Contemporary interest in Darwin rises from a general ideal of what Darwin's books ought to contain: a theory of transformation of species by natural selection. However, a reader opening Darwin's masterpiece, On the Origin of Species, today may be struck by the fact that this "selectionist" view does not deliver the key to many aspects of the book. Without contesting the importance of natural selection to Darwinism, much less supposing that a fully-formed "Darwinism" stepped out of Darwin's head in 1859, this innovative volume aims to return to the text of the Origin itself. Revisiting the 'Origin of Species' focuses on Darwin as theorising on the origin of variations; showing that Darwin himself was never a pan-selectionist (in contrast to some of his followers) but was concerned with "other means of modification" (which makes him an evolutionary pluralist). Furthermore, in contrast to common textbook presentations of "Darwinism", Hoquet stresses the fact that On the Origin of Species can lend itself to several contradictory interpretations. Thus, this volume identifies where rival interpretations have taken root; to unearth the ambiguities readers of Darwin have latched onto as they have produced a myriad of Darwinian legacies, each more or less faithful enough to the originator's thought. Emphasising the historical features, complexities and intricacies of Darwin's argument, Revisiting the 'Origin of Species' can be used by any lay readers opening Darwin's On the Origin of Species. This volume will also appeal to students and researchers interested in areas such as Evolution, Natural Selection, Scientific Translations and Origins of Life.

Although evolutionary developmental biology is a new field, its origins lie in the last century; the search for connections between embryonic development (ontogeny) and evolutionary change (phylogeny) has been a long one. Evolutionary developmental biology is however more than just a fusion of the fields of developmental and evolutionary biology. It forges a unification of genomic, developmental, organismal, population and natural selection approaches to evolutionary change. It is concerned with how developmental processes evolve; how evolution produces novel structures, functions and behaviours; and how development, evolution and ecology are integrated to bring about and stabilize evolutionary change. The previous edition of this title, published in 1992, defined the terms and laid out the field for evolutionary developmental biology. This field is now one of the most active and fast growing within biology and this is reflected in this second edition, which is more than twice the length of the original and brought completely up to date. There are new chapters on major transitions in animal evolution, expanded coverage of comparative embryonic development and the inclusion of recent advances in genetics and molecular biology. The book is divided into eight parts which: place evolutionary developmental biology in the historical context of the search for relationships between development and evolution; detail the historical background leading to evolutionary embryology; explore embryos in development and embryos in evolution; discuss the relationship between embryos, evolution, environment and ecology; discuss the dilemma for homology of the fact that development evolves; deal with theimportance of understanding how embryos measure time and place both through development and evolutionarily through heterochrony and heterotrophy; and set out the principles and processes that underlie evolutionary developmental biology. With over one hundred illustrations and photographs, extensive cross-referencing between chapters and boxes for ancillary material, this latest edition will be of immense interest to graduate and advanced undergraduate students in cell, developmental and molecular biology, and in zoology, evolution, ecology and entomology; in fact anyone with an interest in this new and increasingly important and interdisciplinary field which unifies biology.

A deep-dive into the evolutionary biology, biogeography, and conservation of the most elusive subterranean creatures in the world. Far from the austere, sparsely populated ecosystems often conjured in the imagination, caves host some of the most mysterious and biodiverse natural systems in the world. Subterranean environments, however, are the least explored terrestrial habitats, contributing to misconceptions about their inhabitants. Edited by cave scientist and conservation ecologist Dr. J. Judson Wynne, Cave Biodiversity explores both the evolution and the conservation of subterrestrial-dwelling fauna. Covering both vertebrates and invertebrates, including mollusks, fishes, amphibians, arthropods, and other troglobionts, this volume brings together ichthyologists, entomologists, ecologists, herpetologists, and conservationists to provide a nuanced picture of life beneath the earth's surface. Broad chapters covering biotic and abiotic factors that influence evolution and support biodiversity precede chapters dedicated to specific taxa, highlighting phylogenetics and morphology, and delving into zoogeography, habitat, ecology, and dispersal mechanisms for each. Considerations for conservation of these fascinating, often bizarre, and often highly sensitive subterranean creatures are emphasized throughout. Cave Biodiversity aims to synthesize the principles of subterranean evolutionary biology and diversity through in-depth case studies of some of the most captivating and imperiled taxonomic groups in the world. Employing a multidisciplinary approach involving systematics, genetics, ecology, biogeography, evolutionary biology, and conservation science, Cave Biodiversity will be of keen interest to evolutionary biologists, ecologists, conservation biologists, and cave scientists, as well as advanced undergraduate and graduate students. Contributors: Maria E. Bichuette, Evin T. Carter, Prosanta Chakrabarty, Kenneth James Chapin, Dante B. Fenolio, Andrew G. Gluesenkamp, Jozef Grego, Francis G. Howarth, Leonardo Latella, Matthew L. Niemiller, Karen A. Ober, T. Keith Philips, John G. Phillips, Stuart Pimm, Daphne Soares, J. Judson Wynne, and Yahui Zhao.

