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Summary: Ideal intro to evolution
Review: Clearly written, beautifully illustrated, this book should be accessible to any intelligent lay person, and provides an ideal introduction to the history of evolution as a theory and as reality. It is an excellent companion to the PBS series. Although it will not convince any "true believer" creationist types (who rank right up there in the deluded ranks with people who think Osama was framed), it does explicitly address their concerns. It includes results from some cutting edge research, as well as covering the basics. A real pleasure to read.
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Summary: Plain speaking about evolution
Review: Evolution is no mystery, just the plain facts, and this straightforward presentation does much to dispel any confusion. A fine introduction, even for those without background in biology.
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Summary: A Wonderful Read
Review: Evolution is one of my favortie topics so I may be a little bias here, but I thought it was a well designed and easy to read and understand book about the evolution of life itself. I must read for anyone!
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Summary: Superb and thorough
Review: Evolution the Triumph of an Idea is a superbly written synthesis of the theory of evolution and its history. The author, Carl Zimmer, is a science journalist rather than a professional anthropologist, geologist or historian, which means that the book is eminently readable. It is also well researched with an extensive bibliography for each chapter. While it is clearly enough framed for the average reader without a background in the subject, it also presents enough new information to keep the serious student of the topic interested as well. Although the volume was intended to accompany a PBS series on evolution, it would make an excellent source text for a high school or college survey course on the subject, as it covers the theory, the data supporting it, the newer thoughts on human evolution, the issues of ecology and conservation, and the character of science. It even touches upon the issue of God and science. As an overview, Part 1 covers the autobiographical history of Darwin and the metamorphosis of his theory and the intellectual and emotional environment into which it was introduced. Part 2 introduces the actual theory and how the web of life has come to exist as it does. It also discusses the impact of human activity on the natural world and what the likely outcome will be if we persist in pursuing our present behavior with respect to the environment. Part 3 describes the coevolution of species and its impacts on relationships such as those in agriculture: natural plants, bioengineered plants, and insect and microbial pests. It also discusses the probable origin of some of the human diseases, the use and abuse of antibiotics, and the rise of antibiotic resistant superbugs and AIDES. Part 4 contains some of the most pertinent information in that it points out the risks of dropping the subject of evolution from the core curricula of the nation's high schools. In his defense of evolution, Zimmer points out that it is not simply a theory of biology that is at stake, but the scientific method itself. Some of my favorite quotes from Part 4 are: 1) "The scientific method does not claim that events can have only natural causes but that the only causes that we can understand scientifically are natural ones. As powerful as the scientific method may be, it must be mute about things beyond its scope. Supernatural forces are, by definition, above the laws of nature, and thus beyond the scope of science (p. 332)." And 2) "When microbiologists study an outbreak of resistant tuberculosis, they do not research the possibility that it is an act of God. When astrophysicists try to figure out the sequence of events by which a primordial cloud condensed into our solar system, they do not simply draw a big box between the hazy cloud and the well-formed planets and write inside it, 'Here a miracle happened.' When meteorologists fail to predict the path of a hurricane, they do not claim that God's will pushed it off course (p. 333)." And finally 3) "Science cannot simply cede the unknown in nature to the divine. If it did, there would be no science at all. As University of Chicago geneticist Jerry Coyne puts it, 'If the history of science shows us anything, it is that we get nowhere by labeling our ignorance 'God''(p. 333)." As we get closer and closer to bringing about a total collapse of the environment of which we are an integral part, it behooves us to come to a clearer understanding of how our biosphere came to exist, how the various parts of it interrelate, and how our tinkering with it can have disastrous consequences. The teaching and learning of evolutionary theory is an important part of that understanding. This book helps further that goal.
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Summary: A true triumph indeed!!
Review: Evolution: The Triumph of an Idea is a book that I recommend to anyone and everyone. It tells the story of evolution, how it came to be, and how it has changed and, indeed, evolved since its conception by Darwin. Using science to back up evolution, it clearly and concisely demonstrates that evolution is indeed the gold-standard of sorts when it comes to explaining how everything from the human eye to the chichilids of Lake Victoria have evolved and continue to do so.
If anyone has any doubts what so ever about the theory of evolution, this book is a must-read. Buy it, check it out at your library, just make sure that you read it. Doing so will enlighten you to the world of science, while amazing you at the ingenuity of our natural world. We are a product of evolution, just lake every other living thing on the planet. This is the #1 book I site whenever I talk about evolution with friends, family, and classmates. All one has to do is talk about Lake Victoria in Africa, explain the wonders that have occured there (and the horrible destruction of biological diversity which is occuring today) to amaze, astound and enlighten any and everyone on evolution.
What a triump it truely is! What a triumph!!
