A Most Improbable Story: The Evolution of the Universe, Life, and Humankind

Cover
Half Title
Title
Copyright
Contents
Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction: Perspective Matters, But Perspective Isn’t Everything
	The Silent “Big Bang”
		Strange Behavior in the Subatomic World
	The “God Hypothesis”
		The Belief in God: Is This Just a Quaint Set of Anachronistic Ideas?
	Uncertain Realities
		Science as a Vehicle to Understand the Universe
		Some of the Limits of Choosing Science to Explore Reality
		Using Theology to Understand the Natural World—Attributes and Shortcomings
		Philosophical Logic, Yet Another Way of Knowing
	Moving Forward
		Life in the Realm of Uncertainty
	References
Part I The Making of a Habitable World
	Chapter 1 In the Beginning—The Genesis of the Universe
		One Heck of a Beginning
		Scalar Fields and the Remarkable Unfolding of the Universe
		The Establishment of the Cosmological Constant, Λ (Lambda)
		Fundamental Forces Establish the Fabric of the Universe
		The Importance of Matter and Antimatter Asymmetry
		Getting the Density of Matter Right: The Value of Ω (Omega)
		The Importance of Symmetrically Distributing Matter: The Value of Q
		Existing in a Three-Dimensional Universe
		Timing Is Relative, and Timing Makes a Difference
		The Arrow of Time
		The Critical Values of Many Other Fundamental Constants Also Influence the Nature of Our Universe
		The Birth of the Universe’s Primordial Atoms
		The First Five Minutes of the Universe—An Influential Time Period Indeed
		References
	Chapter 2 The Life and Death of a Star
		Forging Atoms and Setting the Stage for the Birth of a Star
		The Dark Age of the Universe
		The Importance of the Hydrogen Nuclear Binding Efficiency (ε)
		Stars Are the Heavy Element Generators of the Universe
		Rounding Out the Periodic Table
		Stars as Planet Makers and Galactic Constituents
		The Death of a Stellar Giant
		The Supernova: A Beacon in the Night and an Impressive Alchemy Factory
		The Kilonova: The Ultimate Alchemy Factory
		The Birth of Our Solar System
		Stars as the Energy Source for Biological Evolution
		References
	Chapter 3 The Milky Way—A Goldilocks Galaxy
		Why Dark Matter Matters?
		Black Holes Are at the Heart of Our Existence
		Traffic Control Within the Accretion Disk and the Growth of a Supermassive Black Hole
		Current and Upcoming Galactic Mergers
		The Activity of the Milky Way’s Supermassive Black Hole Appears to Be in Goldilocks Range
		A Giant Awakens
		To Be or Not to Be
		Stars, Black Holes, and the Constants of the Universe
		The Nature of a Suitable Home
		References
	Chapter 4 The Galactic Cradle
		Danger Waits in the Center of the Galaxy
		The Relatively Tranquil Galactic Suburbs of the Milky Way
		The Galactic Suburbs Have Elemental Gravitas
		Size Matters
		Being Made of the Right Stuff Is Important
		Consistency Counts
		Is the Existence of Our Sun, With All Its Anomalies, Another Fortunate Event for Humankind, or Is It Simply a Statistical Inevitability?
		References
	Chapter 5 The Inimitable Earth
		The Slow Planetary Construction Process
		Getting the Planetary Chemistry Right
		A Life-Supporting Planet Must Be Climate Controlled
		The Construction of Earth Likely Required a Little Help From Its Celestial Neighbors
		Mars—Celestial Evidence That Constructing a Life-Supporting Terrestrial Planet Is a Tricky Business
		Venus—Yet Another Example of the Improbability of Forming a Life-Supporting Planet
		Maintaining a Planet’s Atmospheric Thermostat
		More Bad News for Venus
		We Are Endlessly Traveling in Circles, or Nearly So
		Stabilizing Obliquity
		The Importance of Keeping a Planet in Kilter
		Earth and the Moon’s Longtime Cosmic Partnership
		Sizing Up Our Living Quarters
		The Emergence of a Place We Call Home
		References
Part II The Emergence of Life From a Lifeless World
	Chapter 6 Let There Be Life—The Rise of the Prokaryotes
		The Significance of Life
		The Mysterious Appearance of Life
		Bacteria: Visitors From Afar?
		Nailing Down Life’s Birthdate
		The Path to Protocellular Life
		The Quest to Understand the Genesis of the First Protocell
		An RNA First Model
		The Formation of Autonomous, RNA-Based Protocells
			Step 1—The Construction, Concentration, and Activation of Biologically Important RNA Precursor Molecules
		The Formation of Autonomous RNA-Based Protocells
			Step 2—The Formation of Nucleotides From Precursor Molecules, and the Linking of Nucleotides to Form Single-Stranded RNA
		The Formation of Autonomous RNA-Based Protocells
			Step 3—Using Single-Stranded RNA to Generate Protocells
		The Formation of Autonomous RNA-Based Protocells
			Step 4—Non-Catalytic Replication of Protocellular RNA
		The Formation of Autonomous RNA-Based Protocells
			Step 5—Enhancing the Rate of RNA Replication During Protocellular Division
		Something New Under the Sun
		From Protocell to True Bacterial Cell—A Fundamental Transition in the History of Life
		The Appearance of the First Genetically Specified Proteins and DNA
		All in Good Time
		Getting to Know LUCA (The Last Universal Common Ancestor)
		Was the Evolution of Self-Replicating RNA Really the Key to Generating Life on Earth?
