I have started, Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty. Time from some fiction and I have enjoyed several other books by this author. Here’s the blurb:
Nine perfect strangers, each hiding an imperfect life.
A luxury retreat cut off from the outside world.
Ten days that promise to change your life.
But some promises - like some lives - are perfect lies . . .
This book took a while. It is a long book and I am a slow reader, but it is also packed with information. I often found that I could only read a few pages before I needed a break to digest. I am familiar with Jim Al-Khalili’s work, both written and on the radio, and he has a very lucid style.
The main thing that I learned from the book was how incredibly complex the subject is; I have really only gained an appreciation of all the work that is going on. A couple of random nuggets: spinach might be thought of as a quantum computer; if we can build solar panels that work on the same principle as photosynthesis in plants, they will be fantastically efficient.
I have started Life on the Edge: The Coming of Age of Quantum Biology by Jim Al-Khalili and Johnjoe McFadden. Time for non-fiction again and I expect this to be an interesting read from past experience of the (first) author. Here’s the blurb:
Life is the most extraordinary phenomenon in the known universe; but how does it work? Even in this age of cloning and synthetic biology, the remarkable truth remains: nobody has ever made anything living entirely out of dead material. Life remains the only way to make life. Are we missing a vital ingredient in its creation?
Like Richard Dawkins' The Selfish Gene, which provided a new perspective on evolution, Life on the Edge alters our understanding of life's dynamics as Jim Al-Khalili and Johnjoe Macfadden reveal the hitherto missing ingredient to be quantum mechanics. Drawing on recent ground-breaking experiments around the world, they show how photosynthesis relies on subatomic particles existing in many places at once, while inside enzymes, those workhorses of life that make every molecule within our cells, particles vanish from one point in space and instantly materialize in another.
Each chapter in Life on the Edge opens with an engaging example that illustrates one of life’s puzzles – How do migrating birds know where to go? How do we really smell the scent of a rose? How do our genes manage to copy themselves with such precision? – and then reveals how quantum mechanics delivers its answer. Guiding the reader through the maze of rapidly unfolding discovery, Al-Khalili and McFadden communicate vividly the excitement of this explosive new field of quantum biology, with its potentially revolutionary applications, and also offer insights into the biggest puzzle of all: what is life?
This book is less of a story, more of a study of a family and their interrelations. Each of Rosaleen’s children go off and lead different lives and the author describes them each with great insight. Overall, a very well-written book and enjoyable read that gave me a glimpse of some other, unfamiliar worlds.