This is a compelling exploration of how our understanding of evolution is key to the future of our planet. When Charles Darwin started writing his work On "Origin of Species", he could hardly have envisioned how much we would discover about the origin of life over the next 150 years. Today's evidence points to an inescapable and simple conclusion - we evolved and we are still evolving. This persuasive and elegant book, argues that understanding evolution has never mattered more in human history. It explains in detail how health, food production, and human impact on the environment are dependent on our knowledge of evolution.

The earth is continuously changing and evolving yet it is unclear how environmental changes will affect us in years to come. What changes are inevitable? What changes, if any, are beneficial? And what can we do as citizens of this planet to protect it and our future generations?

Larry Slobodkin, one of the leading pioneers of modern ecology, offers compelling answers to these questions in A Citizen's Guide to Ecology. He provides many insights into ecology and the processes that keep the world functioning. This important guide introduces observations that underlie arguments about all aspects of the natural environment--including both global and local issues. To clarify difficult concepts, Slobodkin uses lake, ocean, and terrestrial ecosystems to explain ecological energy flows and relationships on a global scale.

The book presents a clear and current understanding of the ecological world, and how individual citizens can participate in practical decisions on ecological issues. It tackles such issues as global warming, ecology and health, organic farming, species extinction and adaptation, and endangered species.

An excellent introduction and overview, A Citizen's Guide to Ecology helps us to understand what steps we as humans can take to keep our planet habitable for generations to come.

"This beautifully written book brings together careful observation, personal reflection, and theoretical understanding to explain the major environmental problems that confront us. Dr. Slobodkin's superb and sweeping work invites us to contemplate a great many facts and a few large values to motivate a clear and compelling response to losses of biodiversity, the problem of invasive species, global warming, and other environmental concerns."--Mark Sagoff, School of Public Affairs, University of Maryland

Biology is often viewed today as a bipartisan field, with molecular level genetics guiding us into the future and natural history (including ecology, evolution, and conservation biology, ) chaining us to a descriptive scientific past. In Darwinian Detectives, Norman Johnson bridges this divide, revealing how the tried and true tools of natural history make sense of the newest genomic discoveries. Molecular scientists exploring newly sequenced genomes have stumbled upon quite a few surprises, including that only one to ten percent of the genetic material of animals actually codes for genes. What does the remaining 90-99% of the genome do? Why do some organisms have a much lower genome size than their close relatives? What were the genetic changes that were associated with us becoming human? As molecular biologists uncover these and other new mysteries, evolutionary geneticists are searching for answers to such questions. Norman Johnson captures the excitement of the hunt for our own genetic history. Through lively anecdotes, he explores how researchers detect natural selection acting on genes and what this genetic information tells us about human origins.

This volume addresses key questions about the puzzle of human origins by focusing on a topic that is largely unexplored thus far, namely, the evolution of human wisdom. How can we best understand the human capacity for wisdom, where did it come from, and how did it emerge? It explores lines of convergence and divergence between Christian theology and evolutionary anthropology in its search to identify different aspects of wisdom. Critical to this discussion are the philosophical difficulties that arise when two very different methodological approaches to the manner of humans becoming wise are brought together. The relative importance and significance of human language is another area of intense debate in defining the meaning of wisdom and its expression. How far and to what extent does a theologically informed wisdom discourse push evolutionary anthropology to formulate new questions and vice versa? This volume shows that there is no simple consonance between evolutionary anthropology and theology. Yet, each discipline has much to learn from the other; the authors are in agreement that even in the midst of an awareness of dissonance and some tension, there can still be mutual respect. The goal of this book is to begin to develop a trans-disciplinary approach to the evolution of human wisdom, where each discipline is challenged to ask questions in a new way. This volume tackles the relationship between theology and science in a fresh way by focusing on a specific theme-wisdom-that is equally generative for both theology and evolutionary anthropology.

