Christiane Nusslein-Volhard, winner of The Nobel Prize in Medicine, gives a concise and illustrative overview of genetics, evolution, and cellular processes as well as a discussing of current ethical issues in human biology. Coming to Life is a remarkable journey through developmental biology that reveals miraculous processes in the microscopic world of cells. Through an accounting of groundbreaking discoveries, Christiane Nusslein-Volhard tells us many answers to historical and contemporary questions in science. For example, she brings us the newest knowledge about embryonic forms, explains the genetic mechanisms that influence adult development of all animals, and shares insights into the ethical standards society moist uphold in the face of new scientific discoveries. As the author leads us from laboratory research to its applications in human beings, we also come to understand why children look like their parents, how an embryonic cell knows to become an eye rather than an eyelash, and other incredible influences hat result in variety in life. Complete with her own hand-drawn illustrations, Coming to Life gives a rare opportunity to understand a Nobel Prize-winner's passion for science in concise, understandable language. 55 b/w illustrations.

Personal empowerment in the face of planetary despair

Coming to Life is a spiritually therapeutic book, aimed to inject awareness and consciousness into what we are doing and how we are choosing to live our lives. Mental health issues continue to rise in our world and our psychological theories and approaches continue to increase with them. Yet, few mention the importance of a spiritual practice within recovery; recovering the connection with Self. On a global scale, we are at a time where more and more people are experiencing a strong polarity between creating and living with fear, versus creating and living with love. Sarah discusses how this dichotomy (and at times, dance) presented itself in her own life, repeatedly in the shape of self-destructive patterns and behaviours followed by leaps of faith and growth.

Millions of people around the world today spend portions of their lives in online virtual worlds. Second Life is one of the largest of these virtual worlds. The residents of Second Life create communities, buy property and build homes, go to concerts, meet in bars, attend weddings and religious services, buy and sell virtual goods and services, find friendship, fall in love--the possibilities are endless, and all encountered through a computer screen. At the time of its initial publication in 2008, Coming of Age in Second Life was the first book of anthropology to examine this thriving alternate universe. Tom Boellstorff conducted more than two years of fieldwork in Second Life, living among and observing its residents in exactly the same way anthropologists traditionally have done to learn about cultures and social groups in the so-called real world. He conducted his research as the avatar "Tom Bukowski," and applied the rigorous methods of anthropology to study many facets of this new frontier of human life, including issues of gender, race, sex, money, conflict and antisocial behavior, the construction of place and time, and the interplay of self and group. Coming of Age in Second Life shows how virtual worlds can change ideas about identity and society. Bringing anthropology into territory never before studied, this book demonstrates that in some ways humans have always been virtual, and that virtual worlds in all their rich complexity build upon a human capacity for culture that is as old as humanity itself. Now with a new preface in which the author places his book in light of the most recent transformations in online culture, Coming of Age in Second Life remains the classic ethnography of virtual worlds.

Now in paperback, the contemporary, practical guide to gaining the spiritual awareness that will help readers wake more fully to life from the author of Whole Child/Whole Parent. Berends explores our need for connections and teaches us to redefine that need by learning to connect with our spiritual dimension, by whatever name we choose to call it.

In 1977, P.M.H. Atwater had an experience that changed her life: she died. Or rather, she almost died. Like millions of other people around the world, she had survived a Near-Death Experience (NDE). Compelled to share this experience with others, she wrote Coming Back to Life, an account that became an instant sensation, and is now considered a classic on the subject of NDE.

Coming to Life's Terms by author Linda Petosa, straps you in and takes you on a roller coaster ride through reality. In her first published book, you will joyfully embark on a journey through life's experiences from childhood to adulthood. Each chapter will engage you in laughter and capture your emotions. It will help you conquer the many milestones encountered in all of our lives from day to day. From road rage, to parenting and dealing with the loss of a loved one, the author will help you embrace life's challenges as you try to cope. You will be delightfully inspired. Coming to Life's Terms holds the keys to survival in a crazy and stressful world for both young and old. While helping you to get a grip on life, the author will entertain you as well. Her story is a true validation of what life is all about, one she hopes you will enjoy time and time again.