Oxygen

Oxygen Plot Summary

Introduction

Four and a half billion years ago, our planet was unrecognizable - a molten world with an atmosphere devoid of oxygen, more similar to Venus than the Earth we know today. Yet from this hostile beginning emerged the story of oxygen, perhaps the most consequential molecule in our planet's history. This invisible gas transformed Earth from a planet of simple microbes into one teeming with complex life, while simultaneously creating the conditions for aging and death. The paradox of oxygen lies at the heart of our existence: the same reactive properties that make it essential for energy production also make it inherently dangerous to the very organisms that depend on it. The journey of oxygen takes us from the earliest bacterial life forms that first produced it as waste, through the dramatic planetary changes of the Great Oxygenation Event, to the evolution of our own complex cells with their specialized oxygen-handling machinery. Along the way, we'll discover how oxygen shaped everything from the size of ancient insects to the evolution of sexual reproduction, and even our own mortality. Understanding this relationship offers profound insights into human health, aging, and disease, revealing why the same processes that give us life also ensure our eventual death. For anyone curious about the fundamental forces that shaped life on Earth or seeking to understand the biological roots of health and aging, this exploration of oxygen's double-edged nature provides a fascinating new perspective.

Chapter 1: The Primordial Earth: Life Before Oxygen (4-2.5B BCE)

Four billion years ago, Earth's atmosphere contained virtually no oxygen - perhaps just one part per million compared to today's 21 percent. This alien world was dominated by gases like carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and water vapor, with various sulfurous compounds creating an environment that would be instantly lethal to humans but provided the cradle for life's first stirrings. The oceans were rich in dissolved iron and other minerals, creating a chemical soup from which the earliest organisms would emerge. Life appeared remarkably early in Earth's history, with evidence of microbial activity dating back at least 3.8 billion years. These first organisms were anaerobes - microbes that not only survived without oxygen but would have been poisoned by its presence. They derived energy through primitive metabolic pathways that utilized compounds like hydrogen sulfide rather than oxygen. Some of these ancient metabolic strategies persist today in specialized environments like deep-sea hydrothermal vents, oxygen-depleted swamps, and even our own intestines, where anaerobic bacteria continue their ancient lifestyle. The Last Universal Common Ancestor (LUCA), from which all current life descended, already possessed surprisingly sophisticated biochemistry. Genetic analysis reveals that LUCA had enzymes capable of protecting against oxidative stress despite living in an oxygen-free world. This paradox is resolved when we consider that ultraviolet radiation, which was much more intense on the early Earth due to the absence of an ozone layer, would have split water molecules to produce small amounts of reactive oxygen species. These early adaptations to radiation-induced oxidative stress would later prove crucial when oxygen began accumulating in the atmosphere. For nearly two billion years, any oxygen produced by early photosynthetic organisms was immediately captured by dissolved iron in the oceans, creating massive deposits known as banded iron formations. These distinctive striped rock layers, where iron-rich bands alternate with silica-rich layers, serve as a geological record of Earth's gradual oxygenation. The iron effectively acted as an "oxygen sink," preventing oxygen from accumulating in the atmosphere while creating some of the world's most valuable iron ore deposits. The primordial Earth represents a chapter in our planet's history when life was developing the biochemical foundations that would later enable the oxygen revolution. During this vast stretch of time, microbes were quietly evolving the metabolic innovations that would eventually transform the planet. They learned to harness the power of sunlight through photosynthesis and to generate energy from an array of chemical compounds. The chemistry of these life-giving reactions left subtle traces in sedimentary rocks, sometimes as carbon or sulfur isotope signatures, and occasionally as billions of tons of mineral deposits. This long period of apparent stability was setting the stage for one of the most significant transformations in Earth's history - the rise of oxygen-producing photosynthesis and the subsequent oxygenation of our planet. The evolutionary innovations that emerged during this oxygen-free era would prove crucial for life's ability to not only survive but thrive in the oxygen-rich world to come.