There is hardly any university, college, or even high school left where they do not teach Darwinism-and rightly so. Yet, most of these places do more preaching than teaching. They teach more than they should, and at the same time, they teach less than they should. Most books on Darwinism are either oriented on biology or philosophy, but this book tries to combine both approaches, so it explains the biological aspects for (future) philosophers as well as the philosophical aspects for (future) biologists. It leaves Darwinism intact, but removes the "sting" that many of its opponents dislike. In what Verschuuren calls "The Good" parts of Darwin's legacy, the author explores what Darwin's great contributions are to the study and theory of evolution. At the same time, the book will also delve into the areas where Darwin's thoughts were not so perfect or even wrong, especially in a philosophical sense - "The Not So Good" parts of his legacy. Almost all books on the philosophy of biology, and neo-Darwinism in particular, were born in the cradle of logical positivism or linguistic analysis. This book, on the other hand, tries to cross the border between the physical and the meta-physical.

Can Christian sin-talk be retrieved within the public sphere? In this contribution to ecotheology, Ernst M. Conradie argues that, amid ecological destruction, discourse on sin can contribute to a multidisciplinary depth diagnosis of what has gone wrong in the world. He confronts some major obstacles related to the plausibility of sin-talk in conversation with evolutionary biology, the cognitive sciences, and animal ethology. He defends an Augustinian insistence that social evil, rather than natural evil, is our primary predicament. If the root cause of social evil is sin, then a Christian confession of sin may yet yield good news for the whole earth.

This book shows how Darwinian biology supports an Aristotelian view of ethics as rooted in human nature. Defending a conception of "Darwinian natural right" based on the claim that the good is the desirable, the author argues that there are at least twenty natural desires that are universal to all human societies because they are based in human biology. The satisfaction of these natural desires constitutes a universal standard for judging social practice as either fulfilling or frustrating human nature, although prudence is required in judging what is best for particular circumstances.

The author studies the familial bonding of parents and children and the conjugal bonding of men and women as illustrating social behavior that conforms to Darwinian natural right. He also studies slavery and psychopathy as illustrating social behavior that contradicts Darwinian natural right. He argues as well that the natural moral sense does not require religious belief, although such belief can sometimes reinforce the dictates of nature.

Animals and Human Society provides a solid, scientific, research-based background to advance understanding of how animals impact humans. Animals have had profound effects on people from the earliest times, ranging from zoonotic diseases, to the global impact of livestock, poultry and fish production, to the influences of human-associated animals on the environment (on extinctions, air and water pollution, greenhouse gases, etc.), to the importance of animals in human evolution and hunter -gatherer communities. As a resource for both science and non-science, Animals and Human Society can be used as a text for courses in Animals and Human Society or Animal Science, or as supplemental material for Introduction to Animal Science. It offers foundational background to those who may have little background in animal agriculture and have focused interest on companion animals and horses. The work introduces livestock production (including poultry and aquaculture) but also includes coverage of companion and lab animals. In addition, animal behavior and animal perception are covered. Animals and Human Society is likewise an excellent resource for researchers, academics, or students newly entering a related field or coming from another discipline and needing foundational information, as well as interested laypersons looking to augment their knowledge on the many impacts of animals in human society.

Nature's creations are more sophisticated and elegant than anything humans have created. Geckos can run upside down along ceilings. Termite mounds can stay cool in the desert without air conditioning. Adapt explores how we can harness such ideas through the ground-breaking new science of biomimicry - which looks to nature to solve pressing problems in engineering and science. From the depths of the oceans to the ice sheets of the Arctic, Amina Khan talks to the researchers at the forefront of this exciting new science, who are designing everything from wind turbines to military camouflage. An entertaining eulogy to the power of evolution, this captivating book is a must read for anyone with an interest in design, nature and technology.

