Cells and Cities: What Nature Teaches Us About Government

What should government do? How big should government be? How can governments improve?Humanity has labored to answer these questions. As it turns out, so has nature, during the evolution of the cells that make up our own bodies. We can get some deep insights into the governments we make by examining the workings of the very cells that we are made of.How can this be? How can cells teach us about government? The answer lies in close parallels between the organization and activities of cells and those of governments. The similarities include central control, extensive infrastructure, tight regulation, and more. Also, just as cities have citizens, cells have mitochondria, independent power sources that work in a mutually dependent relationship. We can study the solutions that cells have developed through billions of years of evolution to shed light on how we design and operate our own governments.This short, straightforward book, written for the general reader, examines the similarities and differences in some detail. Then it summarizes lessons we can use to examine and improve our own governments. It provides fresh new insights into the nature of government.