Thieves, Deceivers, and Killers
Tales of Chemistry in Nature
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- 33,99 €
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- 33,99 €
Publisher Description
The tobacco plant synthesizes nicotine to protect itself from herbivores. The female moth broadcasts sex pheromones to attract a mate, while a soldier ant deploys an alarm pheromone to call for help. The carbon dioxide on a mammal's breath beckons hungry ticks and mosquitoes, while a flower's fragrance speaks to the honey bee. Indeed, much of the communication that occurs within and between various species of organisms is done not by sight, sound, or touch, but with chemicals. From mating to parenting, foraging to self-defense, plant and animal activities are accomplished largely by the secretion or exchange of organic chemicals. The fascinating and fast-developing science that encompasses these diverse phenomena is introduced here, by William Agosta, in a series of remarkable stories absolutely accessible to the general reader yet revelatory to chemists and biologists. Among Agosta's characters are the organisms that steal, counterfeit, or interpret the chemical signals of other species for their own ends. We learn of seeds that mimic ant odors to facilitate their own dispersion and flies that follow the scent of truffles to lay their eggs. We read about pit vipers that react in terror when their flicking tongues detect a king snake, and slave-making ants incapable of finding their own food. And we meet ice-age people who ate birch fungus to relieve whipworms and early human hunters who used the urine of wolves to maneuver deer to favorable sites. Agosta also chronicles the rapid development of the applied science that makes use of chemical ecology. As researchers deepen our understanding of the biological world, they are making economically significant discoveries (such as enzymes that remain stable in extreme heat), finding ways to reduce our reliance on manufactured pesticides, identifying new uses for traditional medicines, and developing sophisticated new pharmaceuticals effective in treating malaria and several cancers. On the horizon are antiviral agents...
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Although humans communicate almost exclusively through language, a number of species rely heavily upon their chemical senses of smell and taste to detect or deflect danger in the environment, to petition a mate and to locate sources of food. In a detailed yet highly readable examination, more akin to a collection of short stories than a dry, scholarly inquiry, Agosta (Bombardier Beetles and Fever Trees, etc.) illuminates the role of chemicals in nature. The narrative opens with the dramatic tale of slave-making ants that steal the brood of a neighboring ant species. The battle is fought and won without many casualties or much effort, however, since slave-making ants possess a chemical weapon that causes their adversaries to flee in confusion, abandoning their young to a life of slavery. Other uses of chemicals include "eavesdropping" by prey on their predators' secretions to avoid imminent danger, and mimicry, or counterfeiting another creature's signals for one's own purposes. To protect themselves from herbivores, turnips take the offensive and produce a sulfur compound that repels most enemies, and which we identify as this vegetable's distinctive flavor. It is impossible to write about chemicals in the natural world without addressing the contributions of humans, the most adept manipulators of natural and derived chemicals, and Agosta covers the breadth of human involvementDfrom the practice of crushing sea snails to yield a royal purple dye in A.D. 60, to modern applications of an anti-cancer agent found in sea hares. Agosta's illuminating, well-written tale should appeal to a broad audience; though it lacks the particular grace of Lewis Thomas, many of that author's fans will find good, enlightening reading on biology here.