"A refreshing and new approach to cognition-one which has dramatic cultural, social, and ethical ramifications. While stimulating the imagination of readers it has, however, not received the scholarly acclaim it richly deserves."- Journal of Religion and Psychical Research "A book with great breadth and ambition . In the age of specialization, it is refreshing to come across a book with conceptual breadth and originality."- Contemporary Psychology "An important milestone in our current efforts to recognize that science is not value-free, and that fact and value are inevitably tied together."-Morris Berman, author of Coming to Our Senses "A beautiful and clearly written guide to thought and perception-something that, like life itself, we take for granted but do not understand. The authors were the pioneers and are now the authoritative figures in the science of cognition: their book is rewarding, thorough, and very readable to anyone curious about the mind and the way that it works."-James Lovelock, author of Gaia: A New Look at Life on Earth "The ideas presented in this book are radical and exciting, disturbing and challenging.

For the first time we are shown the outlines of a unified scientific conception of mind, matter, and life. The fruits of Maturana and Varela's Tree of Knowledge include the central insight that cognition is not a representation of the world 'out there,' but rather a 'bringing forth of the world through the process of living itself,' and the stunningly beautiful conclusion: 'We have only the world that we can bring forth with others, and only love helps bring it forth."-Fritjof Capra, author The Tao of Physics.