The Flamingo's Smile: Reflections in Natural History

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Summary: Evolutionary Biology?
Review: Is there any other type of modern biology? Evolution is so deeply interwined in today's biology that it almost seems a tautology to classify this book under Evolutionary Biology. Gould's reflections are masterpieces of rationality and logic heavily supported with facts and exposed with an uneven grace and uniqueness. This, as a lot of other Gould's books, is a collection of essays that don't need to be read in order since they are not chapters, their organization obeys the main subject of each essay, not a unique plot developed along the book. This is an easy and incredibly interesting journey inside reason and natural science, please don't hesitate if you want to be taken by the hand of one of the greatest zoologists of the twentieth century.

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Summary: More "political correctness" than science
Review: The author, whose main area of research is land snails, has found a more secure living as an author. This is fine, until he starts straying out of his area. His first few books, in which he concentrated on evolutionary biology, weren't bad. However, he has now decided to write an ever increasing number of essays praising "political correctness" and putting down society as unfair. God knows, society isn't perfect, but it isn't as bad as Gould portrays it. His anti-Western rhetoric becomes tiresome. For example, he raises the possibility, unlikely at best, that the sun has an large undiscovered body revolving about it that, every 28 million years or so, causes a massive fall of comets wiping out much of the life on earth. His arguments to explain this periodicity are sketchy at best, but this is not his main point. His main point is that the scientists who proposed this planet want to name it Nemesis, which the author says is unfair, since Nemesis is a Greek goddess. To be fair, we must name it after a Hindu god. Another example he gives to prove that science is racist, is to give the story of a black cell biologist from the 1930's. The author claims that the only reason this author is not well known is because he was black. I've taken more than a few cell biology courses and can't offhand think of a famous white or asian cell biologist from the 1930's either. Besides many of the ideas these scientists developed were proven incorrect with the advent of the scanning electron microscope in the 40's and 50's. Also, the author ignores the fact that his hero was a vicious anti-Semite that praised the Nazis until, while doing research in Europe at the time of the German invasion of France, he discovered that he also was persona non grata. Gould needs to spend more time on facts and less time on being politically correct. Science is about what is, not about what a liberal academic thinks should be.

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Summary: Enlightening and fun
Review: THE FLAMINGO'S SMILE was a required purchase for an expository writing class I took, and instead of stopping with the handful of essays assigned to us, I went ahead and read the whole book. Gould is a graceful writer and each of his essays has a "point" to make that is grounded in scientific reasoning.

His style is to discuss some biological "problem" in detail, using it to illustrate a more general point or idea about natural history. Some of Gould's essays make a greater impression than others, to be sure, but all are entertaining and none are a waste of the reader's time.

In response to the charge that FLAMINGO'S SMILE contains more "political correctness" than science, I must raise an objection. (See the one-star review below.) Gould's essay on the career and achievements of an American cell biologist, E.E. Just, does not claim that Just would be "famous" if not for his skin color. It explicitly states that racial attitudes kept Just's peers and colleagues from taking his work seriously or according him the respect he deserved. Just is described as a black American who "exiled himself to Europe" because of racist attitudes in his native land. This was a real historical phenomenon, not something Gould cooked up to pontificate about racial equality. Gould also notes that "we must not depict [Just] as a cardboard hero" and mentions his bizarre (but explicable) fling with Italian fascism in the 1930s.

The claim that Gould is intellectually dishonest is not supported by these facts. This particular claim exemplifies one of Gould's favorite themes, which is the persistence of the mistaken belief that science is a body of truths and not a method of discovery. Even real scientists fall into this trap on occasion. Here, the objection suggests that Gould's work cannot be "science" because it is "politically correct." The logical flaw in this statement should be obvious. For further background, you could dip into Gould's book THE MISMEASURE OF MAN, which is an historical survey of pseudo-scientific efforts to prove what racists already believe, i.e. "know" to be true.

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Summary: About Evolution: Read the Gould books, then Richard Dawkins
Review: The Flamingo's Smile, The Panda's Thumb, and the Dawkins books (principally The Selfish Gene, which has a lot of useful information among the "meme"-pushings) are a wonderfully readable discussion of how evolution came to be the accepted theory of the origins and development of life. If you don't want your scientific world-view enhanced, avoid reading these books, and don't whine about them if you _do_ read them. If you are truly curious about why the vast majority of scientists who study evolution find it the most consistent and believable explanation for how we got here, these are the classics, and entertaining to boot: read! Enjoy!

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Summary: The Flamingo's Smile: Reflections in Natural History
Review: The Flamingo's Smile: Reflections in Natural History by Stephen Jay Gould is a collection of thirty essays with a varied scope, but the contents is encompassing. Bringing history with each essay is the hallmark of Gould and he will not disappoint you here.

This is Gould's fourth in a series of books that are collections of his essays that were found on the pages of "Natural History." These essays bring us life that is a product of a contingent past, not just a timeless law of nature. Gould brings meaning to his essays through an extensive history and a calculated musing to seemingly contradictory themes.

Dinosaurs and the astroid, Hottentot Venus and even baseball are in this book. Gould brings us lucid, cogent commentary and a writting style that will educate you gracefully. Gould has an ability to bring the scientific knowledge to the layperson with erudition and understanding.

Read and enjoy this book... complete with just a little quirkiness and a sense of humor.

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Summary: Utterly enjoyable
Review: This was my first introduction to Gould. I think any of his Reflections in Natural History are the best place to start because of the multiple essay format. I read with strange amusement another review about how p.c. Gould is. Ignore him. You will learn a lot about both scientific history as well as basic principals of evolution

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Summary: awestruck
Review: When I first cracked this book as a graduate student, I had little idea of what I was in for: sure, I expected a little on Darwin's theories and some history, but nothing else. What I found was an astonishingly rich panorama of issues connected to Darwin, the nature of science, and of course its misuses. From the trials of the Hottentott Venus to the mistakes of Audobon, Gould has fascinating and humorous perspecitives to bring. It was the ideal diversion - procrastination can be sooo delicious - from the dessicated economics and statistics that I had had to read and the start of a great love affair with this author, one of the finest writers alive.

Gould writes with the most astonishing lucidity and the most elegant style that I have ever read in a science writer. Indeed, those who disagree with him or look down on him - and there are many at Harvard - sarcastically cite his writing talent as the "reason" for his enduring success! Well, I would hope so. If they could write as well as Gould, then perhaps they could advance their opposing views, like, more effectively.

Highest recommendation.