Contributors, xi <p><b>1. What is Geobiology?, 1<br /> </b><i>Andrew H. Knoll, Donald E. Canfield, and Kurt O. Konhauser</i></p> <p>1.1 Introduction, 1</p> <p>1.2 Life interacting with the Earth, 2</p> <p>1.3 Pattern and process in geobiology, 2</p> <p>1.4 New horizons in geobiology, 3</p> <p><b>2. The Global Carbon Cycle: Biological Processes, 5<br /> </b><i>Paul G. Falkowski</i></p> <p>2.1 Introduction, 5</p> <p>2.2 A brief primer on redox reactions, 5</p> <p>2.3 Carbon as a substrate for biological reactions, 5</p> <p>2.4 The evolution of photosynthesis, 8</p> <p>2.5 The evolution of oxygenic phototrophs, 11</p> <p>2.6 Net primary production, 13</p> <p>2.7 What limits NPP on land and in the ocean?, 15</p> <p>2.8 Is NPP in balance with respiration?, 16</p> <p>2.9 Conclusions and extensions, 17</p> <p><b>3. The Global Carbon Cycle: Geological Processes, 20<br /> </b><i>Klaus Wallmann and Giovanni Aloisi</i></p> <p>3.1 Introduction, 20</p> <p>3.2 Organic carbon cycling, 20</p> <p>3.3 Carbonate cycling, 22</p> <p>3.4 Mantle degassing, 23</p> <p>3.5 Metamorphism, 24</p> <p>3.6 Silicate weathering, 24</p> <p>3.7 Feedbacks, 25</p> <p>3.8 Balancing the geological carbon cycle, 26</p> <p>3.9 Evolution of the geological carbon cycle through Earth's history: proxies and models, 27</p> <p>3.10 The geological C cycle through time, 30</p> <p>3.11 Limitations and perspectives, 32</p> <p><b>4. The Global Nitrogen Cycle, 36<br /> </b><i>Bess Ward</i></p> <p>4.1 Introduction, 36</p> <p>4.2 Geological nitrogen cycle, 36</p> <p>4.3 Components of the global nitrogen cycle, 38</p> <p>4.4 Nitrogen redox chemistry, 40</p> <p>4.5 Biological reactions of the nitrogen cycle, 40</p> <p>4.6 Atmospheric nitrogen chemistry, 45</p> <p>4.7 Summary and areas for future research, 46</p> <p><b>5. The Global Sulfur Cycle, 49<br /> </b><i>Donald E. Canfield and James Farquhar</i></p> <p>5.1 Introduction, 49</p> <p>5.2 The global sulfur cycle from two perspectives, 49</p> <p>5.3 The evolution of S metabolisms, 53</p> <p>5.4 The interaction of S with other biogeochemical cycles, 55</p> <p>5.5 The evolution of the S cycle, 59</p> <p>5.6 Closing remarks, 61</p> <p><b>6. The Global Iron Cycle, 65<br /> </b><i>Brian Kendall, Ariel D. Anbar, Andreas Kappler and Kurt O. Konhauser</i></p> <p>6.1 Overview, 65</p> <p>6.2 The inorganic geochemistry of iron: redox and reservoirs, 65</p> <p>6.3 Iron in modern biology and biogeochemical cycles, 69</p> <p>6.4 Iron through time, 73</p> <p>6.5 Summary, 83</p> <p><b>7. The Global Oxygen Cycle, 93<br /> </b><i>James F. Kasting and Donald E. Canfield</i></p> <p>7.1 Introduction, 93</p> <p>7.2 The chemistry and biochemistry of oxygen, 93</p> <p>7.3 The concept of redox balance, 94</p> <p>7.4 The modern O2 cycle, 94</p> <p>7.5 Cycling of O2 and H2 on the early Earth, 98</p> <p>7.6 Synthesis: speculations about the timing and cause of the rise of atmospheric O2, 102</p> <p><b>8. Bacterial Biomineralization, 105<br /> </b><i>Kurt Konhauser and Robert Riding</i></p> <p>8.1 Introduction, 105</p> <p>8.2 Mineral nucleation and growth, 105</p> <p>8.3 How bacteria facilitate biomineralization, 106</p> <p>8.4 Iron oxyhydroxides, 111</p> <p>8.5 Calcium carbonates, 116</p> <p><b>9. Mineral–Organic–Microbe Interfacial Chemistry, 131<br /> </b>David J. Vaughan and Jonathan R. Lloyd</p> <p>9.1 Introduction, 131</p> <p>9.2 The mineral surface (and mineral–bio interface) and techniques for its study, 131</p> <p>9.3 Mineral-organic-microbe interfacial