Chapter 2: The Great Oxygenation Event: Earth's First Crisis (2.5-2B BCE)

Around 2.7 billion years ago, a biological innovation appeared that would forever alter Earth's destiny: cyanobacteria evolved the ability to perform oxygenic photosynthesis. These remarkable microorganisms developed a revolutionary metabolic pathway that used water as an electron donor in photosynthesis, releasing oxygen as a waste product. This seemingly simple biochemical innovation would eventually transform our planet's atmosphere, oceans, and the evolutionary trajectory of all life. The first definitive evidence for these oxygen-producing cyanobacteria appears in rocks from the Hamersley Range in Australia. These ancient formations contain microscopic fossils and chemical signatures that reveal not only the presence of cyanobacteria but also, surprisingly, the first eukaryotes - complex cells with nuclei that are our own direct ancestors. This discovery pushed back the evolution of eukaryotes by 600 million years from previous estimates, suggesting that complex cells began evolving almost as soon as oxygen became available in some environments. Initially, the oxygen produced by these early photosynthesizers didn't accumulate in the atmosphere. Instead, it was rapidly consumed by chemical reactions with dissolved iron and other reduced minerals in the oceans, creating vast deposits of iron oxide that we see today as banded iron formations. The atmosphere remained largely oxygen-free for hundreds of millions of years despite ongoing oxygen production. This period represents one of the longest-running chemical reactions in Earth's history, as the oceans were gradually oxidized before the atmosphere could change. The Great Oxygenation Event finally began around 2.4 billion years ago, marking one of the most profound transitions in Earth's history. Oxygen levels rose dramatically, perhaps reaching 1-2% of present atmospheric levels. This increase occurred when the oceanic "oxygen sinks" - primarily dissolved iron - became saturated, allowing excess oxygen to escape into the atmosphere. The timing coincided with massive global glaciations known as "Snowball Earth" events, when much of the planet was covered in ice, potentially accelerating oxygen accumulation by reducing the mixing of ocean waters. For many existing life forms, this oxygen rise represented the first global pollution crisis. Oxygen is highly reactive and toxic to organisms not adapted to its presence. The planet's dominant anaerobic microbes faced an existential threat as their environments became increasingly oxidized. Many species likely went extinct, while others retreated to oxygen-free niches that still exist today. Yet remarkably, this environmental catastrophe didn't cause a complete collapse of life. Instead, it drove the evolution of new adaptations for handling oxygen and eventually harnessing its power for energy production. By 2 billion years ago, oxygen levels had reached around 5-18% of present atmospheric concentration. All the elements of the modern world, except true multicellular organisms, were in place. The Earth now had an oxygenated atmosphere, though the deep oceans remained largely oxygen-free. This transformation set the stage for the next great evolutionary innovation - the symbiotic relationship that would give rise to the mitochondria in our cells and enable the evolution of complex multicellular life.

Chapter 3: Mitochondria: The Symbiotic Revolution (2-1B BCE)

Around 1.5 billion years ago, a momentous event occurred that would transform the course of evolution: a primitive eukaryotic cell engulfed an oxygen-utilizing bacterium. Rather than digesting its prey, the host cell maintained the bacterium, which eventually evolved into mitochondria - the energy-producing organelles found in all complex cells today. This endosymbiotic relationship allowed eukaryotes to harness oxygen's power for efficient energy production through aerobic respiration. Mitochondria bear numerous hallmarks of their bacterial origins. They possess their own circular DNA, distinct from the nuclear DNA of the cell. They divide by simple binary fission, much like bacteria. Their DNA sequence is closely related to a class of bacteria called alpha-proteobacteria. Even their sensitivity to certain antibiotics mirrors that of bacteria rather than eukaryotic cells. These vestiges of independence testify to mitochondria's origins as once-free-living organisms that entered into a symbiotic relationship with larger cells. The partnership between mitochondria and their host cells represents a remarkable evolutionary bargain. The host cell provided protection and a stable environment, while the bacterial ancestors of mitochondria contributed their ability to use oxygen efficiently for energy production. This arrangement yielded an enormous energetic advantage. Cells with mitochondria can extract up to 16 times more energy from a glucose molecule than anaerobic cells. This energy surplus allowed for the evolution of larger genomes, more complex cellular structures, and eventually multicellular organisms. Oxygen metabolism in mitochondria involves a sophisticated electron transport chain that passes electrons through a series of protein complexes embedded in the mitochondrial membrane. As electrons flow through this chain, their energy is captured to pump protons across the membrane, creating an electrochemical gradient. This gradient represents stored energy, which is then harnessed by an enzyme called ATP synthase to produce ATP, the universal energy currency of cells. This process, called oxidative phosphorylation, is remarkably efficient but comes with inherent risks. The danger lies in oxygen's fundamental chemistry. During normal respiration, a small percentage of oxygen (1-2% at rest, up to 10% during vigorous exercise) escapes the controlled pathway and forms reactive oxygen species - the same dangerous intermediates produced by radiation. Over a lifetime, this continuous leakage of free radicals causes cumulative damage to cellular components, including mitochondrial DNA itself. This creates a vicious cycle where damaged mitochondria produce more free radicals, causing more damage. This process is now recognized as a fundamental driver of aging and many age-related diseases. For nearly a billion years after the first eukaryotes with mitochondria appeared, life remained primarily unicellular. These single-celled eukaryotes gradually diversified and developed increasingly complex internal structures, but the next great evolutionary leap - true multicellularity - would require further increases in atmospheric oxygen and new adaptations for coordinating the activities of multiple cells. The stage was being set for another revolutionary period in Earth's history, when complex multicellular life would finally emerge.

