"Fossils are the fragments from which, piece by laborious piece, the great mosaic of the history of life has been constructed. Here and there, we can supplement these meager scraps by the use of biochemical markers or geochemical signatures that add useful information, but, even with such additional help, our reconstructions and our models of descent are often tentative. For the fossil record is, as we have seen, as biased as it is incomplete. But fragmentary, selective, and biased though it is, the fossil record, with all its imperfections, is still a treasure. Though whole chapters are missing, many pages lost, and the earliest pages so damaged as to be, as yet, virtually unreadable, this-the greatest biography of all-is one in whose closing pages we find ourselves."-from Origins In Origins, Frank H. T. Rhodes explores the origin and evolution of living things, the changing environments in which they have developed, and the challenges we now face on an increasingly crowded and polluted planet. Rhodes argues that the future well-being of our burgeoning population depends in no small part on our understanding of life's past, its long and slow development, and its intricate interdependencies. Rhodes's accessible and extensively illustrated treatment of the origins narrative describes the nature of the search for prehistoric life, the significance of geologic time, the origin of life, the emergence and spread of flora and fauna, the evolution of primates, and the emergence of modern humans.

"It's impossible to grasp the whole planet or integrate all the descriptions of it. But because we live here, we have to try. This is not just an artistic compulsion or an existential yearning, still less an academic exercise. It's a survival issue. This is the only planet we have. We're stuck here, and we don t own the place it would be the height of arrogance to assume that we do. We re tenants here, not owners, but we re tenants with hope for a long-term tenancy. We want to extend our lease just as far as we can." from Earth: A Tenant s Manual

In Earth: A Tenant s Manual, the distinguished geologist Frank H. T. Rhodes, President Emeritus of Cornell University, provides a sweeping, accessible, and deeply informed guide to the home we all share, showing us how we might best preserve the Earth s livability for ourselves and future generations.

Rhodes begins by setting the scene for our active planet and explaining how its location and composition determine how the Earth works and why it teems with life. He emphasizes the changes that are of concern to us today, from earthquakes to climate change and the clashes over the energy resources needed for the Earth s exploding population. He concludes with an extended exploration of humanity s prospects on a complex, protean, and ultimately finite world.

It is not a question of whether the planet is sustainable; the challenge facing life on Earth and the life of the Earth is whether an expanding and high-consumption species like ours is sustainable. Only new resources, new priorities, new policies and, most of all, new knowledge, can reverse the damage that humanity is doing to our home and ourselves. A sustainable human future, Rhodes concludes in this eloquent, sobering, but ultimately optimistic book, will require a sense of responsible stewardship, for we are not owners of this planet; we are tenants.

Surveying the systems, large and small, that govern Earth s processes and influence its changes, Rhodes addresses the negative consequences of human activities for the health of its regulatory systems but offers practical suggestions as to how we might effect repairs, or at least limit further damage to our home."

Is the university a dinosaur: huge, lumbering, endearing in its own way, yet unsuited to today's world? Is it a thing of the past, unnecessary in an age of the Internet and online learning? In a book likely to provoke people who are loyal to the ideal of the university as well as those who foresee its demise, Frank H. T. Rhodes acknowledges that the university is an imperfect institution, but argues that it plays an essential role in modern society. In the process, he articulates strong opinions on a range of difficult issues. The Creation of the Future is no defense or promotion of the status quo. Focusing on American research universities, Rhodes makes the case that they are an irreplaceable resource, quite literally a national and international treasure, whose value must be preserved through judicious renewal and reform, beginning with a rededication to teaching as a moral vocation. Rhodes discusses where the research university is today and how it got here, as well as where it must go in the future. In the process, he addresses a wide range of contemporary challenges facing the institution, including*why universities can no longer be "ivory towers"*why post-tenure review of professors is desirable*whether grading standards have become too lax*why unionization of graduate students is inappropriate*why affirmative action is necessary*how governance and leadership can be improved*how to maintain a sense of commitment to the university in the face of increasing disciplinary specialization*why faculty must affirm that university membership has not only its privileges, but also its price.*what should and should not be done to control the rapid rise in tuition.*whether curricula of professional schools should be more heavily weighted toward the liberal arts.*why service is a social obligation of all universities, not just land-grant institutions.*why research is vital to effective teaching.His eighteen-year tenure as president of Cornell University gives Rhodes a unique perspective on a system he finds both invaluable and in need of change. Although he is an enthusiastic advocate, he pulls no punches in recommending sweeping changes. The greatest catastrophe facing universities today, he writes, is loss of community: "Without community, knowledge becomes idiosyncratic. The lone learner, studying in isolation, is vulnerable to narrowness, dogmatism, and untested assumption; pursued in community, learning will be expansive and informed, contested by opposing interpretations, leavened by differing experience, and refined by alternative viewpoints."In championing a new relevance for the American research university, Rhodes argues for renewal through the application of old virtues to new realities. Campus culture, he says, must embrace the human experience in all its richness, breadth, and ambiguity if it is to survive and thrive.