Machine generated contents note: Preface -- 1 Evolution of the Idea -- From Veradsky to a Science of the Global Environment -- 2 Life in the Universe -- Attributes, Constraints, and Probabilities -- 3 Life's Diversity and Resilience -- Metabolisms, Species, Catastrophes -- 4 Energizing the Biosphere -- Solar Radiation and the Earth's Heat -- 5 Water and Material Flows -- Biospheric Cycles -- 6 The Biosphere's Extent -- The Moveable Boundaries -- 7 The Biosphere's Mass and Productivity -- Quantifying Life's Presence and Performance -- 8 The Biosphere's Dynamics and Organization -- Fundamental Rules and Grand Patterns -- 9 Civilization and the Biosphere -- The Earth Transformed by Human Action -- 10 Epilogue -- Appendixes -- References -- Scientific Name Index -- Name Index -- Subject Index.