Chapter 4: Snowball Earth and Animal Evolution (750-540M BCE)

The long equanimity of Earth was shattered about 750 million years ago by a series of catastrophic ice ages known collectively as "Snowball Earth." Unlike previous glaciations, this was not a singular occurrence but a 160-million-year roller-coaster ride comprising as many as four great ice ages. The Sturtian (750 million years ago) and Varanger (600 million years ago) glaciations were arguably the most severe in Earth's history, with evidence suggesting that ice sheets extended to within a few degrees of the equator. What triggered this dramatic sequence? The most plausible explanation involves the tectonic assembly of continents around the equator. When continental landmasses cluster at the equator, they continue to draw down atmospheric carbon dioxide through rock weathering, even as polar ice forms over the oceans. This creates a vicious cycle: as carbon dioxide levels fall, the planet cools; as ice spreads, it reflects more sunlight back to space, cooling the planet further until the entire Earth is covered in ice. Perhaps most telling evidence of these global freezes are the "cap carbonates" - thick limestone deposits that directly overlie glacial sediments. These carbonates formed when extreme levels of carbon dioxide (perhaps 350 times current levels) finally accumulated enough to melt the ice, swinging the global climate from an ice-box to an oven in just a few hundred years. The melting glaciers released enormous quantities of nutrients into the oceans, stimulating massive blooms of cyanobacteria and algae. These blooms produced prodigious amounts of oxygen, rapidly oxygenating the surface oceans and atmosphere. In the aftermath of the final Snowball Earth event around 590 million years ago, something remarkable happened. Within a few million years, the first large animals appeared in the fossil record - strange bag-like creatures called Vendobionts, some reaching a meter across, along with worms that left tracks in seafloor sediments. These early animals required oxygen to power their multicellular bodies, suggesting that oxygen levels had risen significantly. According to researchers Donald Canfield and Andreas Teske, evidence from sulfur isotopes indicates that "modern" types of ecosystems requiring high oxygen levels began to develop soon after the end of the last snowball Earth. This period of environmental transformation set the stage for the most dramatic event in the history of life - the Cambrian explosion of animal diversity that began around 540 million years ago. In a geologically brief window of time, virtually all major animal body plans appeared in the fossil record. Complex predator-prey relationships emerged for the first time, driving the evolution of hard shells, sophisticated sensory systems, and efficient movement. The first complex food webs formed, with primary producers, herbivores, and carnivores interacting in increasingly sophisticated ecosystems. The connection between Snowball Earth, rising oxygen levels, and the explosion of animal life represents one of evolution's most fascinating chapters. The extreme environmental stresses of the global glaciations may have created evolutionary bottlenecks, while the subsequent oxygenation opened new ecological opportunities. Without this sequence of catastrophe and recovery, complex animal life might never have evolved, and Earth might have remained a planet dominated by microbial mats rather than the rich diversity of life we see today.

