Life in Moving Fluids: The Physical Biology of Flow

by Steven Vogel

Both a landmark text and reference book, Steven Vogel's Life in Moving Fluids has also played a catalytic role in research involving the applications of fluid mechanics to biology. In this revised edition, Vogel continues to combine humor and clear explanations as he addresses biologists and general readers interested in biological fluid mechanics, offering updates on the field over the last dozen years and expanding the coverage of the biological literature. His discussion of the relationship between fluid flow and biological design now includes sections on jet propulsion, biological pumps, swimming, blood flow, and surface waves, and on acceleration reaction and Murray’s law. This edition contains an extensive bibliography for readers interested in designing their own experiments.

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, Biology, Physics, Textbooks

484 pages, Paperback

Published April 1, 1996

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Steven Vogel is James B. Duke Professor, Emeritus, in the Department of Biology at Duke University.

As it has turned out, my activities as a teacher and writer have extended well beyond the explication of the immediate results of research. The first two of my seven books, A Functional Bestiary: Laboratory Studies about Living Systems and A Model Menagerie: Laboratory Studies about Living Systems, provide eclectic material for teaching laboratories in introductory biology. The third, Life in Moving Fluids, finds most use as an entry point into fluid mechanics; it is now in its second (much enlarged) edition. The fourth, Life's Devices, takes comparative biomechanics as a paradigm for thinking about science, using the very mundanity of the subject to draw in non-scientists rather than presenting them with some system of revelation. The book was generated through a course given to adults in a non-specialist master's program and is now in use in a variety of undergraduate courses; it was selected by a science-oriented book club and has won a substantial award. Material in that book reappears in expanded and more sophisticated form in my recent undergraduate textbook, Comparative Biomechanics. The fifth, Vital Circuits, is of a deliberately less pedagogical character; it's about circulatory systems, whose disabilities are of widespread interest. But it uses them as a vehicle to talk in biological rather than pathological terms and to illustrate how a such a subject is viewed by a biological scientist in contrast to a journalist or a physician. Cats' Paws and Catapults, also aimed at the general reader, compares the mechanical technologies of nature with that of humans. Prime Mover, another trade book, tries to link the biomechanics and physiology of muscle to the role it has played in human activities. Finally, I've written for more popular publications, such as Natural History and Discover, attempting to create pieces that explain science rather than merely reporting on the current activities of scientists, and I've become involved with several science museums, again in activities aimed at explaining science as part of contemporary culture. Two additional books, both aimed at a general scientific readership, are currently in gestation.

Reviews

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent introduction to the interface between living things and the fluids about them. Particularly entertaining for the scientifically and quantitatively literate. That constraint on audience is the only reason I cannot recommend a 5/5 stars. Doing that would set improper expectations.

Try Vogel's other books, like The Life of a Leaf or Cats' Paws and Catapults.

[Eric Nauman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book - from an engineering perspective. Probably the best physical description of viscosity, density, shear, etc. that I have found. But, more importantly from my perspective, is that it provides a set of remarkably interesting interconnected examples that would have escaped me completely otherwise.

[DaughterDaDa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting science facts.

[Frank · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining and educational. Recommended for fluid dynamicists and biologists as well as the non-specialist.

[Paul Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

a must read for anyone working in air or water and wants to understand flow. Vogel's writing is clear, concise, full of subtle humor, and the science is spot on.

[Yuta Tamberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant! All we, biologists, need to know about flow. Extremely helpful and very well written