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Rare earth : why complex life is uncommon in the universe

Peter D. Ward, Donald Brownlee

Explore why microbes may be widespread while complex life remains uncommon, through planetary formation, Earth’s biological history, tectonics, extinctions, and the limits of current evidence.

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14 parts, about 28 minutes to read.

At a glance

Author
Peter D. Ward, Donald Brownlee
Parts
14 parts
Reading time
about 28 minutes
The whole book
Also to read in full

What the summary covers

  1. The Rare Earth Hypothesis2 min
  2. Life Beyond Sunlight2 min
  3. Zones Within Zones2 min
  4. Building a Habitable Earth2 min
  5. Life's First Appearance2 min
  6. The Long Route to Animals2 min
  7. Snowball Earth and the Limits of a Trigger2 min
  8. The Enigma of the Cambrian Explosion2 min
  9. Mass Extinctions and the Rare Earth Hypothesis2 min
  10. The Surprising Importance of Plate Tectonics2 min
  11. The Moon, Jupiter, and Life on Earth2 min
  12. Testing the Rare Earth Hypothesis2 min
  13. Assessing the Odds2 min
  14. Messengers from the Stars2 min

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