Chapter 5: The Carboniferous Giants: Life in High Oxygen (350-250M BCE)

In 1979, miners working deep beneath the English town of Bolsover uncovered a fossilized dragonfly with a wingspan of half a meter - rivaling that of a modern seagull. This giant insect, dubbed the Bolsover dragonfly, was far from unique. During the Carboniferous period, about 300 million years ago, many creatures attained sizes never matched again: mayflies with wingspans of nearly half a meter, millipedes stretching over a meter long, and scorpions reaching lengths of a meter. This era of giants represents one of the most extraordinary chapters in Earth's biological history. What could explain this rampant gigantism? The answer appears to lie in atmospheric oxygen levels, which geochemical evidence suggests reached an extraordinary 35 percent during the late Carboniferous and early Permian periods - far above our current 21 percent. This conclusion, once controversial, is now supported by multiple independent lines of evidence from ancient soils, carbon isotope ratios, and computer models of atmospheric evolution. The high oxygen levels resulted from an unprecedented burial of organic matter in the vast coal swamps that dominated the landscape. During this 70-million-year period, which accounts for less than 2 percent of Earth's history, 90 percent of the world's coal reserves were formed. This extraordinary rate of carbon burial - 600 times faster than the average for the rest of geological time - inevitably led to a buildup of oxygen in the atmosphere. The lush forests of the Carboniferous, dominated by giant ferns, horsetails, and primitive conifers, pulled carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through photosynthesis. When these plants died and were buried in swamps before fully decomposing, their carbon was locked away rather than being recombined with oxygen, leading to a net oxygen increase. For insects, high oxygen levels removed a key constraint on size. Insects breathe through a system of tubes called trachea that open directly to the air and branch to penetrate every cell in their body. In today's atmosphere, the effective upper limit to passive oxygen diffusion through these tubes is about 5 millimeters. An increase in oxygen content to 35 percent would increase the rate of oxygen diffusion by approximately 67 percent, enabling it to reach further into the insect's body and supporting larger body sizes. Contrary to what might be expected, there is remarkably little evidence that high oxygen levels were detrimental to life. The risk of fire would have been greater, and fossil evidence does suggest that wildfires were more common during this period. However, plants adapted with fire-resistant features such as thick, lignin-rich bark, deep tubers, and high crowns. Some survivors from the Carboniferous, like ferns and horsetails, contain high levels of fire retardants such as silicate. This period of gigantism came to an end as oxygen levels fell to about 15 percent by the late Permian period, coinciding with the most severe mass extinction in Earth's history. Most of the giants failed to survive this transition, suggesting that high oxygen had indeed been crucial to their existence. The evidence from this remarkable period challenges our understanding of oxygen's role in evolution and suggests that, far from being universally toxic, high oxygen levels may have opened evolutionary doors that are closed to us today. It also demonstrates how profoundly atmospheric composition can shape the course of evolution, creating conditions that allow certain life forms to explore new possibilities in size and form.

Chapter 6: Free Radicals: The Paradox of Aerobic Life

In 1891, a 24-year-old Polish woman named Marya Skłodowska arrived in Paris with dreams of becoming a scientist. Against all odds in the chauvinist academic culture of the time, she would go on to become Marie Curie, the first woman in Europe to receive a doctorate in science and the first person to receive two Nobel Prizes in different scientific fields. Working with her husband Pierre, Marie discovered two new radioactive elements - polonium and radium. Tragically, Marie died of leukemia in 1934, her fingers burned and stigmatized by her beloved radium, a victim of radiation poisoning. The lethal effects of radiation and oxygen poisoning share a common mechanism - the production of reactive molecules called free radicals. When radiation interacts with water in our bodies, it produces three dangerous intermediates: hydroxyl radicals, hydrogen peroxide, and superoxide radicals. These same reactive molecules are also produced during normal respiration when we use oxygen to extract energy from food. This parallel between radiation damage and oxygen toxicity was first described by Rebeca Gerschman and Daniel Gilbert in a groundbreaking 1954 paper in Science titled "Oxygen Poisoning and X-irradiation: A Mechanism in Common." Free radicals are molecules with unpaired electrons, making them highly reactive and damaging to biological molecules like DNA, proteins, and lipids. The hydroxyl radical is particularly destructive, reacting with the first molecule it encounters and initiating chain reactions of damage. Hydrogen peroxide, though less reactive, can diffuse throughout cells and react with iron to produce more hydroxyl radicals. Superoxide radicals can release iron from storage proteins, fueling further free radical production. Together, these three operate as an insidious catalytic system that damages biological molecules in the presence of iron. Ironically, the chemistry of oxygen that makes it potentially toxic also explains why we don't spontaneously combust. Oxygen has two unpaired electrons, making it reluctant to react directly with most molecules. Life has evolved to feed electrons to oxygen one at a time, breaking down the oxidation of food into a series of tiny steps. Unfortunately, at each step there is a risk of electrons escaping and joining with oxygen to form superoxide radicals. Estimates suggest that 1-2 percent of the oxygen we consume escapes as superoxide radicals during normal respiration, rising to perhaps 10 percent during vigorous exercise. To counter this constant threat, organisms have evolved sophisticated antioxidant defense systems. Enzymes like superoxide dismutase convert superoxide to hydrogen peroxide, while catalase and glutathione peroxidase neutralize hydrogen peroxide before it can form more dangerous hydroxyl radicals. Additionally, dietary antioxidants like vitamins C and E help quench free radicals before they can cause damage. These defenses are remarkably effective but never perfect - some oxidative damage inevitably accumulates over time. This paradox of aerobic life - that the same oxygen that gives us life also slowly damages us - has profound implications for how we understand aging and disease. The free radical theory of aging, first proposed by Denham Harman in 1956, suggests that the accumulation of oxidative damage over time is a primary driver of the aging process. While this theory has been refined over decades, the fundamental insight remains valid - the oxygen that powers our lives also ensures our mortality, creating a biological trade-off that has shaped the evolution of all complex life on Earth.

