Review by Choice Review
"Slime is beautiful," proclaims Westbroek in this engaging and well-written work that pleads for a merging of biology and geology at all scales from microbes to plate tectonics. The highly respected Dutch biogeochemist argues that few scientists endorse the view that life and life's history have played an important and often pivotal role in Earth's evolution. Westbroek demonstrates the power of organisms to shape and modify Earth by describing the transformations of the landscape around the Dutch village of Nieuwkoop, from the proliferation of peat bogs following the Ice Age (causing a rise in "land" level of several meters) to the even more rapid alterations caused by humans (resulting in the idyllic and completely artificial landscape of western Holland). A review of global geology highlights the impact of sea level changes on climate, nutrient delivery to the oceans, and, ultimately, the evolution of life. Here Westbroek invites us to adopt the opposite perspective: how might life effect/affect changes in sea level? This theme returns in treatments of the planetary cycles of elements (carbon, oxygen, sulfur), rocks (e.g., microbes may stabilize sediment, thus affecting erosion rates), and water (transpiration by plants contributes to cloud formation). Westbroek rejects the linear thinking of geochemists whose attempts to assemble these cycles into a whole have given rise to an unworkable Frankenstein monster; the more integrative approach that assigns a major role to living matter in such cycles allows construction of a far more realistic model. Inspiration for these views may be traced to the Gaian outlook championed by James E. Lovelock (e.g., The Ages of Gaia, CH, Sep'89) and by Lynn Margulis and Dorion Sagan (Microcosmos, 1986). Pleasing drawings complement the text, which concludes with suggestions for further reading and a good index. Highly recommended for all libraries.-C. Mendelson, Beloit College
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Booklist Review
Most of us think of geology as the study of rocks, inert matter at the mercy of glaciers, volcanoes, water, and wind. The traditional viewpoint sees a world in which purely physical forces influence and shape life-forms, hence the division between geology and biology. But Westbroek asks us to look at things from a different, more inclusive perspective. What if living things don't adapt to the physical environment, but instead modify it, adapting it to their needs? Beginning in his native Holland, a land much affected by a conspicuous life-form, i.e., man, Westbroek takes us on a global journey of observation, pointing out the myriad ways life, usually in its least visible forms, directs earth's complex dynamics. His prose is animated and strongly imagined as he describes plate tectonics, the recycling of matter, and the essential roles of various microorganisms in places as diverse as Java, Scotland, and Florida. A cogent and vivid presentation of some of the exciting discoveries made when scientists look at the whole picture, instead of data divided into arbitrary fields. ~--Donna Seaman
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Skipping from Florida Keys lagoons to the peat bogs of his native Netherlands, Westbroek offers a highly personal, delightfully informal introduction to the science of modern geology at the nexus of biology and environmental concern. A small but growing number of geologists now view the earth and its life-forms as a unified whole; rocks, tides, air and organisms are seen as part of an interactive global system instead of a haphazard interplay of forces. Geologist Westbroek gauges these scientists' work against James Lovelock's Gaia hypothesis, which regards our planet as one huge living organism. Although he finds Gaia a ``rather fuzzy'' theory, interconnectedness is the keynote of this report, encompassing volcanoes in Java, plankton blooms, shifting tectonic plates and a green Scottish valley forred aeons ago when Scotland was part of North America. Illustrations. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
This book addresses two separate themes: the influence of living organisms on particular geological systems and the different holistic models of the Earth. Discussing the first theme are chapters about the human-made environment of the Netherlands, dune ecology on the island of Vlieland, and the importance of microorganisms to the formation of limestone. The second theme is covered by chapters on plate tectonics, Robert Garrels's model of the Earth as a chemical flux, and James Lovelock's gaia hypothesis. Unfortunately, the relationship between these themes is not particularly well developed. With its quantity of diagrams and the author's compact writing style, this book seems more like a set of textbook examples than a popular explanation of the role of life as a geological force. For larger science collections.-- Amy Brunvand, Fort Lewis Coll., Durango, Col. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
The Gaia movement continues as Westbroek (Geology and Biochemistry/Univ. of Leiden, Netherlands) makes a convincing case for integrating the biological and geological sciences, acknowledging life's historical and potential role in the evolution of Earth. A unique, complex, and constantly changing interplay between biological and geological forces is taking place on this planet, claims Westbroek--one in which living organisms affect the fate of the earth as profoundly as the earth's physical transformations affect life. This is hardly front-page news, particularly in an era of ecosystems and increasingly ""unified"" scientific vantage points, but it is a supposition largely ignored until recently in an atmosphere of extreme scientific specialization. The effects of living organisms on such geological phenomena as plate tectonics and climate are profound, Westbroek shows, as are the cultural extensions of our own biological existence--bulldozers, pollution, conservation, and so on. In tracing the development of such cause-effect relationships, Westbroek proves both informative and entertaining, particularly when describing how, through trial and error over the centuries, men altered the geological history of Holland's landscape; how murrain grass participates in the ""rock cycle""; and how a sealed, impressively balanced biosphere in the author's study compares to the planet Earth spinning in its cocoonlike atmosphere. The author's closing remarks on our potential to turn the entire earth into a cultural domain, ""a kind of park, a giant laboratory, or a great work of art""--in other words, an enormous Holland--may give some readers pause, but in general this offers a cornucopia of fascinating details. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
Review by Booklist Review
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Review by Library Journal Review
Review by Kirkus Book Review
