Short extract from the preface
2. Part – Techniques for survival
A trip to the inhabitants of earth´s volcanoes
The book was published (in german language) in the year 2000 by the Shaker-Verlag, Aachen. It contains 160 pages and 32 illustrations (black and white). The book is featuring an uncommon group of (micro)organisms living at temperatures beyond the boiling point and holding a prominent place in the evolution of life. I am redrawing the history of the discovery of these unusual microbes by retelling selected scientific publications.
The book can be obtained upon request for 19,90 Euro (inclusive 9,5 % value added tax and transfer expenses within Germany).
The main characters of this book need two things in order to survive: Water and volcanoes. This way, they are transcending our usual concepts of life and its possibilities: Our world contains more life than we think anyway, but even in space potential living zones are extending much further than we once thought. The jovian satellite Europa, for example, has a similar potential to contain living organisms as does Mars.
The unusual organisms covered in the book are thriving in boiling water. Our bodies are irreversibly damaged when reaching a temperature of about 42 degree, these microorganisms become "frozen" far above this temperature. What is the secret of this difference? And can this secret be used for technical applications? Answers to such questions will be given in the second part of the book.
Organisms living in boiling water allow some speculations about the beginning of life on earth. About 4 billion years ago there has been enough water around – and enough volcanoes. Perhaps life started the hot way; and our ancestors had to adapt to the cold conditions we are living in today.
1.) Hot springs in the Yellowstone National Park
According to: Science, volume 164, pages 1411–1412 (1969).
2.) Living on sulfur
According to: Archives of Microbiology, volume 84, pages 54–68 (1972).
3.) Into the depth
According to: Science, volume 207, pages 1421–1432 (1980).
4.) Life at the bottom of the oceans
According to: Archives of Microbiology, volume 136, pages 254–261 (1983).
5.) Beyond the boiling point
According to: Extremophiles, volume 1, pages 14–21 (1997).
6.) The jovian satellites
According to: Science, volume 284, pages 1631–1633 (1999).
7.) The hot side of life – summary
According to: FEMS Microbiology Reviews, volume 18, pages 149–158 (1996).
8.) The cover
According to: The Archaebacteria: Portland Press, pages 51–72 (1992).
9.) Chemical tools
According to: Structure, volume 3, pages 1147–1158 (1995).
10.) Storing genetic information
According to: The Archaebacteria, Portland Press, pages 99–112 (1992).
11.) Genes from nothing
According to: Science, volume 239, pages 487–491.
12.) Genes in court
According to: Nature, volume 332, pages 543–546.
13.) Survival at 100 degrees – summary
14.) The Discovery of the archaebacteria
According to: Proceedings of the National Academy (USA), volume 74, pages 4537–4541 and 5088–5090 (1977).
15.) The tree of life
According to: Science, volume 271, pages 470–477 (1996).
16.) Genomes from deep-sea microorganisms
According to: Science, volume 273, pages 1058–1073 (1996).
17.) A hot start for life?
According to: Cell, volume 85, pages 789–792 (1996).
18.) The tree of life – summary
The book contains two chapters introducing into biochemistry, cytology and molecular genetics. The appendix contains a glossary and explanations of scientific terms.