The Web of Life : A New Scientific Understanding of Living Systems

Rating:
Summary: a great work of a sloppy genius
Review: While reading any of Capra's works, i find myself bouncing back and forth between, on the one hand, disgust and anger at the unwarranted liberties he takes and the hurried conclusions he makes with his data, and then on the other hand, a great joy at reading his sometimes incredibly concise, well-written, pointed arguments based on solid research.
A certain amount of charity should be given to any thinker who is exploring new territory. I think of Freud, who also had a knack for collecting a remarkably insightful and provocative body of information and yet nevertheless sometimes making the most absurd conclusions from them. This is not to say that Capra has necessary made any outright absurd assertions here, but rather that in his excitement, he's oversimplified the material on several points. In this regard, he also reminds me of the late Joseph Campbell. Like Campbell, however, regardless of you opinion about the conclusions that he has reached, you are nevertheless obligated to respect the range and breadth of the material he has gathered.
To sum up, i would say that Capra's book here is a great starting point into the exploration of deep ecology, system's theory, macrobiology, and newly emergent developments in philosophy. Like Capra, i too think that these issues are urgent of serious consideration by the intellectual community at large. I would advise the reader, if they are seriously interested in these matters, to take notice of Capra's bibliography and go and read the source material themselves.

Rating:
Summary: A disappointment...
Review: Considering that Capra acknowledges the debt he owes to Jantsch early on in this book, he doesn't appear to have read the seminal "The Self-Organizing Universe" very thoroughly. While it is true that Jantsh's work needed to be updated but Capra's shoddy attempt really doesn't fill the gap.

Capra's book will also irritate anyone who has ever read Ken Wilber since Capra seems to be loudly proclaiming a view very similar to Wilber's "holons" without the depth of Wilber's insight. That is, Capra seems to be stuck on the ideas of the Gaia theory without really getting into the social aspects of the theory at all.

Jantsch and Wilber are very cognizant of Maturana and Varela's work (see "The Tree of Knowledge") while Capra seems ignorant. This might explain why he doesn't do a very solid job of tying the social side to the material side of life.

This is the same treatment all other points in the book receive including his linking of Prigogine's work on dissipative structures and evolution. Although Behe and Hoyle may seem fairly "far out" in their theories, Capra does not offer any ideas or arguments about exactly how evolution and dissipative structures combine to produce such interesting things as cells that at some point "decide" to specialize and form a human body let alone how the information contained in DNA gets translated into the structure.

I'm really saddened by this effort since there is a lot of relevant information lying around right now for a good attempt at a very strong "theory of everything". When one looks at Prigogine, Chaitin, Jantsch, Wilber, Wilson's "Spikes, Decisions and Actions", Perlovsky, Maturana and Varela, or Austin's "Zen and the Brain" then one begins to glimpse that there are some very salient common points finally beginning to emerge from Western Civilization's foray into science.

In the end, I'd recommend a book by one of the above authors if you really want to learn something.

Rating:
Summary: More Compilation than Creation
Review: For those familiar with Capra's more famous tome "The Tao of Physics," the inconsistencies of that book are also present in this one. Once again, Capra has attempted a synthesis of specialized branches of scientific knowledge into an overall unified theory, this time dealing with biology and ecosystems. Unfortunately, just as the older book explained eastern and western views of time and space but failed to convincingly integrate them into a larger understanding, the same thing happens here. The result is a useful compilation and summary of various realms of modern scientific thought, but once again Capra's goal of creating a unified theory fails to materialize.

What we do get is a serviceable summary of recent research and breakthroughs in various "systems" theories. This is the antithesis of classic western science in which natural processes are broken down into small independent parts that are only related in a linear cause-and-effect pattern (the mechanistic view). Capra provides plenty of evidence that natural phenomena, both within organisms and across ecosystems, operate in far more complex and systematic fashions. These types of systems theories are necessary for a true understanding of the Earth and life itself.

