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The Age of Seeds

How Plants Hacked Time and Why Our Future Depends on It
By Fiona McMillan-Webster
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4.27 goodreads logo

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Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
The book The Age of Seeds by Fiona McMillan-Webster explores the incredible complexity and evolutionary history of seeds. It delves into their vital role in ecology and human survival, detailing how they have adapted and thrived across diverse environments. Through scientific insights and historical anecdotes, the book reveals the mysteries of seeds and their impact on the natural world.
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Format: Paperback / softback
$3999
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

If you have a fascination with the science of botany and are intrigued by the complex histories that shape our natural world, this book may capture your interest. It explores the critical role seeds have played in Earth's ecosystem and how understanding their evolution can shed light on sustainability and the future of agriculture.

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Plants evolved seeds to hack time. Thanks to seeds, they can cast their genes forward into the future, enabling species to endure across seasons, years, and occasionally millennia.

When a 2000-year-old extinct date palm seed was discovered, no one expected it to still be alive. But it sprouted a healthy young date palm. That seeds produced millennia ago could still be viable today suggests seeds are capable of extreme lifespans.

Yet many seeds, including those crucial to our everyday lives, don't live very long at all. In The Age of Seeds, Fiona McMillan-Webster tells the astonishing story of seed longevity, the crucial role they play in our everyday lives, and what that might mean for our future.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

The Age of Seeds is praised for its compelling exploration of seeds and their crucial role in nature, offering insight not only into plants and ecosystems but also highlighting their importance for human survival. The narrative is described as exciting and beautifully told, bringing to life the story of seeds as a vital element in addressing global challenges like feeding and sustaining the human population.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781760761783

Publisher: Thames and Hudson (Australia) Pty Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 26 July 2022

Country: Australia

Imprint: Thames and Hudson (Australia) Pty Ltd

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 25.0mm

Width: 153.0mm

Height: 233.0mm

Weight: 397g

Pages: 320

Collections

Biography & Memoir Education & Reference Fiona McMillan-Webster Non-Fiction Science & Nature

About the Author

Fiona McMillan-Webster is a Brisbane-based science writer with a Bachelor of Science in physics and a PhD in biophysics. She has written science stories for National Geographic, Forbes, COSMOS magazine, Australian Geographic, and other publications. Her writing has also appeared in the Best Australian Science Writing anthologies for 2015, 2016, 2018 and 2021. She was runner up for the UNSW Bragg Press Prize for Science Writing 2016.

In addition, Fiona has worked behind the scenes to help produce scientific content across a variety of other media. This has included the development of panel discussions for the World Science Festival Brisbane, as well as research for factual TV series such as the ABC's Ask the Doctor.

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