“On its own, it is a wonder, but viewed in isolation its complexity and very existence is inexplicable. Darwin’s genius was to see that the existence of something as magnificent as a blade of grass can be understood, but only in the context of its interaction with other living things and, crucially, its evolutionary history. A physicist might say it is a four-dimensional structure, with both spatial and temporal extent, and it is simply impossible to comprehend the existence of such a structure in a universe governed by the simple laws of physics if its history is ignored. And whilst you are contemplating the humble majesty of a blade of grass, with a spatial extent of a few centimeters but stretching back in the temporal direction for almost a third of the age of the Universe, pause for a moment to consider the viewer, because what is true of the blade of grass is also true fro you. You share the same basic biochemistry, all the way down to the detail of proton waterfalls, and ATP, and much of the same genetic history, carefully documented in your DNA. This is because you share the same common ancestor. You are all related. You were once the same.”
—Brian Cox channels Richard Feynman in this reminder that viewing science through any single lens is an incomplete view of its magnificence. In other words, physics is beautiful, but it’s a periscope view of life’s majesty.
From his new book to accompany the BBC series, Wonders of Life.
via Brain Pickings
Me: I’m on a book buying ban
Book bloggers: Wow you have to read this book because it’s just so awesome and like the best book I’ve ever read and asdasfhdfjd if you don’t read it you’ll die
Bookstores: Let’s just shelf all the awesome books right inside the doorway so you just have to enter and give us your soul
Every online bookstore: All of the books you really want to read are on sale now so you really need to buy them and we’ll just keep on sending you emails to remind you
Goodreads: Look at all the books we recommend for you that we know you don’t own already
Authors: Let’s all write/publish our books at the same time - especially sequels!