But Capra's work here is mostly summary with little analysis. He tends to introduce scientists and their theories repeatedly throughout the book, and very large segments are made up entirely of the works of other theoreticians such as Lynn Margulis or Humberto Maturana. Capra also has an annoying way of saying that every scientific discovery he covers was groundbreaking or profoundly influential. The book ends very inconclusively with a skimpy 8-page epilogue in which Capra tries to tie the extensive knowledge he has compiled into a new theory of how humans should interact with the Earth. But it turns out to be merely simple environmentalism, and not the grand unified theory that was goal of all the extensive build-up. This book is quite useful as a summary of knowledge, but once again Capra just doesn't quite bring it all together. [~doomsdayer520~]

Rating:
Summary: Whem science takes new age by the hand
Review: I arrived to this author out of a suggestion found while reading a Wayne Dyer book. To my surprise this work is much more that what I bargained for. Eventhough most of the issues discussed herein involve deep philosophical and scientific issues, from the fields of chemistry, physics and biology, Mr. Capra does a superb job placing difficult concepts at a level, that any person with a basic level of education will understand him. What is most amazing is that he hardly falls in the custom of explaining through metaphors, which usually misleads more than explain. On the contrary, he carefully selects the words and phrases so the reader will not be left behind or fall asleep.

The best way to summarize what this book is about, is by using the author's words:

"My thesis has been that a theory of a living systems consistent with the philosophical framework of deep ecology, including an appropriate mathematical language and implying a non mechanistic, post-Cartesian understanding of life, is now emerging"

And guauu, this guy is a great advocate of his case.

Rating:
Summary: Very informative and easy to understand
Review: I thought this book was very informative and easy to understand for people who are not experts in systems theory. It provided me with a nice holistic perspective of the systems we are involved in. Through his books, Frijof Capra is spreading a holistic way of looking at life. I believe that his books serve a very important function in this age of materialism, urban alienation, spiritual confusion and chaos. Although there are many great books that serve this purpose, this is defintiely one of them. Another book that serves this wonderful purpose is, "The Ever-Transcending Spirit" by Toru Sato. It is an incredible book that uses the systems approach to understand how our subjective selves are also involved in these systems. If the world is to become a better place, both books should be read by many many more people.

Rating:
Summary: a right-brain view of the world
Review: The Web of Life has been a revelation to me: I have always been struck by the beauty to be uncovered in the study of biology; however, I have found too many books on biology to be dry and reductionist, completely ignoring the metaphysical, aesthetic aspect of the life sciences.

This book is the first of many more I hope to read on this deeper aspect of biology and ecology. Capra looks at the life sciences through the lens of systems theory, and thus provides a very good introduction to systems theory for those (like me) who are novices. He also gives an account of life, from its earliest origins on up to the beginnings of human consciousness, working with the ideas of the main developers of systems theory over the past several decades.

One of the most intriguing aspects of this theory (or perhaps I should say set of theories) for me is how it describes and works out in more detail a basic intuition that many of us have even as children (and that many spiritual traditions have always recognized): that all things are connected in a giant web-work (wheels within wheels within wheels....). Anyone responding to this intuition knows that no being can be understood without looking at both the patterns it comprises, as well as the greater patterns it is a part of.

Another provocative aspect of these theories is how they push the definition of life out farther and farther, for in many ways all dissapative systems (economies, cultures, hurricanes) can be seen as having living qualities.

I disagree with the criticisms of the reviewers who complain that this book is derivative and contains too few original ideas. The author's intent here was to present a synthesis of teachings on a subject which is still new to many people, whilst arguing for a more appreciative and reverent attitude towards the world we live in. The result is a book which is not only fascinating but inspiring as well.

Rating:
Summary: Systems thinking explained for the rest of us.
Review: This book is an excellent synthesis of those intriguing and sexy scientific terms you'd like to understand but don't know where to begin. Systems theory, complexity, chaos, cognition, autopoeisis, symbiosis, gaia theory. For these and more the answer is to start reading here.

