The amoeba in the room : lives of the microbes / Nicholas P. Money.

In this work the author explores the extraordinary breadth of the microbial world and the vast swathes of biological diversity that can be detected only using molecular methods. Although biologists have achieved a remarkable level of understanding about the way multicellular organisms operate, the author shows that most people continue to ignore the fact that most of life is not classified as either plant or animal. Significant discoveries about the composition of the biosphere are making it clear that the sciences have failed to comprehend the full spectrum of life on Earth, which is far more diverse than previously imagined. This work considers this diversity in all its forms, exploring environments from the backyard pond to the ocean floor to the "mobile ecosystem" of our own bodies. A revitalized vision of life emerges from the author's narrative of the lowly, one in which we are challenged to reconsider our existence in proper relationship to the single-celled protists, bacteria, and viruses that constitute most of life on Earth. Proposing a radical reformulation of biology education and research in the life sciences, this book takes the reader through the least visible and yet most prodigiously magnificent aspects of life on Earth. -- Provided by publisher.