This provocative study provides a stimulating critique of contemporary evolutionary thought, analysing the Modern Synthesis first developed by Theodosius Dobzhansky, Ernst Mayr, and George Gaylord Simpson. Written by an eminent evolutionary biologist (the co-founder of the theory of punctuated equilibria), this highly readable book argues that only genes and organisms are taken as historic 'individuals' in conventional theory. Eldredge proposes that species, higher taxa, and ecological entities such as populations and communities should also be construed as individuals - an approach yielding the ecological and genealogical hierarchies that interact to produce evolution. This clearly stated, controversial work will provoke much debate among evolutionary biologists, systematicists, palaeontologists and ecologists, as well as lay readers.

One of evolution's fundamental questions is how the skein of life on Earth remains unbroken yet is constantly renewed by new species. What accounts for the scientific paradox that all organisms and species are ephemeral, and yet life endures, yielding more advanced players in nature's eternal play? In this riveting work, renowned scientist Niles Eldredge presents a magisterial account of leading thinkers as they wrestle with this paradox over a span of two hundred years.

Eldredge begins in France with Jean Baptiste Lamarck, who in 1802 first framed the overarching question about new species. Giambatista Brocchi followed, bringing in geology and paleontology to expand the question. In 1825, at the University of Edinburgh, Robert Grant and Robert Jameson introduce these astounding ideas to a young medical student named Charles Darwin. Who can doubt that Darwin left for his voyage in 1831 filled with these daring, new ideas about the "transmutation" of species, well cultivated by earlier thinkers tilling this rugged and contentious intellectual ground?

Eldredge revisits Darwin's early insights in South America and his later synthesis of knowledge into the origin of species. He then considers more recent evolutionary thinkers, such as George Gaylord Simpson, Ernst Mayr, and Theodosius Dhobzhansky, concluding with the young, brash graduate students Niles Eldredge and Steven J. Gould, who set science afire with their revolutionary concept of punctuated equilibria and upended accepted evolutionary ideas. Filled with shattering insight into evolutionary biology and told with a rich affection for the tumult of the scientific arena, this new book is destined to become a classic in the field.

All organisms and species are transitory, yet life endures. The origin, extinction, and evolution of species-interconnected in the web of life as "eternal ephemera"-are the concern of evolutionary biology. In this riveting work, renowned paleontologist Niles Eldredge follows leading thinkers as they have wrestled for more than two hundred years with the eternal skein of life composed of ephemeral beings, revitalizing evolutionary science with their own, more resilient findings. Eldredge begins in France with the naturalist Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, who in 1801 first framed the overarching question about the emergence of new species. The Italian geologist Giambattista Brocchi followed, bringing in geology and paleontology to expand the question. In 1825, at the University of Edinburgh, Robert Grant and Robert Jameson introduced the astounding ideas formulated by Lamarck and Brocchi to a young medical student named Charles Darwin. Who can doubt that Darwin left for his voyage on the Beagle in 1831 filled with thoughts about these daring new explanations for the "transmutation" of species. Eldredge revisits Darwin's early insights into evolution in South America and his later synthesis of knowledge into a theory of the origin of species. He then considers the ideas of more recent evolutionary thinkers, such as George Gaylord Simpson, Ernst Mayr, and Theodosius Dobzhansky, as well as the young and brash Niles Eldredge and Steven Jay Gould, who set science afire with their concept of punctuated equilibria. Filled with insights into evolutionary biology and told with a rich affection for the scientific arena, this book celebrates the organic, vital relationship between scientific thinking and its subjects.

Like the bird whose death signaled dangerous conditions in a mine, the demise of animals that once flourished should give humans pause. How is our fate linked to the earth's creatures, and the cycle of flourishing and extinction? Which are the simple workings of nature's order, and which are omens of ecological disaster? Does human activity accelerate extinction? What really causes it? In an illuminating and elegantly written account of the widespread reduction of the world's wildlife, renowned paleontologist Niles Eldredge poses these questions and examines humankind's role in the larger life cycles of the earth, composing a provocative general theory of extinction.

