Nature's Destiny: How the Laws of Biology Reveal Purpose in the Universe by Michael J. Denton

A percentage of the proceeds from your purchase of this book from Amazon.com will benefit the
Ashbrook Center.

Is mankind a central product of the universe? Or merely an accident fit to survive? The exploding discoveries of biology in the past half century could radically change the scientific answer to this debate.

In Nature's Destiny, Michael Denton marshals a stunning range of biological, chemical, and physical evidence to answer systematically a simple question: Could life elsewhere in the universe be significantly different from life on Earth? Must it rely on carbon, water, DNA, amino acids, and proteins? Could there be an alternative to DNA, or could DNA be constructed out of different components? Could cells be designed differently? From these building blocks he dares to ask the boldest of questions: Is it possible there are life forms radically different from those realized during the course of evolution on Earth? And even: Is a Homo sapiens-like creature the only possible highly intelligent species, given the laws of biology that exist throughout the universe?

The stunning answer to his last question is yes. Life is highly constrained by the laws of nature. If, for example, the ratio between strong and weak chemical bonds had not been precisely what it is, if the thermal properties of water were not precisely what they are, if the atmosphere of the Earth had just the right properties to filter out harmful radiation, then a flourishing biosphere such as exists on Earth would be impossible. For life to develop beyond the most primitive stage hinted at by the famous Mars fossils requires an earthlike planet, with earthlike atmosphere and oceans.

Over the past twenty years, such physicists as Freeman Dyson, Fred Hoyle, Martin Rees, and Paul Davies have argued that the universe is fine-tuned for carbon-based life. Now, Michael Denton extends their argument all the way from the carbon atom to advanced and complex life forms closely resembling ourselves, showing that our biosphere is central to nature's destiny. Though we may have six-fingered cousins elsewhere, the laws of nature are tuned to reach an endpoint in mankind.