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Summary: Evolution: The Triumph of an Idea
Review: Evolution: The Triumph of an Idea written by Carl Zimmer is one of the best books that presents a rich and up-to-date view of evolution that explores the far-reaching implications of Darwin's theory and emphasizes the power, significance and relavance of evolution to our lives today. Reading this book leaves no doubt that Darwin was right... evolution is fact, whether the creationists want to believe it or not. "Evolution" tells in riveting detail the story of a remarkable scientific journey, from the emergence to the triumph of an idea. This book is an easy read filled with a rich narrative, award-winning science writting, illustrated with more than 150 color illustrations making this book a dazzling companion to the PBS series of the same name. "Evolution" is divided into four parts covering a wide scope, but bringing a clear focus to the reader as to the truth about evolution. Starting out in part one: Slow Victory: Darwin and the Rise of Darwinism. From Dawin's trip on the Beagle, to the writing of "The Origin of Species," to putting date to our History of Life, and a very clear "Witnessing Change: Genes, Natural Selection and Evolution in Action. Each of the sub-sections is well written and cogent, bring a foundation to the book bringing to reader upto speed. Part Two: Creation and Destruction, where we read about "Rooting the Tree of Life;" From Life's Dawn to the Age of Microbes; next "The Accidental Tool Kit:" Chance and Constraints in Animal Evolution; to "Extinction:" How Life Ends and Begins Again. Here the reader sees life's will to survive. It is at work on all species everywhere on the planet, and it has been at work ever since life first emerged. Part Three: "Evolution's Dance, featuring "Coevolution;" Weaving the Web of Life; "Doctor Darwin;" Disease in the Age of Evolutionary Medicine; to "Passion's Logic:" The evolution of Sex. This section brngs to light reasoning to save endangered species from extinction because we can find among them lessons about how evolution works. As man evolves, so does his enviornment, making all life part of the whole picture of survival. Part Four: "Humanity's Place in Evolution and Evolution's Place in Humanity" where "The Gossiping Ape:" The Social Roots of Human Evolution; next, "Modern Life, 50,000B.C.: The Dawn of Us; to "What about God?" This whole section should ruffle the skirts of the creationists, as I found this section to be the most interesting. This section places man in the mix of evolution, just as everything else in nature, is a obvious survivor of evolution to this point in time. Ever since the publication of "Origin of Species," people have been pondering the significance of evolution for the meaning of their lives, and of life in general. Are we just a biological accident or a cosmic imperative? Well, if this question is left to the facts alone, then man is part and parcel of Earth's evolutionary process. But, there are those who contemplate, where is God's place if everything does have a natural cause? Might I suggest that, maybe "God" is an evolution in our mind's thought as a succor to portray evolving to loftier heights.
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Summary: A good overview
Review: For anyone wanting a not too long,not too swamped in technical language review of evolutionary basics,then you might do well to start right here.Zimmer is not dogmatic nor does he claim to have all the answers to evolutions unknowns,and he doesn't waste his time or breath on a load of idle speculation.He simply presents what is known and leaves you to think for yourself.By the way,I'm tired of people discussing evolutionary theory as though they have the prerequisite education to understand the myriad of complexities inherent in such an enormous field of interrelated knowledge which people who've worked and studied their entire lives can barely grasp,let alone lay people who probably could't pass a Biology 101 college course.Let the scientists sort it out!
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Summary: Interesting fairy tale, file under fiction....
Review: How could such nonsense of a THEORY be presented as fact? In todays society we choose to believe the lie. The lie of evolution. I use to be an advocate of this, until I decided to non-boiasedly reserch both evolution and creationism and intelligent design, and science, the very thing evolution depends on for evidence, has debunked rather than validate a theory that has been used to justify hitler's actions in the holocaust. Sorry not enough evidence to support such a theory. If anyone can show any evidence for evolution, go for it, you won't find any.
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Summary: Everyone should read this book!
Review: I absolutely loved this book! As someone working in molecular biology I often get these types of books from friends on birthdays and special occasions. Not all of them are good, and many of the ones that seem fine at first, in terms of content, are boring to read. With Evolution, I was entranced from the first page. Even though many of the facts of this book were known to me before, I have never seen them put together in such a logical, and pedagogical, fashion. The book also strikes the perfect balance between explaining difficult concepts in a way that people can understand, and treating the reader as an intelligent person. I think everyone should read this book. People may think that they know what evolution is all about, but very few actually fully understand the theory and its implications. Highly recommended!
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Summary: The scope of a textbook, but written for the layman
Review: I am a biology major specializing in evolutionary developmental biology, and when I am asked for a single book for the layman to get an idea about evolutionary biology, I recommend this one. In my opinion, it is the single best general overview of evolutionary biology for the layman yet written, covering such key concepts as natural selection, sexual selection, coevolution, and evolutionary developmental biology (or evo devo, for short). Along the way, Zimmer covers the evidence for evolution, from genetics, fossils, anatomy, and observed instances of evolution with elegantly spare and careful prose which walks the layman through the many threads of evidence that truly make for the triumph of an idea.
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