Life Unfolding

How the human body creates itself

Nonfiction, Science & Nature, Science, Biological Sciences, Evolution
Cover of the book Life Unfolding by Jamie A. Davies, OUP Oxford
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Jamie A. Davies ISBN: 9780191654510
Publisher: OUP Oxford Publication: February 27, 2014
Imprint: OUP Oxford Language: English
Author: Jamie A. Davies
ISBN: 9780191654510
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Publication: February 27, 2014
Imprint: OUP Oxford
Language: English

Where did I come from? Why do I have two arms but just one head? How is my left leg the same size as my right one? Why are the fingerprints of identical twins not identical? How did my brain learn to learn? Why must I die? Questions like these remain biology's deepest and most ancient challenges. They force us to confront a fundamental biological problem: how can something as large and complex as a human body organize itself from the simplicity of a fertilized egg? A convergence of ideas from embryology, genetics, physics, networks, and control theory has begun to provide real answers. Based on the central principle of 'adaptive self-organization', it explains how the interactions of many cells, and of the tiny molecular machines that run them, can organize tissue structures vastly larger than themselves, correcting errors as they go along and creating new layers of complexity where there were none before. Life Unfolding tells the story of human development from egg to adult, from this perspective, showing how our whole understanding of how we come to be has been transformed in recent years. Highlighting how embryological knowledge is being used to understand why bodies age and fail, Jamie A. Davies explores the profound and fascinating impacts of our newfound knowledge.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Where did I come from? Why do I have two arms but just one head? How is my left leg the same size as my right one? Why are the fingerprints of identical twins not identical? How did my brain learn to learn? Why must I die? Questions like these remain biology's deepest and most ancient challenges. They force us to confront a fundamental biological problem: how can something as large and complex as a human body organize itself from the simplicity of a fertilized egg? A convergence of ideas from embryology, genetics, physics, networks, and control theory has begun to provide real answers. Based on the central principle of 'adaptive self-organization', it explains how the interactions of many cells, and of the tiny molecular machines that run them, can organize tissue structures vastly larger than themselves, correcting errors as they go along and creating new layers of complexity where there were none before. Life Unfolding tells the story of human development from egg to adult, from this perspective, showing how our whole understanding of how we come to be has been transformed in recent years. Highlighting how embryological knowledge is being used to understand why bodies age and fail, Jamie A. Davies explores the profound and fascinating impacts of our newfound knowledge.

More books from OUP Oxford

Cover of the book The Legacy of H.L.A. Hart by Jamie A. Davies
Cover of the book The Elements of Murder: A History of Poison by Jamie A. Davies
Cover of the book Diabetes: The Biography by Jamie A. Davies
Cover of the book A Dictionary of Human Resource Management by Jamie A. Davies
Cover of the book What's Left Now? by Jamie A. Davies
Cover of the book Maurice Wilkins: The Third Man of the Double Helix by Jamie A. Davies
Cover of the book Contrastive Reasons by Jamie A. Davies
Cover of the book Made in Africa by Jamie A. Davies
Cover of the book The Passions of the Soul and Other Late Philosophical Writings by Jamie A. Davies
Cover of the book Democracy When the People Are Thinking by Jamie A. Davies
Cover of the book Oxford Handbook of Children's and Young People's Nursing by Jamie A. Davies
Cover of the book Left Out by Jamie A. Davies
Cover of the book Prosecuting Conflict-Related Sexual Violence at the ICTY by Jamie A. Davies
Cover of the book The Oxford Handbook of American Political Development by Jamie A. Davies
Cover of the book Twilight of the Idols by Jamie A. Davies
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy