{"product_id":"the-tangled-tree-a-radical-new-history-of-life-9781476776637","title":"The Tangled Tree: A Radical New History Of Life","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold\"\u003eIn this\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold a-text-italic\"\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003ebestseller and longlist nominee for the National Book Award, “our greatest living chronicler of the natural world” (\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold a-text-italic\"\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-bold\"\u003e), David Quammen explains how recent discoveries in molecular biology affect our understanding of evolution and life’s history.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn the mid-1970s, scientists began using DNA sequences to reexamine the history of all life. Perhaps the most startling discovery to come out of this new field—the study of life’s diversity and relatedness at the molecular level—is horizontal gene transfer (HGT), or the movement of genes across species lines. It turns out that HGT has been widespread and important; we now know that roughly eight percent of the human genome arrived sideways by viral infection—a type of HGT.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Tangled Tree\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, “the grandest tale in biology….David Quammen presents the science—and the scientists involved—with patience, candor, and flair” (\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eNature\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e). We learn about the major players, such as Carl Woese, the most important little-known biologist of the twentieth century; Lynn Margulis, the notorious maverick whose wild ideas about “mosaic” creatures proved to be true; and Tsutomu Wantanabe, who discovered that the scourge of antibiotic-resistant bacteria is a direct result of horizontal gene transfer, bringing the deep study of genome histories to bear on a global crisis in public health.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“David Quammen proves to be an immensely well-informed guide to a complex story” (\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Wall Street Journal\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e). In \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Tangled Tree\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, he explains how molecular studies of evolution have brought startling recognitions about the tangled tree of life—including where we humans fit upon it. Thanks to new technologies, we now have the ability to alter even our genetic composition—through sideways insertions, as nature has long been doing. “\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Tangled Tree\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003eis a source of wonder….Quammen has written a deep and daring intellectual adventure” (\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"a-text-italic\"\u003eThe Boston Globe\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e).\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Simon \u0026 Schuster","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42877651812558,"sku":"9781476776637","price":19.9,"currency_code":"MYR","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0601\/0883\/2974\/files\/9781476776637_a.png?v=1742524493","url":"https:\/\/www.bookxcess.com\/products\/the-tangled-tree-a-radical-new-history-of-life-9781476776637","provider":"BookXcess","version":"1.0","type":"link"}