Beyond Biocentrism: Rethinking Time, Space, Consciousness, and the Illusion of Death

by Robert (Author), Lanza (Author)

New
Paperback
2017
$14.85

Biocentrism shocked the world with a radical rethinking of the nature of reality.
But that was just the beginning.
In Beyond Biocentrism, acclaimed biologist Robert Lanza, one of TIME Magazine's 100 Most Influential People in 2014, and leading astronomer Bob Berman, take the reader on an intellectual thrill-ride as they re-examine everything we thought we knew about life, death, the universe, and the nature of reality itself.
The first step is acknowledging that our existing model of reality is looking increasingly creaky in the face of recent scientific discoveries. Science tells us with some precision that the universe is 26.8 percent dark matter, 68.3 percent dark energy, and only 4.9 percent ordinary matter, but must confess that it doesn't really know what dark matter is and knows even less about dark energy. Science is increasingly pointing toward an infinite universe but has no ability to explain what that really means. Concepts such as time, space, and even causality are increasingly being demonstrated as meaningless.
All of science is based on information passing through our consciousness but science hasn't the foggiest idea what consciousness is, and it can't explain the linkage between subatomic states and observation by conscious observers. Science describes life as an random occurrence in a dead universe but has no real understanding of how life began or why the universe appears to be exquisitely designed for the emergence of life.
The biocentrism theory isn't a rejection of science. Quite the opposite. Biocentrism challenges us to fully accept the implications of the latest scientific findings in fields ranging from plant biology and cosmology to quantum entanglement and consciousness.
By listening to what the science is telling us, it becomes increasingly clear that life and consciousness are fundamental to any true understanding of the universe. This forces a fundamental rethinking of everything we thought we knew about life, death, and our place in the universe.

Synopsis

Biocentrism shocked the world with a radical rethinking of the nature of reality.

But that was just the beginning.

In Beyond Biocentrism, acclaimed biologist Robert Lanza, one of TIME Magazine's 100 Most Influential People in 2014, and leading astronomer Bob Berman, take the reader on an intellectual thrill-ride as they re-examine everything we thought we knew about life, death, the universe, and the nature of reality itself.

The first step is acknowledging that our existing model of reality is looking increasingly creaky in the face of recent scientific discoveries. Science tells us with some precision that the universe is 26.8 percent dark matter, 68.3 percent dark energy, and only 4.9 percent ordinary matter, but must confess that it doesn't really know what dark matter is and knows even less about dark energy. Science is increasingly pointing toward an infinite universe but has no ability to explain what that really means. Concepts such as time, space, and even causality are increasingly being demonstrated as meaningless.

All of science is based on information passing through our consciousness but science hasn't the foggiest idea what consciousness is, and it can't explain the linkage between subatomic states and observation by conscious observers. Science describes life as an random occurrence in a dead universe but has no real understanding of how life began or why the universe appears to be exquisitely designed for the emergence of life.

The biocentrism theory isn't a rejection of science. Quite the opposite. Biocentrism challenges us to fully accept the implications of the latest scientific findings in fields ranging from plant biology and cosmology to quantum entanglement and consciousness.

By listening to what the science is telling us, it becomes increasingly clear that life and consciousness are fundamental to any true understanding of the universe. This forces a fundamental rethinking of everything we thought we knew about life, death, and our place in the universe.

$14.85

Quantity

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More Information

Format: Paperback
Pages: 224
Edition: Reprint
Publisher: BenBella Books
Published: 02 May 2017
ISBN 10: 1944648658
ISBN 13: 9781944648657

Media Reviews

-Lanza and Berman employ cutting edge science to rediscover ancient truths about life and death and reconceptualize our very notions of reality and consciousness. Beyond Biocentrism is an enlightening and fascinating journey that will forever alter your understanding of your own existence.-
--Deepak Chopra
-Beyond Biocentrism is a joyride through the history of science and cutting-edge physics, all with a very serious purpose: to find the long-overlooked connection between the conscious self and the universe around us.-
--Corey S. Powell, former editor-in-chief, Discover magazine
-This intriguing and provocative book will challenge some of what you know and push you into rethinking your view of science--all the while entertaining you with a fast-paced, exhilarating narrative journey.-
--David J. Eicher, editor in chief, Astronomy Magazine
-[Beyond Biocentrism] offers a neurobiological point of view to help answer questions about the world around us. Lanza and Berman make the journey towards a better understanding of the role of consciousness and perception. . . . A fun read.-
--Kwang-Soo Kim, professor of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Harvard Medical School, and director, Molecular Neurobiology Laboratory, McLean Hospital
-Lanza and Berman's latest statement of their theory of 'biocentrism' changes the way we think about age-old religious questions such as the origin of the universe and human immortality. Based on cutting edge work in physics and biology and explained with exceptional clarity, Beyond Biocentrism is a must-read for anyone interested in science and religion.-
--Ronald M. Green, professor emeritus for the study of ethics and human values, and former chairman of the Department of Religion at Dartmouth College
-Will machines ever achieve consciousness? Are plants aware? Is death an illusion? These are some of the big questions tackled in Beyond Biocentrism, which serves up a new, biology-based theory of everything that is as delightful to read as it is fascinating. Tremendously clear and lovely writing--a huge achievement.-
--Pamela Weintraub, psychology & health editor for Aeon Magazine, former Executive Editor of Discover Magazine and former editor in chief of OMNI Magazine

