One of today's most accomplished biologists and gifted storytellers reveals the rules that regulate all life
How does life work? How does nature produce the right numbers of zebras and lions on the African savanna, or fish in the ocean? How do our bodies produce the right numbers of cells in our organs and bloodstream? In The Serengeti Rules, award-winning biologist and author Sean Carroll tells the stories of the pioneering scientists who sought the answers to such simple yet profoundly important questions, and shows how their discoveries matter for our health and the health of the planet we depend upon.
One of the most important revelations about the natural world is that everything is regulated-there are rules that regulate the amount of every molecule in our bodies and rules that govern the numbers of every animal and plant in the wild. And the most surprising revelation about the rules that regulate life at such different scales is that they are remarkably similar-there is a common underlying logic of life. Carroll recounts how our deep knowledge of the rules and logic of the human body has spurred the advent of revolutionary life-saving medicines, and makes the compelling case that it is now time to use the Serengeti Rules to heal our ailing planet.
Bold and inspiring, The Serengeti Rules illuminates how life works at vastly different scales. Read it and you will never look at the world the same way again. Sean B. Carroll is an internationally recognized biologist, award-winning author, and Emmy-winning executive producer. He is an investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Balo-Simon Chair and Distinguished University Professor of Biology at the University of Maryland, and professor emeritus of molecular biology and genetics at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. His books include A Series of Fortunate Events (Princeton) and Remarkable Creatures, which was a finalist for the National Book Award for nonfiction. "A master storyteller, Carroll explores the unity of biology from the molecular level to the Serengeti, the rules that regulate life, and the consequences when regulation breaks down. A fascinating journey from beginning to end, this book will educate and entertain readers at all levels and leave them with a better understanding of how the biosphere works."-Simon Levin, Princeton University, author of Fragile Dominion: Complexity and the Commons
"The Serengeti Rules is a superb journey of a book written by a scientist of the first rank. Unfolding seamlessly from molecule to ecosystem, it explains with authority and grace why modern biology is central not just to human life but to that of the planet itself."-Edward O. Wilson, Harvard University
"As one of our leading biologists and communicators, Sean Carroll has merged a passion for scientific discovery with a flair for telling great stories of exploration. In The Serengeti Rules, Carroll has crafted a work of epic sweep that travels the globe in search of the logical rules that govern all of life, from tiny molecules to entire ecosystems. The Serengeti Rules both delights and enlightens-I was left marveling at the human achievement behind scientific breakthroughs and the sheer beauty of the working of living systems."-Neil Shubin, author of Your Inner Fish: A Journey into the 3.5-Billion-Year History of the Human Body
"Original, provocative, and beautifully crafted, Carroll's book provides a glimpse into the deeper laws of biology that govern the earth. With his inimitable style of storytelling combined with a deep knowledge of science, Carroll takes us on a rollicking adventure, reminding us that the rules that apply to ecosystems also apply to the human body. This book is a must-read for anyone who cares about the future of the planet."-Siddhartha Mukherjee, author of The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer
"This is a rattling good read by one of the leading scientists of our time. The Seren
