http://www.loc.gov/mods/v3 http://www.loc.gov/standards/mods/v3/mods-3-2.xsd
1 volume (various pagings) : color illustrations, color maps ; 26 cm.
'Origins of Life: A Cosmic Perspective' presents an overview of the concepts, methods and theories of astrobiology and origins of life research while presenting a summary of the latest findings. The book provides insight into the environments and processes that gave birth to life on our planet, which naturally informs our assessment of the probability that has arisen (or will arise) elsewhere. In addition, the book encourages readers to go beyond basic concepts, to explore topics in greater depth and to engage in lively discussions.
1. Introduction -- 1.1. What is life? -- 1.2. Could life be silicon-based? -- 1.3. Time constraints -- 1.4. Scenarios for the origin of life on Earth -- 1.5. Searching for life beyond Earth -- 2. Cosmic synthesis of the biologically important chemical elements -- 2.1. Elements essential to life -- 2.2. Origin of the elements -- 2.3. Distributing the products of nucleosynthesis -- 3. Molecules in space : from interstellar clouds to protoplanetary disks -- 3.1. Chemistry in the interstellar medium -- 3.2. The rise of molecular complexity -- 3.3. Protostars and the chemical heritage of protoplanetary disks -- 4. The origin and evolution of our solar system -- 4.1. The Sun's birth environment -- 4.2. The solar nebula and the origin of the planets -- 4.3. Time capsules from the early Solar System -- 4.4. The evolution of habitability -- 5. The early Earth : forging an environment for life -- 5.1. The Earth-Moon system -- 5.2. Cosmic impacts -- 5.3. Emergence of the atmosphere and hydrosphere -- 5.4. Toward a prebiotic world -- 6. The origin of terrestrial life : converging on a paradigm -- 6.1. Constructing life's framework -- 6.2. Tracing life's ancestry -- 6.3. The transition to life -- 7. The search for life on Mars -- 7.1. Evolving conditions and habitability -- 7.2. Searching for biosignatures -- 7.3. Future prospects -- 8. Icy worlds as potential hosts for life -- 8.1. The moons of Jupiter -- 8.2. Saturn and beyond -- 8.3. Prospects for life -- 9. The search for life beyond our solar system -- 9.1. Exoplanetary systems : characteristics and habitability -- 9.2. The search for spectroscopic biosignatures -- 9.3. The search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) -- 9.4. What if we succeed?
Douglas Whittet, New York Center for Astrobiology, Department of Physics, Applied Physics and Astronomy, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
"A Morgan & Claypool publication as part of IOP Concise Physics"--Title page verso.