New York Times Bestseller Finalist for the National Book Award (Nonfiction) How did humanity originate and why does a species like ours exist on this planet? Do we have a special place, even a destiny in the universe? Where are we going, and perhaps, the most difficult question of all, "Why?" In The Meaning of Human Existence, his most philosophical work to date, Pulitzer Prize–winning biologist Edward O. Wilson grapples with these and other existential questions, examining what makes human beings supremely different from all other species. Searching for meaning in what Nietzsche once called "the rainbow colors" around the outer edges of knowledge and imagination, Wilson takes his readers on a journey, in the process bridging science and philosophy to create a twenty-first-century treatise on human existence—from our earliest inception to a provocative look at what the future of mankind portends. Continuing his groundbreaking examination of our "Anthropocene Epoch," which he began with The Social Conquest of Earth, described by the New York Times as "a sweeping account of the human rise to domination of the biosphere," here Wilson posits that we, as a species, now know enough about the universe and ourselves that we can begin to approach questions about our place in the cosmos and the meaning of intelligent life in a systematic, indeed, in a testable way. Once criticized for a purely mechanistic view of human life and an overreliance on genetic predetermination, Wilson presents in The Meaning of Human Existence his most expansive and advanced theories on the sovereignty of human life, recognizing that, even though the human and the spider evolved similarly, the poet's sonnet is wholly different from the spider's web. Whether attempting to explicate "The Riddle of the Human Species," "Free Will," or "Religion"; warning of "The Collapse of Biodiversity"; or even creating a plausible "Portrait of E.T.," Wilson does indeed believe that humanity holds a special position in the known universe. The human epoch that began in biological evolution and passed into pre-, then recorded, history is now more than ever before in our hands. Yet alarmed that we are about to abandon natural selection by redesigning biology and human nature as we wish them, Wilson soberly concludes that advances in science and technology bring us our greatest moral dilemma since God stayed the hand of Abraham.

The authors tell the epic story of the universe from an inspired new perspective, weaving the findings of modern science together with enduring wisdom found in the humanistic traditions of the West, China, India, and indigenous peoples. This book is part of a larger project that includes a documentary film, educational DVD series, and Web site.

The origin of life from non-life remains one of the most enduring mysteries of modern science. This book investigates how close scientists are to solving that mystery and explores what we are learning about the origin of life from current research in chemistry, physics, astrobiology, biochemistry, and more.

The Reality and Spirituality of Life in the Universe Life in the Universe is part of a vast education and preparation for humanity called the "New Message." Over 9000 pages in length, the New Message is a Divine answer to the panoply of global problems facing humanity: destruction of our natural environment, depletion of Earth's energy and life-sustaining resources, escalating religious and political conflict and intervention by certain races in our region of space. This book, Life in the Universe, details the interactions of civilizations in our region of space, the challenge of facing a non-human universe and the spiritual dimensions of all intelligent life that has evolved since the beginning of time.

"All life in all worlds" -this was the object of the author's seventeen-year quest for knowledge and discovery, culminating in this book. In a manner unmistakably his own, Murchie delves into the interconnectedness of all life on the planet and of such fields as biology, geology, sociology, mathematics, and physics. He offers us what the poet May Sarton has called "a good book to take to a desert island as sole companion, so rich is it in knowledge and insight."

The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1955, volume 4, contains messages given by Brother Witness Lee in September through November 1955. Historical information concerning Brother Lee's travels and the content of his ministry in 1955 can be found in the general preface that appears at the beginning of volume 1 in this set. The contents of this volume are divided into ten sections, as follows: 1. Twenty messages given in Hong Kong on September 21 through October 2. These messages are included in this volume under the title The Mingling of God and Man and the Principle of Resurrection. 2. Three messages given in Hong Kong in September. These messages are included in this volume under the title Fellowship with Saints in Southeast Asia. 3. Twenty-one messages given in Hong Kong in October and November. These messages were previously published in a book entitled Further Talks on the Knowledge of Life and are included in this volume under the same title. 4. Ten messages given in Hong Kong on October 3 through 18. These messages are included in this volume under the title A Record of a Bible Study on Romans and 1 and 2 Corinthians. 5. Seven messages given in Hong Kong in October and November. These messages are included in this volume under the title A Bird's-eye View of Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians. 6. Seventeen messages given in Hong Kong on October 3 through November 3. These messages are included in this volume under the title Concerning How to Work for the Lord. 7. A message given in Hong Kong on October 8. This message is included in this volume under the title Concerning How to Meet. 8. A message given in Hong Kong on October 10. This message is included in this volume under the title Concerning How to Cultivate One's Character. 9. A talk with Brother K. H. Weigh in Hong Kong on October 16. This talk is included in this volume under the title Knowing Christ as Life and Seeing the Light concerning the Tree of Life. 10. Three messages given in Hong Kong on October 19 through 25. These messages are included in this volume under the title Concerning the Practice Needed in the Meetings.

