"Carbon is everywhere: in the paper of this book and the blood of our bodies. It's with us from beginning to end, present in our baby clothes and coffin alike. We live on a carbon planet, and we are carbon life. No other element is so central to our well-being; yet, when missing or misaligned, carbon atoms can also bring about disease and even death. At once ubiquitous and mysterious, carbon holds the answers to some of humanity's biggest questions....

"Take a lively look at the biology of plants on Earth and their vast importance to our planet, with this wide-ranging exploration from an award-winning team."--Publisher's description. "On land and in the seas, green plants make the oxygen and food that many living things--including us--need to survive. Covering the evolution of the first plants billions of years ago, the secret, microscopic workings of trees and leaves today, and the role of plants...