		What Are the Odds?
		Trying to Estimate the Inestimable
		The Enthusiastic Search for Extraterrestrial Life
		References
	Chapter 7 Evolution—The Generator of Life’s Diversity
		The Genesis of Earth’s Varied Life Forms
		Evolution—The Miracle of Life
		Darwin in a Nutshell
		Changing Populations
		Mendel to the Rescue?
		And Where’s the Evidence for Natural Selection?
		Time Is of the Essence
		Wrestling With the Concept of Geological Time
		Slow and Steady Works
		Was Darwin Right on All Counts?
		Darwin’s Insights on the Nature of Speciation
		Reflecting Upon Our Understanding of How Life’s Diversity Arose
		The Modern Human—Destined to Be or Here by Chance?
		Evidence of a Biologically Nondeterministic World
		Is Natural Selection Convergent, Contingent, or Both?
		Confounding Laplace’s Demon
		References
	Chapter 8 The Rise of the Superkingdoms—Bacteria, Archaea, and Eukarya
		The Long Road to Prokaryotic Versatility
		Earth’s Vicissitudes—Not Too Severe, But Not Too Gentle Either
		Additional Evolutionary Accelerants—The Evolution of Evolvability and the Evolution of the Chromosome
		Oxygen-Generating Photosynthetic Bacteria—One of the Most Unusual Creatures Ever to Inhabit Earth
		The End of the Good Times
		Oxygen—A Terraforming Gas
		Cyanobacteria—One of the First Protomulticellular Organisms
		Cyanobacteria—A Strong Candidate for MVP (Most Valuable Prokaryote)
		The Divergence of the Prokaryotes and the Formation of the Bacteria and Archaea Superkingdoms
		The Eukarya—Cellular Life 2.0
		The Evolution of the Eukarya
		New Mechanisms for the Replication and Storage of Genetic Information
		The Devil Is in the Details
		A Closer Look at the Mysterious “Loki”
		The Eukaryotic Revolution
		What Are the Odds of Forming a Eukaryotic Cell?
		Eukaryotic Life in the Milky Way
		References
	Chapter 9 Partnering Up—The Journey From Single-Cell Eukaryotes to Multicellular Animals
		The Original Sexual Revolution
		What’s Sex Good For?
		It Pays to Be Dynamic
		Joining Together—The Emergence of Multicellular Life
		The Rogue Cell—An Omen of Death in a Clonal Complex
		Acquiring a Functional Identity—Developmental Biology Emerges Within a Eukaryotic Multicellular Complex
		The Diversification of Eukaryotic Multicellular Organisms
		The Great Blossoming of the Animals
		References
	Chapter 10 The Blossoming of Terrestrial Life
		The Phanerozoic Eon
		The Invasion of the Coasts by Bacteria and Eukaryotic Algae
		The Animals Finally Come Ashore
		Life’s Near-Death Experience
		The Rise of the Dinosaurs
		Our Distant Ancestors—Masters of How to Survive in the Most Difficult of Environments
		The Rise of the Mammals
		The End-Cretaceous Mass Extinction
		Time and Place Counterfactuals
		The Cenozoic—The Era of the Mammal Finally Arrives
		References
	Chapter 11 The Emergence of the Genus Homo—Earth’s First Humans Come Into Being
		The Genesis of the First “Humans”
		History Repeats Itself
		Climate Fluctuation and the Evolution of the Human Brain
		The Unique Evolutionary Destiny of the Genus Homo
		The Last of the Homo Genus
		The Fate of Intelligent Creatures on Our Planet and in Our Galaxy
		Finding Ourselves
		References
	Chapter 12 The Genesis of Behaviorally Modern Homo sapiens—A Cognitively Advanced Human That Can Reflect Upon Its Existence
		The Value of a Good Toolset
		Forged by Fire
		The First Migration of Humans Out of Africa
		The African Incubator
		The African Homo sapiens Invade Eurasia
		The African Incubator Versus the Eurasian Incubator
		The Home-Field Advantage
		The Problem With Playing the Away Game
		The Extinction of the Original Eurasians
		The Great Diaspora
		The “Winning Hand” of the African Homo sapiens
		The Genetics of Grammatical Language
		The Natural Selection of Behaviorally Modern Humans
		The World That Came After the Emergence of Behaviorally Modern Humans
		The Future of Humankind
		References
	Chapter 13 The Future of Life on Earth
		Will We End Our Lucky Streak?
		The Potential for Humanity to Destroy Itself With Its Own Weaponry
		Homicidal Tendencies and Nuclear Armageddon—Trouble From Within
		Moving Forward in the Nuclear Era
		Environmental Destruction
		Will Nature End Our Lucky Streak?
		Group One Threats: A Grab Bag of Nasty Events
		Danger Nearby
		A Hodgepodge of Other Dangers
		Group Two Threats: Natural Events That Will Threaten Our Existence Sometime in the Future
		Volcanic Eruptions and Basalt Floods—Trouble From Below
		Asteroids and Comets—Trouble From Above
		Mitigating the Most Likely Near-Term Non-Anthropogenic Threats
		Group 3 Threats: Natural Events That Will Destroy Life on Earth Sometime in the Distant Future
		Peering Into Our Distant Future Through Dark-Colored Glasses
		Humanity’s Long-Term Prospects
		The Importance of Hope and Perseverance
		References
Epilogue
Index