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Power, Sex, Suicide: Mitochondria and the meaning of life
 
 
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Power, Sex, Suicide: Mitochondria and the meaning of life (Hardcover)

by Nick Lane (Author) "Mitochondria are tiny organelles inside cells that generate almost all our energy in the form of ATP ..." (more)
4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
RRP: £18.99
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Product Description

Jonathan Hodgkin, Times Literary Supplement
"impressive....a polemical book...readable, provocative and often persuasive....This is an exciting and unusual book."

Review
Challenging, but rewarding. (Observer )

Full of startling insights into the nature and evolution of life as we know it. (Economist Best Books of the Year, 2005 )

An enthralling account...The author has accomplished something quite breathtaking...moreover,he brings the science alive...he is always accessible, livley, thought-provoking, and informative. Every biologist should read this book

'Power, Sex, Suicide is an enjoyable and readable book....anyone interested in the broader and more philosophical aspects of their discipline will profit from reading the book' (David G. Nicholls, Science )

impressive....a polemical book...readable, provocative and often persuasive....This is an exciting and unusual book. (Jonathan Hodgkin, Times Literary Supplement )

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Inside This Book (Learn More)
First Sentence
Mitochondria are tiny organelles inside cells that generate almost all our energy in the form of ATP. Read the first page
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6 Reviews
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4.7 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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32 of 34 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Mitochondria Revisited, 11 Dec 2005
Cellular biology is a subject, which falls between the interesting and complicated. It is for this reason I warn the reader that unless you have an unquenchable thirst for this subject, think twice about reading this book. For the biologically-orientated individual however, this is an excellent book, which takes account of recent developments and discoveries. It is very readable and the author has made a complex subject a somewhat absorbing field. The reason for the 4 stars is the price. Given the lack of illustrations, the price is a bit on the high side.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Ohh mitochondria, tell us the truth, 17 Sep 2007
By Luis Mansilla Miranda (Viña del Mar, Chile) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: Power, Sex, Suicide: Mitochondria and the meaning of life (Paperback)
What a book, absolutely fascinating and highly recommended, although I must say that this is not an easy book, in fact is kind of complex if you are not acquainted with the subject. This is not a critic, thing is I would not change a bit of it, but in my opinion, people should have a little knowledge of cellular metabolism and biochemistry before attempting this book.

After reading Dawkins book about the selfish gene, it was inevitable for me to wonder about life origins, why unicellular organisms have that tendency to complexity and to group itself, and how all this machinery works. This book provide a thorough and absorbing biography of Mitochondria and its symbiosis with eukaryotes, what is the function of each one, why there are two sexes and why we aged and finally become history. As you will see, our understanding of these matters is rather modest, the author insinuate possible solutions to some of the big questions, but in any case the subject is so interesting that you read this book excited all the way to the end.

How beautiful is life and how complex ... you can see that just watching a little fly and wonder how on earth this insect manage to fly, as if eukaryotes have a previous knowledge of Physics, as if they have all the basic solutions of nature in a template. I just know one thing: I want to know and read more about it.
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A whole new world of evolution opened up, 11 Nov 2008
This review is from: Power, Sex, Suicide: Mitochondria and the meaning of life (Paperback)
You're certain that the universe contains other complex life forms? -- this book questions that statistical assumption.
This is a wonderful read, and takes you into areas which, even when you've a scientific background, are mostly unfamiliar territory - mitochondria....... but are they that important? - you bet they are.
First we wouldn't be here, we simply would not have evolved, had mitochondria not come into existence.How this is likely to have come about is extensively discussed.
Secondly, the author is of the view that the likelyhood of mitochondria coming into existence at all is so amazingly miniscule that, even by the universe's standards of space and time ( so huge that other theories make the probability if complex life forming a statistical near certainty ) it is, he argues, extremely unlikely to have occured more than the once that has spawned us !
Thirdly, the mitochondrion, as the powerhouse of the cell, is also the seat of much that can go wrong, and ageing and cancer etc are examines from this perspective.
Finally, the genes in mitochondria can themselves mutate and are themselves subject to natural selection - not only that, but they are actually passed down into the next generation via the gamete ( only via the maternal line )........ this is another evolutionary route which has all sorts of interesting implications.
Mitochondria - they're where it's all at !
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent!
A fascinating overview of the importance of mitochondria, with some speculation clearly explained. It's a complicated subject, but extremely well written. Overpriced? Read more
Published 14 months ago by rommers

4.0 out of 5 stars Best book of the year
Although I was initially put off by the gimmicky title this is a really good book and should suit those with an interest in cellular biology or evolution. Read more
Published 18 months ago by David Beard

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding
This book is really outstanding. It contains a tremendous lot of interesting new information. Highly recommended!
Published on 10 Jul 2007 by Bengt Larsson

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