Those who already have half a clue about what these terms may refer to will notice that Capra's overview is emphatically cross-disciplinary. His bringing together of work in different fields of inquiry makes him well worth reading to see something of the 'bigger picture'. There is also likely to be something here you didn't already know. For instance, I was intrigued by Capra's description of the work of Candace Pert on the role of peptides, and her conclusion: 'I can no longer make a strong distinction between the brain and the body' (p. 276). Time after time I was filled with the strong desire to know more about the wonderful world Capra is describing, and to chase up the references on each page.

Capra's approach, along with his conclusions, are controversial and all the more stimulating for that. Even if you don't swallow the whole story, his vision of life in which everything is connected to everything else will make you question many preconceived ideas about the nature of nature. Despite what might be claimed for a book such as this, Capra hasn't quite reached the 'holy grail' of a complete, holistic account of life. In fact, it is exciting to consider how much there is that we still don't know and can't agree on. I give 'The Web of Life' four stars. I felt is petered out somewhat toward the end. If there had been a more dynamic conclusion to the book, it would be worth five.

Rating:
Summary: Very informative and easy to understand
Review: Unfortunately I had to read this book for a college class. Although Capra uses the umbrella of science, his approach is anything but scientific. The book sank considerably in my estimation when I saw that the first footnote credits Al Gore for documenting that the world is on the brink of destruction. Perhaps our world really is in sorry shape if we are willing to recognize a career politician as a credible scientific source.

Capra claims that it is imperative that the planet shift over to his "ecological" world view, but he provides little in terms of accurate information or factual data to support his position. This book is an emotional appeal to a romanticized view of the Earth, with a typical lack of appreciation for human ingenuity and ability to adapt.

Better choices for those who actually prefer the facts about the state of the world are "The Skeptical Environmentalist: Measuring the Real State of the World" by Bjorn Lomborg or "Hard Green: Saving the Environment from the Environmentalists" by Peter Huber. If you are a new age dreamer who doesn't care about facts, this book is for you. If you seek the "scientific understanding" that Capra's subtitle promises, look elsewhere.

Rating:
Summary: Only useful as a short history of systems thinking
Review: What's good about this book? It provides a nice, concise history of the various developments that have led up to the "paradigm shift" supposedly taking place in modern science from reductionism and mechanism to holism and neo-vitalism. In so far as it does so, it is a laudable achievement.

Unfortunately, the author, and many of the thinkers he seems to be drawing from, insist on deriving unwarranted conclusions from their work, particularly in the areas of social theory and political philosophy. We are told, for example, that humans have built societies based on hierarchies of domination and submission, but that nature espouses the creation of "networks". which, it is alleged, are egalitarian. This is simply untrue. Anything involving two or more elements that are related to each other may be called a "network", including the most brutal master/slave relations ever seen on Earth. There is nothing inherently egalitarian in the notion that everything living is connected and related to everything else. The notions being preached here do not follow from the premises, however true they may be.

A deeper problem with such conclusions is that they are not borne out by natural systems themselves. Most, if not all, higher mammals are highly hierarchical species; especially the higher primates, to whom we are most closely related. Clearly, this is a fact of nature that is at odds with the author's desire to promote a vision of an egalitarian world informed by ecological and biological thinking. This is the great weakness of the book. While it clearly and neatly explains the history of systems thinking, it insists on deriving from it's premises politically correct values that have absolutely no foundation in nature itself, as anyone familiar with the controversy over socio-biology and evolutionary psychology could tell you. Those movements, by the way, are utterly absent from the bibliography and are unmentioned in the subject index. I can only think that this is by deisgn. The author is so well informed on other matters that I cannot believe that he is unaware of the work of these movements.

Thus, I would warn everyone who considers reading this book to take the results it derives from it's first principles with more than a few grains of salt, even if those principles are themselves convincing. It presents a picture of nature that has more to do with the sentimental fables of Rousseau and his generations of Leftist admirers than with the real knowledge gleaned from the study of nature. And anyone who would embrace ecological thinking as the model for a new era should remember this: Nietzsche, certainly no humanitarian or egalitarian, was the modern philosopher most heavily influenced by biology and vitalism.