing.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harvard University Press (October 15, 2002)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 274 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0674009878
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0674009875
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 14.4 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.6 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #884,528 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #959 in Cosmology (Books)
- #6,375 in Science & Mathematics

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Ideophile

Expansion of the universe as the engine of creation

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 17, 2011

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Chaisson's book is an exploration of the consequences of an expanding universe - an exploration that leads to the conclusion that it is the very expansion of the universe that is (almost literally) the engine of creation.

First, Chaisson provides an introduction to the nature of change. He starts out simply enough looking at time and quantum probability, but then turns toward open systems and the "spontaneous order" (or "dissipative structure") consequences of gradients (both thermal and otherwise) in such systems when the second law of thermodynamics kicks in and attempts to drive the system toward equilibrium. This review of the basics sets the stage for Chaisson's ultimate contribution.

Chaisson then moves on to the history of the universe. Taking things a bit out of order, he starts with what he terms the "Matter" period. Here, he covers the cosmology of matter, discussing topics such as the material evidence for an expanding universe, what this tells us about the age of the universe, and so on.

From there, Chaisson reverses field to an earlier period that he calls the "Radiation" period. This period starts with the big bang and revolves around what happens to energy at different densities. For example, at the highest possible densities, energy is just a homogeneous blob. At lower densities, fundamental particles begin precipitating out forming a plasma. At lower densities still, the precipitation stops and these particles begin collecting together into atomic structures and such. And given that the universe is expanding, energy runs through the entire range of these densities - thus it is the very expansion of the universe that drives the evolution of energy and matter.

At this point we jump forward into the "Life" period. This is where Chaisson makes the best use of that introduction on dissipative systems. At this point in its history, the universe is filled with two fundamental components: radiative energy and matter. As the universe expands, the thermal density of these components decreases; however, these densities decrease at different rates. Using equations that could fit on the back of a napkin, Chaisson shows that the expansion of the universe is happening quickly enough that thermal gradients build up between the radiative energy of the universe and the matter of the universe. These gradients cause dissipative structures to form as the second law of thermodynamics kicks in to try to drive the universe toward equilibrium. And, as discussed in the intro, such dissipative structures are the sediment from which more complex dissipative structures can form as these gradients vary and persist. Spontaneous order occurs and becomes more complex without violating any of the laws of thermodynamics. Given enough time, there can arise metabolic dissipative structures - that is, life itself. And all due to the simple fact that the universe expands.

If Chaisson is right, he has unveiled a mind-blowingly simple reason regarding why the total complexity and total entropy of the universe should be able to increase at the same time even if the universe turns out to be a closed system. Why no-one ever discovered this simple reason before could be that no-one ever thought there was a need to look for one. That is, in our own little corner of the universe it is often thought that if you consider the Earth as an open system that all you need to explain the increasing complexity of the biosphere is the massive energy influx from the Sun. That may be true, but Chaisson may have just shown that ever-increasing complexity is not simply a local phenomenon of relatively small open systems at the expense of the rest of the universe but rather is a general principle of the universe as a whole.

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DonL2507

A Sweeping View of our Universe

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 1, 2012

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As a non-scientist with a life-long interest in science, I was particularly interested in this book as I had earlier read his "The Life Era" which discussed similar themes and was written for a broad audience. Since "Cosmic Evolution" was published by the Harvard University Press I anticipated a bit more scientific rigor which indeed was the case which made for a more challenging "read" on occasion but one ultimately more rewarding and stimulating. Equations are used, but not particularly frequently, and most of them I could follow, and the author provides a list of "Symbols and Numerical Constants" at the back of the book which helped when I had forgotten what a symbol stood for. In keeping with the "big picture" view of the book, the graphs are schematic and not empirical but help very much in clearly depicting the mathematical relationships in the book.

The big picture in this book is that, since the Big Bang, the universe has moved from the Radiation Era to the Matter Era to the current Life Era with order and complexity building, e.g., a planet is more complex than a star, a worm is more complex than a rock, and a human is more complex than a frog. Dr. Chaisson uses (resuscitates?) 19th century energy physics with its energy flows and energy gradients as the driving force behind the complexification he describes (along with the general expansion of the universe) and suggests that at least in his mind energy physics need not give way to information theory in providing the more cogent explanation for this trend. I recall the English astronomer Arthur Eddington as a zealous expounder of the 2nd Law of Thermodynamics who took it to its ruthless conclusion in the "heat death of the universe"; Chaisson makes the 2nd law the focal point of his analysis and shows how the trend he analyzes toward complexity and order, and away from disorder and entropy, comes at the expense of more entropy outside these "islands" of complexity and order. As a physicist, and an apparent admirer of E. Wilson's "Consilience", the author clearly suggests that basic physics lies at the heart of his exposition and asks the question at the end of his book: "Is Biology Part of Physics?" which is sure to irritate some life scientists. Personally, I would include a 4th era, the era of intellect and consciousness, which I believe is as profound an emergence from life as life was an emergence from matter. Since Dr. Chaisson is a physicist and not a neuroscientist he may have felt unsure in applying his energy gradients to the human brain although he does note that it absorbs 20% of the body's energy while comprising only 3% of the body's weight.

