Microbial Life Of The Deep Biosphere

Download or read book Microbial Life of the Deep Biosphere written by Jens Kallmeyer and published by Walter de Gruyter. This book was released on 2014-04-01 with total page 344 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Over the last two decades, exploration of the deep subsurface biosphere has developed into a major research area. New findings constantly challenge our concepts of global biogeochemical cycles and the ultimate limits to life. In order to explain our observations from deep subsurface ecosystems it is necessary to develop truly interdisciplinary approaches, ranging from microbiology and geochemistry to physics and modeling. This book aims to bring together a wide variety of topics, covering the broad range of issues that are associated with deep biosphere exploration. Not only does the book present case studies of selected projects, but also treats questions arising from our current knowledge. Despite nearly two decades of research, there are still many boundaries to exploration caused by technical limitations and one section of the book is devoted to these technical challenges and the latest developments in this field. This volume will be of high interest to biologists, chemists and earth scientists all working on the deep biosphere.

Download or read book The Deep Hot Biosphere written by Thomas Gold and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-12-01 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book sets forth a set of truly controversial and astonishing theories: First, it proposes that below the surface of the earth is a biosphere of greater mass and volume than the biosphere the total sum of living things on our planet's continents and in its oceans. Second, it proposes that the inhabitants of this subterranean biosphere are not plants or animals as we know them, but heat-loving bacteria that survive on a diet consisting solely of hydrocarbons that is, natural gas and petroleum. And third and perhaps most heretically, the book advances the stunning idea that most hydrocarbons on Earth are not the byproduct of biological debris ("fossil fuels"), but were a common constituent of the materials from which the earth itself was formed some 4.5 billion years ago. The implications are astounding. The theory proposes answers to often-asked questions: Is the deep hot biosphere where life originated, and do Mars and other seemingly barren planets contain deep biospheres? Even more provocatively, is it possible that there is an enormous store of hydrocarbons upwelling from deep within the earth that can provide us with abundant supplies of gas and petroleum? However far-fetched these ideas seem, they are supported by a growing body of evidence, and by the indisputable stature and seriousness Gold brings to any scientific debate. In this book we see a brilliant and boldly original thinker, increasingly a rarity in modern science, as he develops potentially revolutionary ideas about how our world works.

Download or read book Deep Subsurface Microbiology written by Andreas Teske and published by Frontiers Media SA. This book was released on 2015-07-01 with total page 305 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Deep subsurface microbiology is a highly active and rapidly advancing research field at the interface of microbiology and the geosciences; it focuses on the detection, identification, quantification, cultivation and activity measurements of bacteria, archaea and eukaryotes that permeate the subsurface biosphere of deep marine sediments and the basaltic ocean and continental crust. The deep subsurface biosphere abounds with uncultured, only recently discovered and – at best - incompletely understood microbial populations. In spatial extent and volume, Earth's subsurface biosphere is only rivaled by the deep sea water column. So far, no deep subsurface sediment has been found that is entirely devoid of microbial life; microbial cells and DNA remain detectable at sediment depths of more than 1 km; microbial life permeates deeply buried hydrocarbon reservoirs, and is also found several kilometers down in continental crust aquifers. Severe energy limitation, either as electron acceptor or donor shortage, and scarcity of microbially degradable organic carbon sources are among the evolutionary pressures that have shaped the genomic and physiological repertoire of the deep subsurface biosphere. Its biogeochemical role as long-term organic carbon repository, inorganic electron and energy source, and subduction recycling engine continues to be explored by current research at the interface of microbiology, geochemistry and biosphere/geosphere evolution. This Research Topic addresses some of the central research questions about deep subsurface microbiology and biogeochemistry: phylogenetic and physiological microbial diversity in the deep subsurface; microbial activity and survival strategies in severely energy-limited subsurface habitats; microbial activity as reflected in process rates and gene expression patterns; biogeographic isolation and connectivity in deep subsurface microbial communities; the ecological standing of subsurface biospheres in comparison to the surface biosphere – an independently flourishing biosphere, or mere survivors that tolerate burial (along with organic carbon compounds), or a combination of both? Advancing these questions on Earth’s deep subsurface biosphere redefines the habitat range, environmental tolerance, activity and diversity of microbial life.

