Published on the anniversary of Darwin's 200th birthday, these prime excerpts from the great naturalist's landmark work build on the evolutionary concepts introduced in On the Origin of Species. The earlier work provided a basic exposition of Darwinian theory. The Descent of Man, publis... read more
On the Origin of Species: By Means of Natural Selection by Charles Darwin Reasoned and well-documented in its arguments, this work offers coherent views of natural selection, adaptation, the struggle for existence, survival of the fittest, and other concepts that form the foundation of evolutionary theory.
Mendel's Principles of Heredity by William Bateson, Gregor Mendel Mendel's 1865 paper, Experiments in Plant Hybridization, remained neglected till Bateson revived interest in Mendel's studies with this 1902 work, which helped lay the groundwork for the field of genetics. 8-page color insert.
Ornamental Forms from Nature by Christian Stoll, Alan Weller Reproduced from a classic of natural history, 154 creatively stylized floral and animal images were designed with distinctive drama. The bonus CD-ROM includes individual files of all of the images in the book.
Essay on Classification by Louis Agassiz A treasure of historically valuable insights that contributed to the development of evolutionary biology, this 1851 classic of American scientific literature gave major impetus to the study of science directly from nature.
An Introduction to Mathematical Taxonomy by G. Dunn, B. S. Everitt For students of mathematical biology, an introduction to taxonomic characters, measurement of similarity, analysis of principal components, multidimensional scaling, cluster analysis, identification and assignment techniques, and the construction of evolutionary trees.
Man's Place in Nature by Thomas H. Huxley A concise, nontechnical survey of primate and human paleontology and ethology, this 1863 work applies the principles of evolution directly to the human race. Immensely readable, it reflects numerous stylistic gifts.
The Triumph of the Darwinian Method by Michael T. Ghiselin A coherent treatment of the flow of ideas throughout Darwin's works, this volume presents a unified theoretical system that explains Darwin's investigations, evaluating the literature from a historical, scientific, and philosophical perspective.
Biophysical Ecology by David M. Gates This illustrated classic discusses radiation, convection, conduction, and evaporation, surveying methods for the study of photosynthesis in plants and energy budgets in animals. "Coherent and comprehensible." — The American Biology Teacher.
The Ideas of Biology by John Tyler Bonner Using evolution as the central theme, these concise essays explore the foundations of modern biology, focusing on heredity, embryonic development, and ultimately, relations between organisms and their environment. 24 black-and-white figures.
On Growth and Form: The Complete Revised Edition by D’Arcy Wentworth Thompson Classic of modern biology sets forth seminal "theory of transformation" — that evolution takes place in large-scale transformations of body as a whole. Over 500 photographs and drawings.
Galapagos: World's End by William Beebe More than 100 splendid illustrations enhance this fascinating firsthand account of a 1923 expedition to survey the wildlife of the Galápagos Islands. "High romance, exact science, fascinating history, wild adventure." — Nation.
Art Forms in Nature by Ernst Haeckel Multitude of strangely beautiful natural forms: Radiolaria, Foraminifera, Ciliata, diatoms, calcareous sponges, Tubulariidae, Siphonophora, Semaeostomeae, star corals, starfishes, much more. All images in black and white.
The Path to the Double Helix: The Discovery of DNA by Robert Olby Written by a noted historian of science, this in-depth account traces how Watson and Crick achieved one of science's most dramatic feats: their 1953 discovery of the molecular structure of DNA. 1974 edition.
Product Description:
Published on the anniversary of Darwin's 200th birthday, these prime excerpts from the great naturalist's landmark work build on the evolutionary concepts introduced in On the Origin of Species. The earlier work provided a basic exposition of Darwinian theory. The Descent of Man, published a dozen years later, asserts that humans are the descendants of apes, which were descended from even more primitive creatures. This fascinating treatise on evolutionary psychology explores the two defining forces of human and animal evolution—natural selection and sexual selection. Numerous examples from Darwin's years of study illustrate its compelling conclusion: However much we differ from other animals, we are descended from common ancestors and have evolved in similar ways. Based upon the original edition, this abridgement by a noted Darwinian scholar offers a highly readable version of one of the most important books in the history of science.
Dover original selection from The Descent of Man, John Murray Publishers, London, 1871.
Each generation of students comes to Darwin's epoch-making works, several of which are the basis of our publishing program in biology and related fields: The Essential Darwin, 2006; The Descent of Man, 2010; The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals, 2006;and On the Origin of the Species, 2006. In the Author's Own Words: "A mathematician is a blind man in a dark room looking for a black cat which isn't there."
"I feel most deeply that this whole question of Creation is too profound for human intellect. A dog might as well speculate on the mind of Newton! Let each man hope and believe what he can."
"Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge: it is those who know little, not those who know much, who so positively assert that this or that problem will never be solved by science."
"There is grandeur in this view of life, with its several powers, having been originally breathed into a few forms or into one; and that, whilst this planet has gone cycling on according to the fixed law of gravity, from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being, evolved."
"Man with all his noble qualities, with sympathy which feels for the most debased, with benevolence which extends not only to other men but to the humblest living creature, with his god-like intellect which has penetrated into the movements and constitution of the solar system — with all these exalted powers — Man still bears in his bodily frame the indelible stamp of his lowly origin." — Charles Darwin
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