The Universe Within a Scientific Adventure Neil Shubin

Dan Jones

doi:10.3399/bjgp13X668339

Allen Lane, 2013 PB, 240pp, £20.00 978-1846142208

The Universe Within, by renowned palaeontologist Neil Shubin, is a short book about big topics. The goal of the book, as the dust jacket says, is to show how ‘the one place where universe, solar system and planet merge is inside your body’. This is an enigmatic claim, and having read the book I’m still not entirely clear what it means.

This is not such a big issue, however, for Shubin takes us on a fascinating journey through the history of our universe, the formation of our solar system, the forces that created the earth and moon, and the evolutionary history of our planet — all in 200 easy-to-read pages! This is no small feat.

The book is arranged chronologically, and starts 13.7 billion years ago with the birth of the universe in the Big Bang. Shubin explains, in admirably clear terms, how the ball of energy that was the very early universe gave rise to simple elements like hydrogen, helium, and lithium.

Much later, heavier atoms such as carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen — so important in the biochemistry of Earth’s organisms — were formed in fusion reactions deep in the heart of stars. When these element-forming stars exploded as supernovae, they spread out their atomic creations, which were eventually incorporated into the bodies of every creature on the planet. We are truly made of star dust.

Shubin has many more stories to tell than can be summarised in a short review. He describes the formation of our solar system; how the 24-hour day/night cycle has led to the evolution of molecular body clocks in many species; how climatic changes 2 billion years ago set the stage for the evolution of multicellular animals; the role of continental drift in the history of our planet; and much, much more.

Throughout, Shubin’s writing remains light and engaging, and the narrative is filled with thumbnail sketches of great and lesser-known scientists, as well as tales from Shubin’s own paleontological adventures in the field. Although I felt that the ‘universe within’ conceit is a bit overstretched, this is a wonderfully broad-ranging, mind-expanding book. Read it, and you will better appreciate how intimately your existence is tied to the deep history of our universe.