Cosmic Joy and Local Pain

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

The theory that planet Earth functions like one huge living organism is fashionable, so a sicentist's attempt to flesh out this cosmic viewpoint with hard evidence is certainly welcome. Morowitz, a Yale biophysicist and popular essayist (The Wine of Life, Mayonnaise and the Origin of Life is a fairly timid pantheist. He claims that humans are part of a biosphere that constantly interacts with the geosphere, hydrosphere and lithosphere. Though he cites phenomena from such fields as evolution, the theory of continental drift, genetics and astrophysics, he rarely ventures into the deeper waters of the new planetary outlook. Written from the vantage of his sailboat, while moored off a Hawaiian island, this too-leisurely meditation interweaves the sights and sounds of volcanic mountains and star-drenched beaches with thoughts on Spinoza, Teilhard de Chardin, Freeman Dyson and Jacques Monod. (April)

Library Journal

Morowitz, a biophysicist whose previous books include Mayonnaise and the Origin of Life ( LJ 11/15/85), here attempts a ``summing up in nontechnical terms . . . of the activities of our planet.'' Writing in the manner of a Gould or Thomas, he moves through the four geospheres (lithosphere, atmosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere), tying them together with clear microscopic and macroscopic explanations. He uses science (cosmic joy) and reflective thought (local pain) to synthesize his understanding of our universe. Many readers will appreciate his careful descriptions and philosophical perspective. Highly recommended. Michael D. Cramer, Virginia Polytechnic Inst. & State Univ. Lib., Blacksburg