The sweeping diversity of complex life on Earth, Ward and Brownlee argue, evolved out of an extraordinary set of physical conditions and chance events that would be extremely hard to duplicate- though not impossible. Many planets throughout the vastness of the Universe may be teeming with microbial life, but advancement beyond this stage is very ra...more

“They deftly bring together findings from many disparate areas of science in a book that science buffs will find hard to put down.” —Publishers Weekly Science has worked hard to piece together the story of the evolution of our world up to this point, but only recently have we developed the understanding and the tools to describe the entire li...more

A breathtaking novel of suspense and action in which Deanna Troi risks all to save her home planet from the forces of the Dominion. As the war between the Dominion and the Federation rages across the Alpha Quadrant, Counselor Deanna Troi finds she is faced with more than she expected when she kidnaps a telepathic killer to bring to the aid of the r...more

What is the ultimate destiny of our universe? That is the striking question addressed by James Gardner in The Intelligent Universe. Traditionally, scientists (and Robert Frost) have offered two bleak answers to this profound issue: fire or ice. The cosmos might end in fire—a cataclysmic Big Crunch in which galaxies, planets, and life forms...more

To many people, the main question about extraterrestrial life is whether it exists. But to the scientific community, that question has already been answered: it does, and within our solar system. The new science of astrobiology is already being practiced at NASA's Astrobiology Institute and the University of Washington's new Department of Astrobiol...more

Our neighboring planets may have the answer to this question. Scientists have already identified ice caps on Mars and what appear to be enormous oceans underneath the ice of Jupiter's moons. The atmosphere on Venus appeared harsh and insupportable of life, composed of a toxic atmosphere and oceans of acid -- until scientists concluded that Earth's ...more

Compiled by a team of experts, this textbook has been designed for elementary university courses in astrobiology. It begins with an examination of how life may have arisen on Earth and then reviews the evidence for possible life on Mars, Europa and Titan. The potential for life in exoplanetary systems and the search for extraterrestrial intelligenc...more

The startling Antarctic discovery...The revelations about life on Mars...Shocking new proof about who we really are! From outer space to deep prehistory, from ancient Egypt to the planet Mars, the conclusions in Martian Genesis will astound you. At last, science writer Herbie Brennan provides answers to the questions that have confounded scientis...more

"Do you feel lucky? Well do ya?" asked Dirty Harry. Palaeontologist Peter Ward and astronomer Donald Brownlee think all of us should feel lucky. Their rare Earth hypothesis predicts that while simple, microbial life will be very widespread in the universe, complex animal or plant life will be extremely rare. Ward and Brownlee admit that "it is very...more

For many years the federal government funded the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI), later popularised by Carl Sagan's novel "Contact" and the movie starring Jodie Foster. Though in actuality SETI never did make contact with signals from an alien civilisation, the search continues to this day through privately funded endeavours. How li...more