MTU Library Catalogue

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Gaia : a new look at life on earth / J.E. Lovelock.

By: Lovelock, James, 1919-.
Material type: materialTypeLabelBookSeries: Oxford paperbacks.Publisher: Oxford : Oxford University Press, 1979 (1982 [printing])Description: xi, 157 p. : ill., 1 map ; 21 cm. + pbk.ISBN: 0192860305; 0195203585.Subject(s): BiologyDDC classification: 508
Contents:
Introductory -- In the beginning -- The recognition of Gaia -- Cybernetics -- The contemporary atmosphere -- The sea -- Gaia and man: the problem of pollution -- Living with Gaia -- Epilogue.
Holdings
Item type Current library Call number Copy number Status Barcode
General lending MTU Bishopstown Library Lending 508 (Browse shelf(Opens below)) 1 Available 00013269
General lending MTU Crawford College of Art and Design Library Lending 508 (Browse shelf(Opens below)) 1 Available 00058846
Total holds: 0

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

The Gaia hypothesis, first put forth in the mid-1960s, and published in book form in 1975, has had a radical effect on scientific views of evolution and the environment. Fiercely debated by biologists, chemists, and cyberneticists, it has been the subject of numerous conferences and a BBC special which aired on public TV's "Nova" series. Green Peace and other environmental groups have embraced the theory, and Isaac Asimov incorporated it into two his science fiction novels. Now, James Lovelock provides a new preface to his his seminal work, confronting his critics, and, addressing the current advances in science and technology, demonstrates how his predictions have already begun to be fulfilled.
According to the Gaia hypothesis, the environment does not coincidentally support life on earth; rather the two interact much the way a bird and its nest interact. "The Earth's living matter," writes Lovelock, "air, oceans, and land surface form a complex system which can be seen as a single organism and which has the capacity to keep our planet a fit place for life." This revolutionary book offers the clearest explanation of the interaction of life and the environment.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 155-157).

Introductory -- In the beginning -- The recognition of Gaia -- Cybernetics -- The contemporary atmosphere -- The sea -- Gaia and man: the problem of pollution -- Living with Gaia -- Epilogue.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

  • Gaia: A New Look at Life on Earth (p. i)
  • Preface (p. vii)
  • 1 Introductory (p. 1)
  • 2 In the Beginning (p. 12)
  • 3 The Recognition of Gaia (p. 30)
  • 4 Cybernetics (p. 44)
  • 5 The Contemporary Atmosphere (p. 59)
  • 6 The Sea (p. 78)
  • 7 Gaia and Man: The Problem of Pollution (p. 100)
  • 8 Living Within Gaia (p. 115)
  • 9 Epilogue (p. 133)
  • Definitions and Explanations of Terms (p. 143)
  • Further Reading (p. 147)

Author notes provided by Syndetics

About the Author:
Jim Lovelock, an independent scientist and, since 1974, a Fellow of the Royal Society, worked on the NASA space program. He is a Visiting Professor of Cybernetics at Reading University and inventor of the electron capture detector.