Biosphere 2, built near Oracle, Arizona between 1987 and 1991, was a living experiment, the world's largest terrarium and part of the early drive to 'sustainable living'. (It remains a popular Arizona tourism destination and is well worth a visit.)
On Sept 26, 1991, eight Biospherian researchers were sealed into "the largest self-sustaining closed ecological system ever made". They would rely only on the contents of their "planet in a bottle" for food. Air, water and waste products would have to be recycled and reused.
Although Life Under Glass is interesting and readable, the book presupposes a knowledge of the project and its history. It was published in 1993, shortly after the crew emerged from their two-year mission, and someone reading it years later may wonder at some of the background.
What Life Under Glass is Not
There is a great deal that this book fails (or deliberately neglects) to tell. This book is not
- A story in the usual sense, giving events in chronological order
- The story of the eight Biospherians; there is little sense of who the people are either as individuals or as members of a team. The authors do mention that there was an agreement not to reveal romantic entanglements among the crew.
- An account of how Biosphere 2 came to be built, the reasons and personalities and drive behind such a mammoth achievement
- A history of the amazing engineering and construction of the project
- A detailed description of the layout or composition or content of Biosphere 2
Much of the background is touched on briefly in passing. There is no hint of the stresses, disagreements, and political in-fighting that later led Alling and another crewman to sabotage the second mission.
What Life Under Glass Is
The tone is scientific and impersonal. Although some life-threatening events are discussed, the dispassionate approach gives no sense of urgency or excitement. It is clearly a sanitized account that permits no hint of personality, disagreement, confusion, or human depth.
- The book reads like a series of papers, with disparate chapters unlinked to each other. There are chapters on each biome (desert, rainforest, etc) and on animals, recreation, communication, daily life, and so on.
- While the style is fairly uniform, so that there is no sense of "Oh, Gaie Alling wrote these and Mark Nelson wrote those and Sally Silverstone did that one", so also there is little connection between the chapters, and the same events may appear more than once.
- There are changes in tense; some parts with the same chapter are in past tense while others are written in present tense.
- Some parts were clearly written during the mission, while other sections were written shortly after the mission.
- While there is no sense of the progression of events, the topical organization makes it easy to research a given aspect of Mission One.
- There is an impression that the book was rushed into print, perhaps to capitalize on publicity surrounding the completion of the first mission.
The book was published by Space Biosphere Ventures, the same company that built and operated Biosphere 2, and this is obviously an "official" publication. The book is now available through Synergetic Press and Amazon.
Life Under Glass: Half the Story
Life Under Glass is a worthwhile read, within its limits.
- The seeker of information about the psychological impact on eight individuals of being confined to close quarters for two years will find absolutely nothing of value.
- A reader looking for a global understanding of the grand scope of the Biosphere 2 project will not find it in this book.
- Someone who has visited and toured the structure, or who has previously read something of the history of the project, will find the book more meaningful.
Alling, Abigail and Mark Nelson with Sally Silverstone, Life Under Glass: The Inside Story of Life in Biosphere 2. Oracle, AZ: The Biosphere Press, 1993. ISBN 1-882428-07-2 (paperback) and 1-882428-10-2 (hardcover)I
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