Editor's Summary
23 February 2006
Life Choices
In Genesis: The Scientific Quest for Life's Origins, Robert M. Hazen has produced "the best overview of the origin-of-life field for the nonspecialist reader" that our reviewer has encountered. As that reviewer is Leslie Orgel, prominent in the field for 40 years, that's a pretty good recommendation. In particular, Hazen successfully holds the ring between the incompatible genes-first 'prebiotic soup' and metabolism-first ideas involving the surface chemistry of geothermal environments.
Books and Arts: In the beginning
doi:10.1038/439915a