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The medea hypothesis : is life on earth ultimately self-destructive? / Peter Ward

Author
Ward, Peter D. (Peter Douglas), 1949-
Published
Princeton : Princeton University Press, [2009]
Copyright Date
©2009
Physical Description
1 online resource (xxii, 180 pages) : illustrations
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Series
Language Note
English.
Contents
Darwinian life -- What is evolutionary "success"? -- Two hypotheses about the nature of life on earth -- Medean feedbacks and global processes -- Medean events in the history of life -- Humans as medeans -- Biomass through time as a test -- Predicted future trends of biomass -- Summation -- Environmental implications and courses of action -- What must be done.
Summary
In The Medea Hypothesis, renowned paleontologist Peter Ward proposes a revolutionary and provocative vision of life's relationship with the Earth's biosphere--one that has frightening implications for our future, yet also offers hope. Using the latest discoveries from the geological record, he argues that life might be its own worst enemy. This stands in stark contrast to James Lovelock's Gaia hypothesis--the idea that life sustains habitable conditions on Earth. In answer to Gaia, which draws on the idea of the "good mother" who nurtures life, Ward invokes Medea, the mythical mother who kille
Subject(s)
ISBN
9781400829880 (electronic bk.)
1400829887 (electronic bk.)
1282158228
9781282158221
9780691130750
0691130752
Digital File Characteristics
data file
Form of work
Bibliography
Bibliography Note
Includes bibliographical references (pages 157-172) and index.
View MARC record | catkey: 43164360