Guide to the science used in Steven Spielberg's films Jurassic Park and The Lost World. Could modern scientists recreate dinosaurs from 85 million-year-old DNA?

From two top scientists comes a fun and fascinating book that takes readers on a deliciously fun scientific romp into the far reaches of today's state-of-the-art science to explore the worlds of dinosaurs and DNA. Line drawings.

Describes the author's success in isolating some of the oldest DNA ever discovered, cites humorous bloopers from "Jurassic Park," and details the ongoing search for the perfect egg

Wherever the cutting edge of science goes, Michael Crichton is there. From dinosaur cloning to global warming, nanotechnology to time travel, animal behavior to human genetics, Crichton always takes us to the cutting edge of science and then pushes the envelope. The Science of Michael Crichton examines the amazing inventions of Crichton's books and lifts up the hood, revealing the science underneath. In intelligent and well-thought essays, scholars and experts decide what Crichton gets right and what he gets wrong. They examine which Crichton imaginings are feasible and which are just plain impossible. Scenarios examined include whether dinosaurs can be cloned, if nanotechnological particles can evolve intelligence, and if we can go back in time.

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the author of Timeline, Sphere, and Congo comes the sequel to the smash-hit Jurassic Park, a thriller that’s been millions of years in the making. “Fast and gripping.”—The Washington Post Book World It is now six years since the secret disaster at Jurassic Park, six years since the extraordinary dream of science and imagination came to a crashing end—the dinosaurs destroyed, the park dismantled, and the island indefinitely closed to the public. There are rumors that something has survived. . . . “Harrowing thrills . . . fast-paced and engaging.”—People “A very scary read.”—Entertainment Weekly “Action-packed.”—New York Daily News “An edge-of-the-seat tale.”—St. Petersburg Times

A world-renowned paleontologist reveals groundbreaking science that trumps science fiction: how to grow a living dinosaur. Over a decade after Jurassic Park, Jack Horner and his colleagues in molecular biology labs are in the process of building the technology to create a real dinosaur. Based on new research in evolutionary developmental biology on how a few select cells grow to create arms, legs, eyes, and brains that function together, Jack Horner takes the science a step further in a plan to "reverse evolution" and reveals the awesome, even frightening, power being acquired to recreate the prehistoric past. The key is the dinosaur's genetic code that lives on in modern birds- even chickens. From cutting-edge biology labs to field digs underneath the Montana sun, How to Build a Dinosaur explains and enlightens an awesome new science.

Hollywood hit-maker Steven Spielberg wowed the world with his Oscar-winning film version of Michael Crichton's bestseller "Jurassic Park". The mighty dinosaurs return to the screen in this summer's "The Lost World". This fascinating book slips behind the cameras and into the studios and workshops and goes on location to provide a look at how the mega-movie sequel was made. Color photos throughout.