 Dreamscape presents Life on the Edge, The Coming of Age of Quantum Biology by John Jo McFadden and Jim Al-Khalili. Narrated by Pete Cross. 1. Introduction The winter frost has arrived early this year in Europe, and there is a penetrating chill in the evening air. Buried deep within a young robin's mind, a once vague sense of purpose and resolve grows stronger. The bird has spent the past few weeks devouring far more than her normal intake of insects, spiders, worms and berries, and is now almost double the weight she was when her brood flew the nest back in August. This extra bulk is mostly fat reserves, which she will require as fuel for the arduous journey upon which she is about to embark. This will be her first migration away from the spruce forest in central Sweden, where she has lived for the duration of her short life and where she reared her young chicks just a few months ago. Luckily for her, the previous winter was not too harsh. For a year ago she was not yet fully grown and therefore not strong enough to undertake such a long journey. But now, with her parental responsibilities discharged until next spring, she has only herself to think about, and she is ready to escape the coming winter by heading south to seek a warmer climate. It is a couple of hours after sunset. Rather than settle for the night, she hops in the gathering gloom to the tip of a branch near the base of the huge tree that she has made her home since the spring. She gives herself a quick shake, much like a marathon runner loosening up her muscles before a race. Her orange breast glistens in the moonlight. The painstaking effort and care she invested in building her nest, just a few feet away, partially hidden against the moss-covered bark of the tree trunk, is now a dim memory. She is not the only bird preparing to depart. For other robins, both male and female, have also decided that this is the right night to begin their long migration south. In the trees all around her she hears loud shrill singing that drowns out the usual sounds of other nocturnal woodland creatures. It is as though the birds feel compelled to announce their departure, sending out a message to the other forest inhabitants that they should think twice before contemplating invading the bird's territory and empty nests while they are gone. For these robins most certainly plan to be back in the spring. With a quick tilt of her head this way and that to make sure the coast is clear, she takes off into the evening sky. The nights have been lengthening with winter's advance and she will have a good ten hours or so of flying ahead of her before she can rest again.