Chapter 7: Oxygen and Human Health: From Aging to Disease

The relationship between oxygen, aging, and disease represents one of medicine's most important yet underappreciated connections. When tissues are injured or infected, inflammatory cells flood the area and release potent oxidants to kill pathogens. This "oxidative burst" is a crucial defense mechanism, but it creates collateral damage to surrounding healthy tissues. This inflammatory response, powered by oxygen-derived free radicals, links seemingly unrelated diseases from Alzheimer's to atherosclerosis. Alzheimer's disease illustrates this connection vividly. The brain of someone with Alzheimer's shows two characteristic features: tangles of tau protein inside neurons and plaques of amyloid protein outside them. Both features are intimately connected to oxidative stress. The tau protein only forms tangles when oxidized, while amyloid becomes toxic when it reacts with metals like copper and iron to generate more free radicals. The brain's immune cells recognize these abnormal proteins as foreign and mount an inflammatory response, releasing more oxidants that damage surrounding neurons. This creates a vicious cycle of inflammation, oxidative damage, and neuronal death. Heart disease follows a similar pattern. The process begins when LDL cholesterol becomes oxidized in artery walls, triggering an inflammatory response. Immune cells attempt to remove the oxidized cholesterol but become trapped and transform into foam cells. These foam cells release inflammatory signals that recruit more immune cells, creating a self-perpetuating cycle of inflammation. The resulting atherosclerotic plaques narrow arteries and can rupture, causing heart attacks and strokes. Antioxidants and anti-inflammatory drugs can slow this process, highlighting the central role of oxidative stress. Cancer's relationship with oxygen is particularly complex. On one hand, free radicals can damage DNA, potentially initiating cancer by causing mutations. On the other hand, many cancer cells adapt to use less oxygen than normal cells, shifting to anaerobic metabolism even when oxygen is available - a phenomenon known as the Warburg effect. This metabolic shift helps cancer cells survive in low-oxygen environments and may protect them from some forms of oxidative damage. Paradoxically, some cancer treatments work by increasing oxidative stress beyond what even cancer cells can tolerate. The mitochondria in our cells represent both the power and the paradox of oxygen metabolism. As we age, our mitochondria accumulate damage to their DNA, proteins, and membranes. Damaged mitochondria become less efficient, producing more free radicals and less energy - a vicious cycle that accelerates aging. In tissues with high energy demands, like the brain, heart, and skeletal muscles, this mitochondrial decline contributes significantly to age-related functional losses. Remarkably, the need to protect mitochondrial integrity across generations may have shaped one of life's most fundamental features: the existence of two sexes, with mitochondria inherited almost exclusively from the mother in most species. Modern lifestyle factors have created new sources of oxidative stress unknown to our ancestors. Air pollution, processed foods, alcohol, tobacco, and various environmental toxins all increase free radical production in the body. Psychological stress, increasingly common in contemporary society, also elevates oxidative stress through hormonal pathways. At the same time, many people consume diets deficient in protective antioxidants found in fruits and vegetables. This combination of increased oxidative burden and decreased protection creates a perfect storm for chronic disease in the modern world.