A richly illustrated nature tour of Galapagos-now expanded, thoroughly updated, and with more than 650 color photographs Galapagos is a comprehensive, up-to-date, and profusely illustrated natural history of this spectacular archipelago. Offering much more information than identification guides, the book provides detailed accounts and more than 650 color photographs of the islands' habitats, marine life, reptiles, birds, mammals, and plants, making the book a virtual nature tour of Galapagos. Galapagos experts John Kricher and Kevin Loughlin have thoroughly revised the original text, bringing all the taxonomy up to date and adding a wealth of new information. Individual chapters cover geology, ecology, human history, Darwin's finches and how Darwin came to his theory of natural selection from his visit to the islands, Galapagos tortoises, marine and land iguanas, mammals, seabirds, landbirds, marine life, and conservation challenges and initiatives. The concluding chapter covers each of the individual islands, including landing sites, unique plant and animal species, and points of interest, and serves as a wonderful guide for visitors as they move from island to island or plan a trip to Galapagos. With its combination of rich text and splendid photos, Galapagos is essential reading for the ecotraveler and nature enthusiast alike. Now with more than 650 color photographs, showing habitats, geology, marine life, and all the commonly encountered reptiles, birds, mammals, and plants Features a detailed island-by-island guide, including landing sites and what visitors can expect Essential reading for the ecotraveler and nature enthusiast

We cannot catechise our stony ichthyolites, as did the necromantic lady of the Arabian Nights did the coloured fishes of the lake which had once been a city, when she touched their dead bodies with her wand, and they straightaway raised their heads and rephed to her queries. We would have many a question to ask them if we could - questions never to be solved. Hugh Miller, The Old Red Sandstone When I started this book in 1991, the subject of vertebrate origins was fusty and unfashionable. Early drafts for this preface read like an extend ed complaint at the lot of traditional morphologists, cast aside by the march of modern molecular biology. But no longer - this book should reach you at a time of renewed inter est in the origin of the vertebrates, our own particular corner of creation. For although the topic has excited interest for well over a century, molec ular biology has only lately achieved the maturity necessary to test its predictions. As a legitimate field of study, it is fashionable again."

Evolution since Coding: Cradles, Halos, Barrels, and Wings describes genesis of metabolism, transcription, translation, cell structure, eukaryotic complexity, LUCA (the last universal common (cellular) ancestor), the great divergence of archaea and bacteria, LECA (the last eukaryotic common ancestor), extinction, and cancer in very simple ways. The work (almost) "synthesizes life from scratch" (since coding) and describes the tools for readers to check the author's work. As a result, readers understand living systems and their evolution in a conceptual way and are empowered to utilize powerful but accessible tools in computer-based biology. The work serves as foundational reading for a variety of researchers, academics, and students in life sciences, for example in evolution/evolutionary biology, biochemistry, genetics/molecular genetics, molecular biology, cell biology, and microbiology, as well as disciplines beyond biological science. Its approachable style makes the book accessible for introductory students and educated laypersons. Evolution since Coding is suitable to supplement college courses that mix computers, evolution, and biology from freshman to senior level.

This invaluable book is the first of its kind on 'selforganizology', the science of self-organization. It covers a wide range of topics, such as the theory, principle and methodology of selforganizology, agent-based modelling, intelligence basis, ant colony optimization, fish/particle swarm optimization, cellular automata, spatial diffusion models, evolutionary algorithms, self-adaptation and control systems, self-organizing neural networks, catastrophe theory and methods, and self-organization of biological communities, etc.Readers will have an in-depth and comprehensive understanding of selforganizology, with detailed background information provided for those who wish to delve deeper into the subject and explore research literature.This book is a valuable reference for research scientists, university teachers, graduate students and high-level undergraduates in the areas of computational science, artificial intelligence, applied mathematics, engineering science, social science and life sciences.

