Author: Michel Anctil
Publisher: McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP
ISBN: 0773554106
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 452
Book Description
Naturalists in antiquity worked hard to dispel fanciful ideas about the meaning of living lights, but remained bewildered by them. Even Charles Darwin was perplexed by the chaotic diversity of luminous organisms, which he found difficult to reconcile with his evolutionary theory. It fell to naturalists and scientists to make sense of the dazzling displays of fireflies and other organisms. In Luminous Creatures Michel Anctil shows how mythical perceptions of bioluminescence gradually gave way to a scientific understanding of its mechanisms, functions, and evolution, and to the recognition of its usefulness for biomedical and other applied fields. Following the rise of the modern scientific method and the circumnavigations and oceanographic expeditions of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, biologists began to realize the diversity of bioluminescence's expressions in light organs and ecological imprints, and how widespread it is on the planet. By the end of the nineteenth century an understanding of the chemical nature and physiological control of the phenomenon was at hand. Technological developments led to an explosion of knowledge on the ecology, evolution, and molecular biology of bioluminescence. Luminous Creatures tracks these historical events and illuminates the lives and the trail-blazing accomplishments of the scientists involved. It offers a unique window into the awe-inspiring, phantasmagorical world of light-producing organisms, viewed from the perspectives of casual observers and scientists alike.
Luminous Creatures
Author: Michel Anctil
Publisher: McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP
ISBN: 0773554106
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 452
Book Description
Naturalists in antiquity worked hard to dispel fanciful ideas about the meaning of living lights, but remained bewildered by them. Even Charles Darwin was perplexed by the chaotic diversity of luminous organisms, which he found difficult to reconcile with his evolutionary theory. It fell to naturalists and scientists to make sense of the dazzling displays of fireflies and other organisms. In Luminous Creatures Michel Anctil shows how mythical perceptions of bioluminescence gradually gave way to a scientific understanding of its mechanisms, functions, and evolution, and to the recognition of its usefulness for biomedical and other applied fields. Following the rise of the modern scientific method and the circumnavigations and oceanographic expeditions of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, biologists began to realize the diversity of bioluminescence's expressions in light organs and ecological imprints, and how widespread it is on the planet. By the end of the nineteenth century an understanding of the chemical nature and physiological control of the phenomenon was at hand. Technological developments led to an explosion of knowledge on the ecology, evolution, and molecular biology of bioluminescence. Luminous Creatures tracks these historical events and illuminates the lives and the trail-blazing accomplishments of the scientists involved. It offers a unique window into the awe-inspiring, phantasmagorical world of light-producing organisms, viewed from the perspectives of casual observers and scientists alike.
Publisher: McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP
ISBN: 0773554106
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 452
Book Description
Naturalists in antiquity worked hard to dispel fanciful ideas about the meaning of living lights, but remained bewildered by them. Even Charles Darwin was perplexed by the chaotic diversity of luminous organisms, which he found difficult to reconcile with his evolutionary theory. It fell to naturalists and scientists to make sense of the dazzling displays of fireflies and other organisms. In Luminous Creatures Michel Anctil shows how mythical perceptions of bioluminescence gradually gave way to a scientific understanding of its mechanisms, functions, and evolution, and to the recognition of its usefulness for biomedical and other applied fields. Following the rise of the modern scientific method and the circumnavigations and oceanographic expeditions of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, biologists began to realize the diversity of bioluminescence's expressions in light organs and ecological imprints, and how widespread it is on the planet. By the end of the nineteenth century an understanding of the chemical nature and physiological control of the phenomenon was at hand. Technological developments led to an explosion of knowledge on the ecology, evolution, and molecular biology of bioluminescence. Luminous Creatures tracks these historical events and illuminates the lives and the trail-blazing accomplishments of the scientists involved. It offers a unique window into the awe-inspiring, phantasmagorical world of light-producing organisms, viewed from the perspectives of casual observers and scientists alike.