Almost 5 stars, but a strong 4 stars for the all-encompassing nature of the argument.

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Daisy Lightfoot

Explaining Physics

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on April 30, 2014

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Finally an understandable explanation of Newton's second law of thermodynamics! I'm not up to speed yet on the latter part of the book, but many thanks to the Author & I'll make it eventually.

One person found this helpful

Käufer

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on March 30, 2015

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All optimal

Alain SOURNIA

L'univers à toutes les échelles, animé ou inerte…, et sans lyrisme

Reviewed in France 🇫🇷 on January 19, 2014

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Les ouvrages récents de cette ampleur sont rares et pêchent généralement par divers côtés : compétence de l'auteur inégale selon les domaines, prédilection pour telle échelle ou telle discipline, complaisance pour les métaphores et analogies sommaires ("se mettre au niveau du lecteur"…), adoption inconditionnelle d'une thèse ou d'une autre choisie sur le spectre, pourtant éculé, "matérialisme/spiritualisme" ou "réductivisme/holisme". À travers ces embûches, le professeur E. Chaisson a réalisé un remarquable parcours, sans parler de la rigueur et de la richesse du style. Et ce souci constant du lecteur, si rare dans l'édition scientifique française, qui donne (ou non) un livre techniquement réussi, si aisément consultable (oui, il y a : index, glossaire, notes, références, symboles, et… des résumés par chapitres ! Et les figures ne sont pas des gribouillis ni d'agréables illustrations ; ainsi la série des diagrammes 28-32 que les cours, conférences et manuels universitaires vont pas tarder à reproduire. Enfin mon exemplaire, manipulé en tous sens pendant une semaine, écrasé sur ma photocopieuse, un peu annoté, papillonné de post-it, reste impec, je vous le revendrais comme neuf mais c'est non ! je le garde.

Pour donner, maintenant, une idée du contenu, voici cinq points majeurs :
― Tout évolue dans l'univers, celui-ci "est" évolution (mais pouvait-il ne pas évoluer ?). Ses lois, tant structurelles que fonctionnelles, se retrouvent à toutes les échelles d'organisation.
― L'histoire de l'univers comporte trois ères qui ont pour noms Radiations, Matière et Vie. De la matière à la vie, il n'y a qu'une question de degré, pas de nature ; autrement dit, aucun vitalisme n'a sa place, pas plus qu'aucune auto-organisation. Il est peu question d'émergence et le glossaire en donne une définition très mesurée.
― Deux domaines physiques coexistent, l'un proche, l'autre loin de l'état d'équilibre.
― C'est l'expansion de l'univers, quel que soit son taux, qui assure la formation des gradients de complexité et qui, en fin de compte, "paye" pour les anomalies d'ordre et de néguentropie. La seconde loi de la thermodynamique est toujours bonne, il n'y a pas contradiction entre l'augmentation de l'information et celle du désordre.
― La quantité totale d'information dans l'univers est croissante (même si certains invoquent un principe de conservation !).
― Une monnaie commune pour toutes les transactions thermodynamiques, l'énergie libre ; plus précisément, une free energy rate density qui représente "the amount of energy (available to do work) flowing through a system per unit time and per unit mass". Cette valeur, utilisée comme une mesure de la complexité, révèle sa progression sur 15 milliards d'années dans des objets divers tels que galaxie, planète, cerveau humain, avion commercial…
Bien entendu, les cosmologistes, les physiciens, les biologistes même peuvent contester certaines options, mais cette synthèse permet d'argumenter clairement. Outre cela et sauf erreur de ma part, elle apporte du nouveau (les trois derniers des points ci-dessus).
Pourquoi diable les ouvrages d'E. Chaisson ne sont-ils pas traduits en français ?

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Jasna Mazur

Everyone in natural science should have this book

Reviewed in Canada 🇨🇦 on August 30, 2021

Verified Purchase

Connect so called "mainstream science" with thermodynamics is essential. This book is good starting base.

m

Great book

Reviewed in Canada 🇨🇦 on June 20, 2019

Verified Purchase

The book is in good condition and it is an interesting subject

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