How We Live and Why We Die: The Secret Lives of Cells |  | Author: Lewis Wolpert
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Category: Book
List Price: $24.95
Buy New: $11.00
as of 7/30/2010 17:05 CDT details
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Rating:  4 reviews
Sales Rank: 315823
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 1
Pages: 256
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5.7 x 1.1
ISBN: 0393072215
Dewey Decimal Number: 571.6
EAN: 9780393072211
ASIN: 0393072215
Publication Date: October 19, 2009
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Biologist Lewis Wolpert eloquently narrates the basics of human life through the lens of its smallest component—the cell. Everything about our existence—movement and memory, imagination and reproduction, birth and, ultimately, death—is governed by our cells. They are the basis of all life in the universe, from the tiniest bacteria to the most complex animals. In the tradition of the classic Lives of a Cell, but with the benefit of the latest research, internationally acclaimed embryologist Lewis Wolpert demonstrates how human life derives from a single cell and then grows into a body, an incredibly complex society made up of billions of them. When we age, our cells cannot repair the damage they have undergone; when we get ill, it is because cells are so damaged they stop working and die. Wolpert examines the science behind topics that are much discussed but rarely understood—stem cell research, cloning, DNA, mutating cancer cells—and explains how all life evolved from just one cell. Lively and passionate, this is an accessible guide to understanding the human body and life itself.
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| Customer Reviews:
 How We Live and Why We Die February 5, 2010
Sacramento Book Review (Sacramento, CA)
3 out of 5 found this review helpful
The base of all life is the cell, of which all living things are composed. Cell study enables scientists to understand //How We Live & Why We Die//. Cells are amazingly adapted to gather proteins, enzymes and other molecular structures, which provide the building blocks and energy of life. Cells also provide the written instructions of how to build the organism, from their DNA.
Like a nail-biting mystery, the author unravels the secrets locked up in the cell. He reveals the grand contribution of Gregor Mendel and other great scientists who helped develop the theories that explain how life works. Many of these have given rise to new ways to study diseases and understand, in a more profound way, the meaning of life itself.
Sensitive to the bases of all life, Wolpert goes on to explain how we become human, how we reproduce, how we move, think and feel, how we grow and why we age, how we survive, how cancer strikes, how diseases are caused and the origin of life. Although he explains his points from the perspective of a scientist, he succeeds in his use of very readable language and draws clear conclusions. A mind-expanding read.
Reviewed by D. Wayne Dworsky
Outstanding ! February 12, 2010
S. Erik Skoug (Boston, MA.)
3 out of 5 found this review helpful
The author, Lewis Wolpert, has managed to explain "the secret lives of Cells"
in a way that makes it all understandable for a lay person.
Not only does he make the facts clear but the book is written in such a
way that we - as readers - get the feeling of participating in the
fantastic exploration of the cells of which we are all made.
Fun, and easy reading, about a very important aspects of our lives.
Fascinating primer on the state of the art in cell biology January 21, 2010
DJ Outro (Austin, TX)
4 out of 5 found this review helpful
Wolpert gives an expert's overview of everything we know as humans about our own cells. The book is appropriate for anyone with some vague familiarity with biology looking to get up to speed. However, there are two major flaws with this text. First, there are no pictures, diagrams, or even references to accompany the text. This makes understanding the process of cell division, for example, next to impossible. Second, there are glaring grammatical and basic style errors. I encountered many run-on sentences and sudden changes of topic in the middle of paragraphs. I would have expected better writing from such an acclaimed researcher and presumably reasonable editor! Regardless, I enjoyed reading it and recommend it as a primer for more in depth reading on biology elsewhere.
 Wonderful Survey of cells - without a single diagram November 23, 2009
Tech Historian
35 out of 38 found this review helpful
If you want to catch up on basic biology of the cell Lewis Wolpert had written the primer. In plain and precise english he takes through a tour of all that's known about the cells that make us who we are. If I was just rating the text, it deserves 5-stars.
Unbelievably this masterful text is dumped on the reader without a single diagram, drawing or illustration. You read this right. Imagine taking your college biology course by just reading 200+ pages of text. I spent hours reading a few pages and then getting on the web to find pictures or videos to help explain what I was reading. I finally gave up when I realized I should just go out and buy a book that had invested the time in illustrating these difficult concepts.
I don't know what the publisher was thinking and why the author would agree to this. If the purpose of the book was to provide the lay-reader with insight into the workings of the cell in the body, this is an unfinished book.
Kudo's to the writer for the text but not worth buying until the book is completed. Shame on the publisher for trying to do this on the cheap.
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