Preface to the Paperback Edition ................................ x
Preface to the First Edition ................................. xiii
Introduction: The Astrobiology Revolution and the Rare
Earth Hypothesis ............................................. xvii
Dead Zones of the Universe ................................... xxix
Rare Earth Factors ........................................... xxxi
1. Why Life Might Be Widespread in the Universe ................. 1
2. Habitable Zones of the Universe ............................. 15
3. Building a Habitable Earth .................................. 35
4. Life's First Appearance on Earth ............................ 55
5. How to Build Animals ........................................ 83
6. Snowball Earth ............................................. 113
7. The Enigma of the Cambrian Explosion ....................... 125
8. Mass Extinctions and the Rare Earth Hypothesis ............. 157
9. The Surprising Importance of Plate Tectonics ............... 191
10.The Moon, Jupiter, and Life on Earth ....................... 221
11.Testing the Rare Earth Hypotheses .......................... 243
12.Assessing the Odds ......................................... 257
13.Messengers from the Stars .................................. 277
References .................................................... 289
Index ......................................................... 319
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