Summary

The story of oxygen reveals a profound paradox at the heart of life itself. The same molecule that enabled the evolution of complex organisms and powers our cellular metabolism also damages our bodies through free radical production, ultimately contributing to aging and disease. This tension has shaped life's trajectory for billions of years, driving the evolution of everything from antioxidant defenses to sexual reproduction. The Great Oxygenation Event transformed Earth from a planet of simple microbes to one capable of supporting complex multicellular life, but this evolutionary breakthrough came with an inherent cost: the need to manage oxygen's destructive potential. The insights from oxygen's evolutionary history offer practical guidance for health and longevity. Rather than viewing aging as an inevitable march of time, we can understand it as a process intimately connected to oxygen metabolism and potentially modifiable through targeted interventions. The most effective approaches work with our evolved biology: moderate exercise that stimulates mitochondrial renewal, plant-rich diets that activate stress-resistance pathways, and balanced immune function that prevents chronic inflammation without compromising defense against infection. The future of medicine may lie not in treating individual diseases as they arise, but in maintaining cellular health throughout life by supporting the body's natural mechanisms for managing oxygen's double-edged nature. By understanding our ancient relationship with oxygen, we gain not just scientific knowledge but practical wisdom about living healthier, longer lives.

About Author

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Nick Lane

Dr Nick Lane is a British biochemist and writer. He was awarded the first Provost's Venture Research Prize in the Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment at University College London, where he is now a Reader in Evolutionary Biochemistry. Dr Lane’s research deals with evolutionary biochemistry and bioenergetics, focusing on the origin of life and the evolution of complex cells. Dr Lane was a founding member of the UCL Consortium for Mitochondrial Research, and is leading the UCL Research Frontiers Origins of Life programme. He was awarded the 2011 BMC Research Award for Genetics, Genomics, Bioinformatics and Evolution, and the 2015 Biochemical Society Award for his sustained and diverse contribution to the molecular life sciences and the public understanding of science.Nick Lane is the author of three acclaimed books on evolutionary biochemistry, which have sold more than 100,000 copies worldwide, and have been translated into 20 languages.Nick's first book, Oxygen: The Molecule that Made the World (OUP, 2002) is a sweeping history of the relationship between life and our planet, and the paradoxical ways in which adaptations to oxygen play out in our own lives and deaths. It was selected as one of the Sunday Times Books of the Year for 2002.His second book, Power, Sex, Suicide: Mitochondria and the Meaning of Life (OUP, 2005) is an exploration of the extraordinary effects that mitochondria have had on the evolution of complex life. It was selected as one of The Economist's Books of the Year for 2005, and shortlisted for the 2006 Royal Society Aventis Science Book Prize and the Times Higher Young Academic Author of the Year Award.Nick's most recent book, Life Ascending: The Ten Great Inventions of Evolution (Profile/Norton 2009) is a celebration of the inventiveness of life, and of our own ability to read the deep past to reconstruct the history of life on earth. The great inventions are: the origin of life, DNA, photosynthesis, the complex cell, sex, movement, sight, hot blood, consciousness and death. Life Ascending won the 2010 Royal Society Prize for Science Books, and was named a Book of the Year by New Scientist, Nature, the Times and the Independent, the latter describing him as “one of the most exciting science writers of our time.”Nick's next book, due to be published in 2015 by Norton and Profile, is entitled The Vital Question. Why is life the way it is? It will attack a central problem in biology - why did complex life arise only once in four billion years, and why does all complex life share so many peculiar properties, from sex and speciation to senescence?Nick was also a co-editor of Life in the Frozen State (CRC Press, 2004), the first major text book on cryobiology in the genomic era.Peer-reviewed articles by Nick Lane have been published in top international journals, including Nature, Science and Cell, and he has published many features in magazines like New Scientist and Scientific American. He has appeared regularly on TV and radio, and speaks in schools and at literary and science festivals. He also worked for several years in the pharmaceutical industry, ultimately as Strategic Director of Medi Cine, a medical multimedia company based in London, where he was responsible for developing interactive approaches to medical education.Nick is married to Dr Ana Hidalgo-Simon and lives in London with their two young sons, Eneko and Hugo. He spent many years clinging to rock faces in search of fossils and thrills, but his practical interest in palaeontology is rarely rewarded with more than a devil’s toenail. When not climbing, writing or hunting for wild campsites, he can occasionally be found playing the fiddle in London pubs with the Celtic ensemble Probably Not, or exploring Romanesque churches.http://www.nick-lane.net/About%20Nick...

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