The captivating and beautifully illustrated true story of snakes in America. 125 million years ago on the floodplains of North America, a burrowing lizard started down the long evolutionary path of shedding its limbs. The 60-plus species of snakes found in Sean P. Graham's American Snakes have this ancestral journey to thank for their ubiquity, diversity, and beauty. Although many people fear them, snakes are as much a part of America's rich natural heritage as redwoods, bald eagles, and grizzly bears. Found from the vast Okefenokee Swamp to high alpine meadows, from hardwood canopies to the burning bottom of the Grand Canyon, these ultimate vertebrates are ecologically pivotal predators and quintessential survivors. In this revelatory and engaging meditation on American snakes, Graham, a respected herpetologist and gifted writer, * explains the everyday lives of American snakes, from their daily routines and seasonal cycles to their love lives, hunting tactics, and defensive repertoires * debunks harmful myths about snakes and explores their relationship with humans * highlights the contribution of snakes to the American wilderness * tells tales of "snake people"-important snake biologists with inspiring careers Neither a typical field guide nor an exhaustive reference, American Snakes is instead a fascinating study of the suborder Serpentes. Brimming with intriguing and unusual stories-of hognose snakes that roll over and play dead, blindsnakes with tiny vestigial lungs, rainbow-hued dipsadines, and wave-surfing sea-snakes-the text is interspersed with scores of gorgeous full-color images of snakes, from the scary to the sublime. This proud celebration of a diverse American wildlife group will make every reader, no matter how skeptical, into a genuine snake lover.

With more than 15,000 species, nearly a quarter of the total number of vertebrate species on Earth, freshwater fishes are extremely varied. They include the largest fish species, the beluga at over 7 meters long, and the smallest, the Paedocypris at just 8 millimeters, as well as the carnivorous, such as the piranha, and the calm, such as the Chinese algae eater. Certain species evolve rapidly, cichlids for example, while others transform very slowly, like lungfish. The fossils of these animals are very diverse in nature, sometimes just small scattered bones where sites correspond to ancient river beds or magnificent fossils of entire fish where there was once a lake. This book covers the history of these fishes over the last 250 million years by exploring the links between their biological evolution and the paleogeographic and environmental transformations of our planet, whether these be gradual or sudden.

Arthropod Vector: Controller of Disease Transmission, Volume 1: Vector Microbiome and Innate Immunity of Arthropods is built on topics initially raised at a related Keystone Symposium on Arthropod Vectors. Together with the separate, related Volume 2: Vector Saliva-Host Pathogen Interactions, this work presents a logical sequence of topic development that leads to regulatory considerations for advancing these and related concepts for developing novel control measures. The three themes of symbionts, vector immune defenses and arthropod saliva modulation of the host environment are central to the concept of determinants of vector competence that involves all aspects of vector-borne pathogen development within the arthropod that culminates in the successful transmission to the vertebrate host. These three areas are characterized at the present time by rapid achievement of significant, incremental insights, which advances our understanding for a wide variety of arthropod vector species, and this work is the first to extensively integrate these themes.

Mixed-Species Groups of Animals: Behavior, Community Structure, and Conservation presents a comprehensive discussion on the mixed-species groups of animals, a spectacular and accessible example of the complexity of species interactions. They are found in a wide range of animals, including invertebrates, fish, mammals and birds, and in different habitats, both terrestrial and aquatic, throughout the world. While there are more than 500 articles on this subject scattered in separate categories of journals, there has yet to be a general, cross-taxa book-length introduction to this subject that summarizes the behavior and community structure of these groups. The authors first survey the diversity of spatial associations among animals and then concentrate on moving groups. They review the major classes of theories that have been developed to explain their presence, particularly in how groups increase foraging efficiency and decrease predation. Finally, they explore the intricacies of species interactions, such as communication, that explain species roles in groups and discuss what implications these social systems have for conservation.

Arthropod Vector: Controller of Disease Transmission, Volume 2: Vector Saliva-Host Pathogen Interactions is built on topics initially raised at a related Keystone Symposium on Arthropod Vectors. Together with the separate, related Volume 1: Controller of Disease Transmission, this work presents a logical sequence of topic development that leads to regulatory considerations for advancing these and related concepts for developing novel control measures. The three themes of symbionts, vector immune defenses and arthropod saliva modulation of the host environment are central to the concept of determinants of vector competence that involves all aspects of vector-borne pathogen development within the arthropod that culminates in the successful transmission to the vertebrate host. These three areas are characterized at the present time by rapid achievement of significant, incremental insights, which advances our understanding for a wide variety of arthropod vector species, and this work is the first to extensively integrate these themes.