Download or read book Extreme Environments written by Anita Pandey and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2021 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The book will focus on the microbial diversity specifically associated to the extreme environments. Following are the areas we are planning to cover in the book. Overview of microbial diversity associated to extreme environments such as a) Extremophilic microbial diversity covering environments like hot springs, soda lakes, acidic environment, glaciers and oceans etc., b) Functional Microbial Diversity especially on processes like nitrogen and carbon cycling etc., c) Molecular tools in microbial diversity. Whole genome sequencing and metagenomic approaches to study microbial diversity. Future directions of microbial Diversity, mutli-omics approaches"--

Download or read book The Quest for a Universal Theory of Life written by Carol E. Cleland and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2019-09-12 with total page 261 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Explores fundamental philosophical and scientific questions about the nature of life, particularly in relation to the search for extraterrestrial life.

Download or read book Microbes: The Foundation Stone of the Biosphere written by Christon J. Hurst and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2021-05-01 with total page 684 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection of essays discusses fascinating aspects of the concept that microbes are at the root of all ecosystems. The content is divided into seven parts, the first of those emphasizes that microbes not only were the starting point, but sustain the rest of the biosphere and shows how life evolves through a perpetual struggle for habitats and niches. Part II explains the ways in which microbial life persists in some of the most extreme environments, while Part III presents our understanding of the core aspects of microbial metabolism. Part IV examines the duality of the microbial world, acknowledging that life exists as a balance between certain processes that we perceive as being environmentally supportive and others that seem environmentally destructive. In turn, Part V discusses basic aspects of microbial symbioses, including interactions with other microorganisms, plants and animals. The concept of microbial symbiosis as a driving force in evolution is covered in Part VI. In closing, Part VII explores the adventure of microbiological research, including some reminiscences from and perspectives on the lives and careers of microbe hunters. Given its mixture of science and philosophy, the book will appeal to scientists and advanced students of microbiology, evolution and ecology alike.

Download or read book Carbon in Earth's Interior written by Craig E. Manning and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2020-04-03 with total page 373 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Carbon in Earth's fluid envelopes - the atmosphere, biosphere, and hydrosphere, plays a fundamental role in our planet's climate system and a central role in biology, the environment, and the economy of earth system. The source and original quantity of carbon in our planet is uncertain, as are the identities and relative importance of early chemical processes associated with planetary differentiation. Numerous lines of evidence point to the early and continuing exchange of substantial carbon between Earth's surface and its interior, including diamonds, carbon-rich mantle-derived magmas, carbonate rocks in subduction zones and springs carrying deeply sourced carbon-bearing gases. Thus, there is little doubt that a substantial amount of carbon resides in our planet's interior. Yet, while we know it must be present, carbon's forms, transformations and movements at conditions relevant to the interiors of Earth and other planets remain uncertain and untapped. Volume highlights include: - Reviews key, general topics, such as carbonate minerals, the deep carbon cycle, and carbon in magmas or fluids - Describes new results at the frontiers of the field with presenting results on carbon in minerals, melts, and fluids at extreme conditions of planetary interiors - Brings together emerging insights into carbon's forms, transformations and movements through study of the dynamics, structure, stability and reactivity of carbon-based natural materials - Reviews emerging new insights into the properties of allied substances that carry carbon, into the rates of chemical and physical transformations, and into the complex interactions between moving fluids, magmas, and rocks to the interiors of Earth and other planets - Spans the various chemical redox states of carbon, from reduced hydrocarbons to zero-valent diamond and graphite to oxidized CO2 and carbonates - Captures and synthesizes the exciting results of recent, focused efforts in an emerging scientific discipline - Reports advances over the last decade that have led to a major leap forward in our understanding of carbon science - Compiles the range of methods that can be tapped tap from the deep carbon community, which includes experimentalists, first principles theorists, thermodynamic modelers and geodynamicists - Represents a reference point for future deep carbon science research Carbon in Planetary Interiors will be a valuable resource for researchers and students who study the Earth's interior. The topics of this volume are interdisciplinary, and therefore will be useful to professionals from a wide variety of fields in the Earth Sciences, such as mineral physics, petrology, geochemistry, experimentalists, first principles theorists, thermodynamics, material science, chemistry, geophysics and geodynamics.