Bioluminescence
Author: Marc Zimmer
Publisher: Twenty-First Century Books ™
ISBN: 1467792314
Category : Young Adult Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 76
Book Description
What do giant squids, mantis shrimp, and fireflies have in common? These animals, along with a wide range of creatures, are able to give off light; this is called bioluminescence. Different species use different chemistries to bioluminesce, and they produce their light for a variety of reasons, including communication, hunting, and self-defense. Bioluminescence is a unique and fascinating adaptation found in the animal kingdom. Surprisingly, about half of all known phyla (a classification for animals that share the same body type) contain some bioluminescent species. Scientists don't yet understand all facets of bioluminescence, but they have managed to harness the glow and use it in a myriad of ways. One of the most important applications involves using bioluminescence as a microscope in medical studies. For example, laboratory scientists can create fluorescent malaria parasites to track the path by which the disease is spread from a mosquito to the animal it bites. Bioluminescent proteins are also helping researchers learn more about cancer, HIV and other viruses, and complex neurological processes. In fact, bioluminescent proteins are so useful to twenty-first-century medicine that two groups of scientists, one in 2008 and the other in 2014, were awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their work with these proteins and related technologies. Even artists and fashion designers use bioluminescence in their work to create glowing, light-sensitive paintings and clothing lines. Author Marc Zimmer, a world-renowned specialist in fluorescent proteins, takes readers on a glowing journey into the frontiers of bioluminescence.
Publisher: Twenty-First Century Books ™
ISBN: 1467792314
Category : Young Adult Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 76
Book Description
What do giant squids, mantis shrimp, and fireflies have in common? These animals, along with a wide range of creatures, are able to give off light; this is called bioluminescence. Different species use different chemistries to bioluminesce, and they produce their light for a variety of reasons, including communication, hunting, and self-defense. Bioluminescence is a unique and fascinating adaptation found in the animal kingdom. Surprisingly, about half of all known phyla (a classification for animals that share the same body type) contain some bioluminescent species. Scientists don't yet understand all facets of bioluminescence, but they have managed to harness the glow and use it in a myriad of ways. One of the most important applications involves using bioluminescence as a microscope in medical studies. For example, laboratory scientists can create fluorescent malaria parasites to track the path by which the disease is spread from a mosquito to the animal it bites. Bioluminescent proteins are also helping researchers learn more about cancer, HIV and other viruses, and complex neurological processes. In fact, bioluminescent proteins are so useful to twenty-first-century medicine that two groups of scientists, one in 2008 and the other in 2014, were awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their work with these proteins and related technologies. Even artists and fashion designers use bioluminescence in their work to create glowing, light-sensitive paintings and clothing lines. Author Marc Zimmer, a world-renowned specialist in fluorescent proteins, takes readers on a glowing journey into the frontiers of bioluminescence.
All Hands
Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 634
Book Description
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 634
Book Description
Readings in Natural Philosophy; or, a Popular display of the wonders of nature, etc
Author: Charles Cowden CLARKE
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 730
Book Description
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 730
Book Description
Scientific American
Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 502
Book Description
Monthly magazine devoted to topics of general scientific interest.
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 502
Book Description
Monthly magazine devoted to topics of general scientific interest.
The Advanced Lesson Book; Consisting of Reading Lessons in History, Geography, Literature and Science, Etc
Author: Edward Thomas Stevens
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 434
Book Description
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 434
Book Description
The New code, 1871. The grade lesson books, by E.T. Stevens and C. Hole. Standard 6
Author: Edward Thomas Stevens
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 268
Book Description
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 268
Book Description
The advanced lesson book, by E.T. Stevens and C. Hole
Author: Edward Thomas Stevens
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 434
Book Description
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 434
Book Description
The Medical and Physical Journal
Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 576
Book Description
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 576
Book Description
The Nautical Magazine and Naval Chronicle for 1868
Author: Various
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108054889
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 741
Book Description
The 1868 Nautical Magazine includes coverage of the Pacific region, a tsunami and possible climate impacts of deforestation and pollution.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108054889
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 741
Book Description
The 1868 Nautical Magazine includes coverage of the Pacific region, a tsunami and possible climate impacts of deforestation and pollution.