Listen free for 30 days

  • What Is Life?

  • Five Great Ideas in Biology
  • Written by: Paul Nurse
  • Narrated by: Paul Nurse
  • Length: 5 hrs and 6 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (7 ratings)

Try for $0.00
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo + applicable taxes after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
What Is Life? cover art

What Is Life?

Written by: Paul Nurse
Narrated by: Paul Nurse
Try for $0.00

$14.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $14.47

Buy Now for $14.47

Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Tax where applicable.

Publisher's Summary

The Nobel Prize-winning scientist's elegant explanation of the fundamental ideas in biology and their uses today.

The renowned biologist Paul Nurse has spent his career revealing how living cells work. In What Is Life?, he takes up the challenge of describing what it means to be alive in a way that every listener can understand.

It is a shared journey of discovery; step-by-step Nurse illuminates five great ideas that underpin biology - the Cell, the Gene, Evolution by Natural Selection, Life as Chemistry, and Life as Information. He introduces the scientists who made the most important advances, and, using his personal experiences in and out of the lab, he shares with us the challenges, the lucky breaks, and the thrilling eureka moments of discovery.

Nurse writes with delight at life's richness and with a sense of the urgent role of biology in our time. To survive the challenges that face us all today - climate change, pandemic, loss of biodiversity and food security - it is vital that we all understand what life is.
©2020 Paul Nurse (P)2021 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books
Biological Sciences
Show more Show less

Love Books? You'll Love Audible.

 Placeholder Image Alt Text

Transform your day

Replace endless scrolling with endless listening. Chores can be fun.

 Placeholder Image Alt Text

Listen everywhere

Download titles to listen offline, wherever you are in the world.

 Placeholder Image Alt Text

Carry your entire Library

Your stories go where you go. Audiobooks don’t weigh a thing.

 Placeholder Image Alt Text

Listen and learn

Discover stories that can change your mind, your well-being, and your life.

 Placeholder Image Alt Text

Reach your reading goals

You can’t turn pages while you drive—but you can press play.

 Placeholder Image Alt Text

Find your niche

WIth thousands of titles to explore, there’s something for everyone.

 Try for $0.00 $14.95 per month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

What listeners say about What Is Life?

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    5
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    4
  • 4 Stars
    3
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    4
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Audible.ca reviews

Amazon Reviews
Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Ehsanollah

A must read/listen book

Highly recommended for anyone who is looking for a clue of what is life. Very well written and amazingly read by one of the greatest mind of our time.

Report this

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!