Cell Structure & Function

Secret Chambers: The Inside Story of Cells & Complex Life. By Martin Brasier. 2012. Oxford University Press. (ISBN 9780199644001). 298 pp. Hardback. $29.95. If you want to settle down for a series of storytelling sessions by a prominent Oxford paleobiologist who delves into the origin of life, and ancient waters, drawing analogies to a survey ship’s construction, exploring the pyramids, and describing the not so “boring billion” (if you don’t know what this is, you have to read the book…), this is a great read. It is written up with so many interesting footnotes, with references you feel you absolutely must read – a surreal feeling for this reader, for whom it felt like zooming in and out of subject matter using a camera lens, but it would be quite natural for the younger reader who is used to clicking on links and going on tangents while multitasking. For educators, this is a book to be perused ahead of time and used as both a springboard for further reading and as …