Sleeping Beauties

The Mystery of Dormant Innovations in Nature and Culture

Format: Hardback
RRP: £20.00
£18.00
Save £2.00 (10%)

Free UK P&P on online orders over £25

Adding to basket… The item has been added

Life innovates constantly, producing perfectly adapted species – but there’s a catch. 

TIMES AND TELEGRAPH BEST BOOK OF 2023

'Hopeful and fascinating.' THE TIMES

Many animals and plants eke out seemingly unremarkable lives. Passive, constrained, modest, threatened. Then, in a blink of evolutionary time, they flourish spectacularly. Once we start to look, these ‘sleeping beauties’ crop up everywhere. But why?

Looking at the book of life, from apex predators to keystone crops, and informed by his own cutting-edge experiments, renowned scientist Andreas Wagner demonstrates that innovations can come frequently and cheaply to nature, well before they are needed. We have found prehistoric bacteria that harbour the remarkable ability to fight off 21st-century antibiotics. And human history fits the pattern too, as life-changing technologies are invented only to be forgotten, languishing in the shadows before they finally take off.

In probing the mysteries of these sleeping beauties, Wagner reveals a crucial part of nature’s rich and strange tapestry.

Write a Review

There are no reviews for this product yet - be the first

Authors:
Wagner, Andreas
Year Published:
2023
Country of Publication:
United Kingdom
Format:
Hardback
ISBN:
9780861545278
Number of Pages:
352
Publication Date:
06/04/2023
Publisher:
Oneworld Publications
Place of Publication:
London
Language:
English
SKU:
9780861545278

Customers also bought