Charles Darwin's theory of natural selection challenges our very sense of belonging in the world. Unlike prior evolutionary theories, Darwinism construes species as mutable historical products of a blind process that serves no inherent purpose. It also represents a distinctly modern kind of fallible science that relies on statistical evidence and is not verifiable by simple laboratory experiments. What are human purpose and knowledge if humanity has no pre-given essence and science itself is our finite and fallible product? According to the Received Image of Darwinism, Darwin's theory signals the triumph of mechanism and reductionism in all science. On this view, the individual virtually disappears at the intersection of (internal) genes and (external) environment. In contrast, William James creatively employs Darwinian concepts to support his core conviction that both knowledge and reality are in the making, with individuals as active participants. In promoting this Pragmatic Image of Darwinism, McGranahan provides a novel reading of James as a philosopher of self-transformation. Like his contemporary Nietzsche, James is concerned first and foremost with the structure and dynamics of the finite purposive individual. This timely volume is suitable for advanced undergraduate, postgraduate and postdoctoral researchers interested in the fields of history of philosophy, history and philosophy of science, history of psychology, American pragmatism and Darwinism.

"Bridgeman?s Psychology and Evolution is a superb textbook in evolutionary psychology?I see it as a landmark in the emergence of evolutionary psychology as no longer a controversial minority current but as a central aspect of the mainstream. The book reflects the state of the art in current work in evolutionary psychology?the reader is brought up-to-date about evolutionary theory, modern genetics, human prehistory, and relevant issues in modern linguistics."

--M. Brewster Smith, Emeritus, University of California, Santa Cruz and Past President, American Psychological Association

-- Andrew Neher, Emeritus, Cabrillo College

In recent years, evolutionary theory has been offering a framework that more and more psychologists are finding increasingly relevant to address one critical question: Why? Why do we behave, develop, and interact the way we do?

Psychology and Evolution: The Origins of Mind introduces students to the emerging field of evolutionary psychology. Bruce Bridgeman applies concepts of evolutionary theory to basic psychological functions to derive new insights into the roots of human behavior and how that behavior may be viewed as adaptation to life?s significant challenges. Examining courtship, reproduction, child rearing, family relations, social interaction, and language development, Bridgeman uses evolutionary theory to help in the search to elucidate the foundations of human perceptions, experiences, and behaviors.

Encouraging thought and discussion, this engaging volume includes:

• Opposing approaches and controversial topics
• Greater breadth of coverage on the field of evolutionary psychology
• Innovative applications of evolutionary theory to areas that have not previously been analyzed in this context
• End-of-chapter discussion questions with annotated suggestions for further reading
• Key terms and concepts highlighted within the text and defined both in context and in a glossary

Psychology and Evolution presents an innovative application of biological ideas and data to establish a comprehensive theory of evolutionary psychology?a theory with the potential to unite all of psychology under a single framework and to explain the basis of human behavior and experience.

Primarily designed as a course textbook for advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate students in the social and behavioral sciences, Psychology and Evolution will also appeal to scholars in the field and educated readers interested in the development of human behavior.

An Instructor?s Manual on CD-ROM is available to professors who adopt Psychology and Evolution for their course. The IM on CD provides instructors with examination questions, additional background material on discussion questions in the text, and other helpful aids. The IM encourages critical thought about the issues raised in each chapter and provides useful recommendations for structuring discussions and promoting further research.

Covering a range of metaphors from a diverse field of sciences, from cell and molecular biology to evolution, ecology, and biomedicine, Understanding Metaphors in the Life Sciences explores the positive and negative implications of the widespread use of metaphors in the biological and life sciences. From genetic codes, programs, and blueprints, to cell factories, survival of the fittest, the tree of life, selfish genes, and ecological niches, to genome editing with CRISPR's molecular scissors, metaphors are ubiquitous and vital components of the modern life sciences. But how exactly do metaphors help scientists to understand the objects they study? How can they mislead both scientists and laypeople alike? And what should we all understand about the implications of science's reliance on metaphorical speech and thought for objective knowledge and adequate public policy informed by science? This book will literally help you to better understand the metaphorical dimensions of science.