From the reviews: "The contents of this dense volume are mainly derived from a Russian Academy of Sciences research program of the same name, culminating in a conference held in Novosibirsk in 2005. ... Dobretsov ... and colleagues have compiled papers by microbiologists, chemists, geologists, paleobiologists, geneticists, and archaeologists. The book introduces novel theoretical frameworks and new data in many areas ... . Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students and researchers/faculty." (W. L. Cressler, CHOICE, Vol. 45 (10), June, 2008)