processes: some key examples, 140</p> <p><b>10. Eukaryotic Skeletal Formation, 150<br /> </b><i>Adam F. Wallace, Dongbo Wang, Laura M. Hamm, Andrew H. Knoll and Patricia M. Dove</i><br /> </p> <p>10.1 Introduction, 150</p> <p>10.2 Mineralization by unicellular organisms, 151</p> <p>10.3 Mineralization by multicellular organisms, 164</p> <p>10.4 A brief history of skeletons, 173</p> <p>10.5 Summary, 175</p> <p><b>11. Plants and Animals as Geobiological Agents, 188<br /> </b><i>David J. Beerling and Nicholas J. Butterfield</i></p> <p>11.1 Introduction, 188</p> <p>11.2 Land plants as geobiological agents, 188</p> <p>11.3 Animals as geobiological agents, 195</p> <p>11.4 Conclusions, 200</p> <p><b>12. A Geobiological View of Weathering and Erosion, 205<br /> </b><i>Susan L. Brantley, Marina Lebedeva and Elisabeth M. Hausrath</i></p> <p>12.1 Introduction, 205</p> <p>12.2 Effects of biota on weathering, 207</p> <p>12.3 Effects of organic molecules on weathering, 209</p> <p>12.4 Organomarkers in weathering solutions, 211</p> <p>12.5 Elemental profiles in regolith, 213</p> <p>12.6 Time evolution of profile development, 217</p> <p>12.7 Investigating chemical, physical, and biological weathering with simple models, 218</p> <p>12.8 Conclusions, 222</p> <p><b>13. Molecular Biology’s Contributions to Geobiology, 228<br /> </b><i>Dianne K. Newman, Victoria J. Orphan and Anna-Louise Reysenbach</i></p> <p>13.1 Introduction, 228</p> <p>13.2 Molecular approaches used in geobiology, 229</p> <p>13.3 Case study: anaerobic oxidation of methane, 238</p> <p>13.4 Challenges and opportunities for the next generation, 242</p> <p><b>14. Stable Isotope Geobiology, 250<br /> </b><i>D.T. Johnston and W.W. Fischer</i></p> <p>14.1 Introduction, 250</p> <p>14.2 Isotopic notation and the biogeochemical elements, 253</p> <p>14.3 Tracking fractionation in a system, 255</p> <p>14.4 Applications, 258</p> <p>14.5 Using isotopes to ask a geobiological question in deep time, 261</p> <p>14.6 Conclusions, 265</p> <p><b>15. Biomarkers: Informative Molecules for Studies in Geobiology, 269<br /> </b><i>Roger E. Summons and Sara A. Lincoln</i></p> <p>15.1 Introduction, 269</p> <p>15.2 Origins of biomarkers, 269</p> <p>15.3 Diagenesis, 269</p> <p>15.4 Isotopic compositions, 270</p> <p>15.5 Stereochemical considerations, 272</p> <p>15.6 Lipid biosynthetic pathways, 273</p> <p>15.7 Classification of lipids, 273</p> <p>15.8 Lipids diagnostic of Archaea, 277</p> <p>15.9 Lipids diagnostic of Bacteria, 280</p> <p>15.10 Lipids of Eukarya, 283</p> <p>15.11 Preservable cores, 283</p> <p>15.12 Outlook, 287</p> <p><b>16. The Fossil Record of Microbial Life, 297<br /> </b><i>Andrew H. Knoll</i></p> <p>16.1 Introduction, 297</p> <p>16.2 The nature of Earth’s early microbial record, 297</p> <p>16.3 Paleobiological inferences from microfossil morphology, 299</p> <p>16.4 Inferences from microfossil chemistry and ultrastructure (new technologies), 302</p> <p>16.5 Inferences from microbialites, 306</p> <p>16.6 A brief history, with questions, 308</p> <p>16.7 Conclusions, 311</p> <p><b>17. Geochemical Origins of Life, 315<br /> </b><i>Robert M. Hazen</i></p> <p>17.1 Introduction, 315</p> <p>17.2 Emergence as a unifying concept in origins research, 315</p> <p>17.3 The emergence of biomolecules, 317</p> <p>17.4 The emergence of macromolecules, 320</p> <p>17.5 The emergence of self-replicating systems, 323</p> <p>17.6 The emergence of natural selection, 326</p> <p>17.7 Three scenarios for the