Brother Witness Lee was in Taiwan at the beginning of 1952. In the middle of January he conducted a seven-day conference in Taipei, Taiwan. We do not have a record of the messages given at this conference. Beginning on February 3, he conducted a ten-day special conference. These crucial messages are included in the section entitled Serving according to Revelation in volume 2 of the 1950-1951 set. On February 27 Brother Lee went to Manila, Philippines, and he returned to Taipei on June 17. During his time in Manila he conducted a conference on March 30 through April 4 on the subject of life and service. We do not have a record of the messages that he gave during that conference. However, we have Brother Lee's personal notes on various other meetings during his visit to Manila. They are included in the section on Brother Lee's personal notes that he made in 1952. After returning to Taiwan from Manila, Brother Lee conducted a two-week special conference beginning on July 13. The general messages are included in the section entitled Christ and the Cross in volume 1 of this set. There were also special messages for responsible ones on how to work, how to administrate the church, and how to conduct meetings. After the conference, beginning on July 28 Brother Lee conducted another two-week series of meetings on what the church is, the knowledge of the Son of God, Christ as the building material for the church, knowing the self and the natural man, the character needed for a worker of the Lord, the exercise of the spiritual life, and how to conduct meetings. These messages for the serving ones are included in the sections entitled Guidelines for the Lord's Table Meeting and the Pursuit in Life; The Crucified Christ; The Vision, Ministry, and Leading of the Lord's Serving Ones; and How to Administrate the Church, which are in volumes 1 and 2 of this set. Beginning on September 22 and ending on November 7, Brother Lee conducted a study, which took place five days a week, on the book of Romans. This study brought in a consecration of between four hundred and five hundred saints. The messages given during the study are included in the section entitled Revelations in Romans: Seeing God's Complete Salvation in volume 2 of this set. On November 12, at the conclusion of the study on Romans, a love feast was held with over two thousand in attendance. At the end of the love feast Brother Lee gave the following word: "A normal Christian must pursue equally in four things: life, truth, the gospel, and service. Most people pay attention to the first three things but neglect the last. This is why we need to make this up. We need to realize that all the services and expenses should be borne by all the saints; no one is in charge of everything or responsible for everything. All those who are called by the Lord to work for Him are in the Lord's work. Although they minister and lead in spiritual affairs and help the churches, they do not burden the churches materially. They look directly to the Lord in faith for all their needs. The Lord has cared for them." On December 10 Brother Lee left Taipei to visit Manila. The Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1952, volume 1, contains messages given or published by Brother Witness Lee in 1952. Historical information concerning Brother Lee's travels and the content of his ministry in 1952 can be found in the general preface that appears at the beginning of this volume. The contents of this volume are divided into five sections, as follows: 1. A collection of personal notes and diary entries written in 1952. These are included in this volume under the title Witness Lee's Personal Notes. 2. Five miscellaneous articles and reports that were originally published in the periodical The Ministry of the Word in 1952. They are included in this volume under the title The Ministry of the Word, Miscellaneous Messages, 1952. 3. Twenty-two messages given in Taipei, Taiwan, in the summer of 1952. These messages originally appeared in the periodical The Ministry of the Word in 1952 and 1953. They were also previously published in a book entitled Christ and the Cross and are included in this volume under the same title. 4. Twelve messages given in a training in Taipei, Taiwan, in 1952. These messages were previously published in a book entitled Guidelines for the Lord's Table Meeting and the Pursuit in Life and are included in this volume under the same title. 5. Fourteen messages given in Taipei, Taiwan, in the summer of 1952. These messages were previously published in a book entitled The Crucified Christ and are included in this volume under the same title.

Why discovering the limits to science may be the most powerful discovery of allHow much can we know about the world? In this book, physicist Marcelo Gleiser traces our search for answers to the most fundamental questions of existence, the origin of the universe, the nature of reality, and the limits of knowledge. In so doing, he reaches a provocative conclusion: science, like religion, is fundamentally limited as a tool for understanding the world. As science and its philosophical interpretations advance, we face the unsettling recognition of how much we don't know. Gleiser shows that by aband.