Lanza and Berman employ cutting edge science to rediscover ancient truths about life and death and reconceptualize our very notions of reality and consciousness. Beyond Biocentrism is an enlightening and fascinating journey that will forever alter your understanding of your own existence.
--Deepak Chopra

Beyond Biocentrism is a joyride through the history of science and cutting-edge physics, all with a very serious purpose: to find the long-overlooked connection between the conscious self and the universe around us.
--Corey S. Powell, former editor-in-chief, Discover magazine

This intriguing and provocative book will challenge some of what you know and push you into rethinking your view of science--all the while entertaining you with a fast-paced, exhilarating narrative journey.
--David J. Eicher, editor in chief, Astronomy Magazine

[Beyond Biocentrism] offers a neurobiological point of view to help answer questions about the world around us. Lanza and Berman make the journey towards a better understanding of the role of consciousness and perception. . . . A fun read.
--Kwang-Soo Kim, professor of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Harvard Medical School, and director, Molecular Neurobiology Laboratory, McLean Hospital

Lanza and Berman's latest statement of their theory of 'biocentrism' changes the way we think about age-old religious questions such as the origin of the universe and human immortality. Based on cutting edge work in physics and biology and explained with exceptional clarity, Beyond Biocentrism is a must-read for anyone interested in science and religion.
--Ronald M. Green, professor emeritus for the study of ethics and human values, and former chairman of the Department of Religion at Dartmouth College

Will machines ever achieve consciousness? Are plants aware? Is death an illusion? These are some of the big questions tackled in Beyond Biocentrism, which serves up a new, biology-based theory of everything that is as delightful to read as it is fascinating. Tremendously clear and lovely writing--a huge achievement.
--Pamela Weintraub, psychology & health editor for Aeon Magazine, former Executive Editor of Discover Magazine and former editor in chief of OMNI Magazine

Author Bio

Robert Lanza, MD is one of the most respected scientists in the world--a U.S. News & World Report cover story called him a genius and renegade thinker, even likening him to Einstein. Lanza is head of Astellas Global Regenerative Medicine, Ocata Chief Scientific Officer, and adjunct professor at Wake Forest University School of Medicine. He was recognized by Time magazine in 2014 on its list of the 100 Most Influential People in the World. Prospect magazine named him one of the Top 50 World Thinkers in 2015. He is credited with several hundred publications and inventions, and over thirty scientific books, including the definitive references in the field of stem cells and regenerative medicine. A former Fulbright Scholar, he studied with polio pioneer Jonas Salk and Nobel Laureates Gerald Edelman and Rodney Porter. He also worked closely (and coauthored a series of papers) with noted Harvard psychologist B. F. Skinner and heart transplant pioneer Christiaan Barnard. Dr. Lanza received his undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of Pennsylvania, where he was both a University Scholar and Benjamin Franklin Scholar. Lanza was part of the team that cloned the world's first human embryo, as well as the first to successfully generate stem cells from adults using somatic-cell nuclear transfer (therapeutic cloning). In 2001 he was also the first to clone an endangered species, and recently published the first-ever report of pluripotent stem cell use in humans.

Bob Berman is the longtime science editor of the Old Farmer's Almanac, and contributing editor of Astronomy magazine, formerly with Discover from 1989 to 2006. He produces and narrates the weekly Strange Universe segment on WAMC Northeast Public Radio, heard in eight states, and has been a guest on such TV shows as Late Night with David Letterman. He taught physics and astronomy at New York's Marymount College in the 1990s, and is the author of eight popular books. His newest is Zoom: How Everything Moves (2014, Little Brown).