origins of life, 327</p> <p><b>18. Mineralogical Co-evolution of the Geosphere and Biosphere, 333<br /> </b><i>Robert M. Hazen and Dominic Papineau</i></p> <p>18.1 Introduction, 333</p> <p>18.2 Prebiotic mineral evolution I – evidence from meteorites, 334</p> <p>18.3 Prebiotic mineral evolution II – crust and mantle reworking, 335</p> <p>18.4 The anoxic Archean biosphere, 336</p> <p>18.5 The Great Oxidation Event, 340</p> <p>18.6 A billion years of stasis, 341</p> <p>18.7 The snowball Earth, 341</p> <p>18.8 The rise of skeletal mineralization, 342</p> <p>18.9 Summary, 343</p> <p><b>19. Geobiology of the Archean Eon, 351<br /> </b><i>Roger Buick</i></p> <p>19.1 Introduction, 351</p> <p>19.2 Carbon cycle, 351</p> <p>19.3 Sulfur cycle, 354</p> <p>19.4 Iron cycle, 355</p> <p>19.5 Oxygen cycle, 357</p> <p>19.6 Nitrogen cycle, 359</p> <p>19.7 Phosphorus cycle, 360</p> <p>19.8 Bioaccretion of sediment, 360</p> <p>19.9 Bioalteration, 365</p> <p>19.10 Conclusions, 366</p> <p><b>20. Geobiology of the Proterozoic Eon, 371<br /> </b><i>Timothy W. Lyons, Christopher T. Reinhard, Gordon D. Love and Shuhai Xiao</i></p> <p>20.1 Introduction, 371</p> <p>20.2 The Great Oxidation Event, 371</p> <p>20.3 The early Proterozoic: Era geobiology in the wake of the GOE, 372</p> <p>20.4 The mid-Proterozoic: a last gasp of iron formations, deep ocean anoxia, the 'boring' billion, and a mid-life crisis, 375</p> <p>20.5 The history of Proterozoic life: biomarker records, 381</p> <p>20.6 The history of Proterozoic life: mid-Proterozoic fossil record, 383</p> <p>20.7 The late Proterozoic: a supercontinent, oxygen, ice, and the emergence of animals, 384</p> <p>20.8 Summary, 392</p> <p><b>21. Geobiology of the Phanerozoic, 403<br /> </b><i>Steven M. Stanley</i></p> <p>21.1 The beginning of the Phanerozoic Eon, 403</p> <p>21.2 Cambrian mass extinctions, 405</p> <p>21.3 The terminal Ordovician mass extinction, 405</p> <p>21.4 The impact of early land plants, 406</p> <p>21.5 Silurian biotic crises, 406</p> <p>21.6 Devonian mass extinctions, 406</p> <p>21.7 Major changes of the global ecosystem in Carboniferous time, 406</p> <p>21.8 Low-elevation glaciation near the equator, 407</p> <p>21.9 Drying of climates, 408</p> <p>21.10 A double mass extinction in the Permian, 408</p> <p>21.11 The absence of recovery in the early Triassic, 409</p> <p>21.12 The terminal Triassic crisis, 409</p> <p>21.13 The rise of atmospheric oxygen since early in Triassic time, 410</p> <p>21.14 The Toarcian anoxic event, 410</p> <p>21.15 Phytoplankton, planktonic foraminifera, and the carbon cycle, 411</p> <p>21.16 Diatoms and the silica cycle, 411</p> <p>21.17 Cretaceous climates, 411</p> <p>21.18 The sudden Paleocene–Eocene climatic shift, 414</p> <p>21.19 The cause of the Eocene–Oligocene climatic shift, 415</p> <p>21.20 The re-expansion of reefs during Oligocene time, 416</p> <p>21.21 Drier climates and cascading evolutionary radiations on the land, 416</p> <p><b>22. Geobiology of the Anthropocene, 425<br /> </b><i>Daniel P. Schrag</i></p> <p>22.1 Introduction, 425</p> <p>22.2 The Anthropocene, 425</p> <p>22.3 When did the Anthropocene begin?, 426</p> <p>22.4 Geobiology and human population, 427</p> <p>22.5 Human appropriation of the Earth, 428</p> <p>22.6 The carbon cycle and climate of the Anthropocene, 430</p> <p>22.7 The future of geobiology, 433</p> <p>Acknowledgements, 434</p> <p>References, 435</p> <p>Index, 437</p> <p><i>Colour plate pages fall between pp. 228 and 229</i></p>