Life at the Extremes

By Frances Ashcroft

Book Overview

The debut of a female Steve Jones - likeable, literate, lucid and laconic. A sprightly, lavishly illustrated book on the science of human survival.

How do people survive extremes of heat, cold, depth, speed and altitude? This book explores the limits of human survival and the physiological adaptations which enable us to exist under extreme conditions. In man's battle for survival in the harshest of environments, the knowledge imparted by physiology, the 'logic of life', is crucial. What causes mountain sickness? Why is it possible to reach the top of Everest without supplementary oxygen, yet be killed if a plane depressurises suddenly at the same altitude. Why are astronauts unable to stand without fainting when they return to Earth? Why do human divers get the bends but sperm whales don't? Will men always be able to run faster than women? Why don't penguins get frostbite?

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0006551254
• ISBN13: 9780006551256
• Release Date: January 2001
• Publisher: Flamingo
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 1.02 lbs.
• Dimensions: 7.8" x 0.9" x 5.1"

Customer Reviews

What you never thought to know.

This is an incredible collection of knowledge. Share this with everyone! The amount of information you never thought to think about is amazing! Who knew that the amount of time spent in microgravity is proportional to the amount of muscle and bone loss in an individual. Science Fiction be damned!! I think I will "pass" on the kidney and bone integrity deficiencies. What an eye opener!

An outstanding and accessible science book

I have always been fascinated with this topic, and this book opened my eyes to all kinds of interesting aspects of adaptation of animals (especially humans) to extreme conditions. Particularly interesting to me were the chapters on altitude and depth. Examples and sidebars were well chosen and well explained. I have used information from the book in lectures to students of physiology. Highly recommended.

Deceptive description, but still a good read

This book appealed to my inner nerd, and helped me understand from a physiological standpoint what is happening during when the body is put to the extreme test. It doesn't talk about when people are placed in extreme situations, which was the part I found pretty deceptive. But Dr. Ashcroft is an anatomy professor - that should have been my big clue. Still, a good read if you've got an interest in anatomy and physiology.

What The Future May Bring

An amazing book for people who are into the possibility of extraterrestrial life and also those who fear that the demise of our own ecosystem will lead to an end to life on our planet as we know it. The best thing you can tell someone who insist life cannot exist outside our biosphere is "vent fish", these fish that live 5000 feet deep on the ocean floor where there is no light and the only source of food is the sulfur blowing from volcanic vents. This book is all about life in the harshest of places. This line from the introduction: "Environmental extremes are not the prerogative of the adventurous few - with the help of technology, all of us can tolerate severe conditions with equanimity." reminds me of the movie "True Stories" where John Goodman asked God to do something about all these malls and parking lots, so God created people who love malls and parking lots!!! Life At The Extremes might be a how-to guide to this uncertain future we are blindly racing into... It's a must read for environmentalists and ufologists alike. Remy C.

This is an excellent book for the curious-minded!

If you have ever wondered EXACTLY why and how humans get altitude sickness, what happens to the body when exposed to extreme heat or cold, why scuba divers sometime get the "bends," or what would happen to an astronaut if the Space Station developed a leak, this book is for you. Frances M. Ashcroft explains in complete detail - the detail that is so often lacking in the popular, dumbed-down modern media - why the body at high altitudes can't get the oxygen it needs, what happens to skin cells when you burn yourself or get frostbite, how nitrogen dissolves in your blood when diving deep in water, or how your blood would boil if exposed to the emptiness of space. And she doesn't stop with humans. She examines the extremes of the animal world for creatures able to withstand and thrive in boiling cauldrons, the extreme depths of the oceans, or the extreme cold of Antarctica.She presents not just a world of creatures living in incredible environments, but precise descriptions of how this is all accomplished. This makes for Really Amazing reading!