Marcelo Gleiser, an award-winning physicist, author, and often called the “Carl Sagan of Brazil,” uses physics to make us think about who we are and what it means to be human. Now in paperback. <P>Following in the noble footsteps of Galileo, Newton, and Einstein, Marcelo Gleiser grew up believing that nature could be summed up in one elegant equation—that we simply hadn't found. But after years of working in physics, he began to see the natural world afresh and realized that it is primarily characterized by imperfections—in short, nature is beautiful and it is lopsided, and no grand intellectual edifice underlies it. He realized that human beings have a special role to play in this imperfect cosmos—not because we are created by God, but because we are rare and precious, guardians of life on earth—possibly the most advanced life in the universe. <P> In a resounding riposte to Brian Greene's <em>The Elegant Universe</em>, <em>A Tear at the Edge of Creation</em> sets out to change the way we see ourselves in relation to our universe. Gleiser celebrates the uniqueness of our particular planet and enjoins us to recognize that as the universe's only chance for consciousness, we must be earth's stewards.