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lakmus's review
3.0
Overall this added up to an entertaining collection of writings about intersection of information and biology, but - as Davies points out - it's not yet a coherent field of study (?) and so perhaps we can't get anything more than an entertaining collection of writing. In the end it, I got a bunch of interesting party anecdotes, but nothing much in terms of understanding (biology and information are intertwined, no shit).
Maybe I'm just annoyed about physicists dipping their greedy paws into every other science willy-nilly, with readily available 'cows in a vacuum' and little appreciation of the history and nuance of each field.
Maybe I'm just annoyed about physicists dipping their greedy paws into every other science willy-nilly, with readily available 'cows in a vacuum' and little appreciation of the history and nuance of each field.
wsimson's review against another edition
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Really fun read but the last chapter was a let down.
fractal_rabbit's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
5.0
Ties together many separate fields, physics, philosophy, computer science, biology and neuroscience. It raises interesting questions about how life can arise from non-life, with the organization of information being casually more important than chemistry.
yates9's review
5.0
Paul Davies is a an excellent science writer, bringing fresh perspective to historical and new science but what makes this book particularly interesting is the insight we get from firsthand access to the research on the subject.
Biology is still a strange science, exceptions outweigh the rule when you try to make any statement, there is a lack of fundamental principles to follow and even being able to effect a measurement reliably is completely non trivial.
However this state is unlikely to remain like this forever and the direction of a new way to identify principles in biological sciences will include information as a metric and evolutionary “optionality”.
Paul Davies in this book brings something new evem to people that feel they know contemporary biological methods.
On the down side the book is less accessible than other texts by the author ans requires attentive reading.
Biology is still a strange science, exceptions outweigh the rule when you try to make any statement, there is a lack of fundamental principles to follow and even being able to effect a measurement reliably is completely non trivial.
However this state is unlikely to remain like this forever and the direction of a new way to identify principles in biological sciences will include information as a metric and evolutionary “optionality”.
Paul Davies in this book brings something new evem to people that feel they know contemporary biological methods.
On the down side the book is less accessible than other texts by the author ans requires attentive reading.
jnieto's review against another edition
5.0
The book is about "the physics of information and its role in the story of life". It develops interesting perspectives to understand biology and life. For example the theory that cancers are an atavistic phenotype triggered by cellular stress.
I've enjoyed it a lot.
I've enjoyed it a lot.
williammcclain's review
5.0
Fascinating book that delves into some of the fundamental questions of science and life.
ddavis3739's review against another edition
5.0
By no means a light read, this book is still worth the time of any reader interested in life and asking theoretical questions. The author makes a great case for further study into informational patterns and laws. Some claims could have used more clarification as to what was more theoretical but overall it has gotten me even more excited for a quantum future!