Scientists have recently begun to question one of the pillars of modern thought--Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. Certainly evolution occurs; but if it is a slow, continuous process by which one species gradually modifies itself into a new one, as Darwin believed, why are there so many missing links in the fossil records? Two eminent scientists, Niles Eldredge and Stephen Jay Gould, startled the world by challenging Darwin's cherished beliefs proposing instead that once a species has evolved it rarely undergoes change, and that the evolution of new species occurs only periodically, in relatively rapid spurts. In Time Frames Niles Eldredge explains how his own work with trilobite fossils led him to this unexpected conclusion, and describes the fascinating development of the new theory of punctuated equilibria. Originally published in 1989. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Scientists have recently begun to question one of the pillars of modern thought--Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. Certainly evolution occurs; but if it is a slow, continuous process by which one species gradually modifies itself into a new one, as Darwin believed, why are there so many missing links in the fossil records? Two eminent scientists, Niles Eldredge and Stephen Jay Gould, startled the world by challenging Darwin's cherished beliefs proposing instead that once a species has evolved it rarely undergoes change, and that the evolution of new species occurs only periodically, in relatively rapid spurts. In Time Frames Niles Eldredge explains how his own work with trilobite fossils led him to this unexpected conclusion, and describes the fascinating development of the new theory of punctuated equilibria.

Originally published in 1989.

The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These paperback editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

In "Life in the Balance," Niles Eldredge argues that the Earth is confronting a disaster in the making--an ecological crisis that, if left unresolved, could ultimately lead to mass extinction on the scale of that which killed the dinosaurs sixty-five million years ago. Writing for general readers, he reviews compelling evidence for this "biodiversity crisis," showing that species are dying out at an unnaturally rapid rate. He demonstrates the importance of maintaining biodiversity, taking the reader on a journey that reveals the twin faces of biodiversity--over thirteen million living species "and" the ecosystems through which these species transform the sun's energy into life-sustaining matter. Throughout, Eldredge shows how our own fate is intricately linked with that of other species.

Eldredge, one of the world's foremost paleontologists, begins by taking us to the heart of Botswana's Okavango Delta, considered by many to be among the last "Edens" left on Earth--a place where a rich assortment of organisms exist in natural equilibrium. However, it is also a place where the results of human activity--pollution, clear-cutting, water-diversion, encroaching agriculture, disease--now pose the same ecological threats that, on a worldwide scale, put the entire planet at risk. Eldredge then leads us on a fascinating exploration of the Earth's organisms--animals, plants, fungi, the microbes that underpin all life--and of the diverse ecosystems from the tundra to the tropics in which these organisms live. It is a journey that demonstrates the inherent value of the millions of species and ecosystems on Earth, and the importance of biodiversity to the entire biosphere and to humans' continued existence.

Eldredge concludes that humans not only are responsible for the biodiversity crisis but also hold the key to preventing an impending Sixth Extinction. He argues that we must, among other strategies, pledge ourselves to sustainable development and the conservation of wild places. An eloquent and passionate account by one of today's leading scientists, "Life in the Balance" will draw new attention to one of the most pressing problems now facing the world. In this book, Eldredge explores the same themes that illuminate The American Museum of Natural History's new Hall of Biodiversity, for which he is Scientific Curator. The Hall is scheduled to open in spring 1998.

Why do people have sex? Is it solely for the purpose of passing on genetic information, or are there other reasons? "A candid, no-punches-pulled interpreter of the core ideas of evolutionary biology" ("Science News"), author Niles Eldredge unravels the origins of our coital instincts. Whereas other scientists dismiss human sexuality as a helpless response to the same deep-set biological imperatives that govern the behavior of lesser animals, Eldredge points to various examples of customs, taboos, laws, and other cultural forces that run counter to our most primal desires. Directly assaulting the reductionist "selfish gene" theory, whereby sex is reduced to a purely procreative act, Eldredge draws on Darwin's ideas about evolution as well as modern economic theory to describe the delicate cultural and societal interaction that exists between survival, sex, and procreation in the human species.

A fun and fact-filled activity book about discovering and collecting, about the history of the Earth, and the record of life we find on its surface, children will revel in this guide to over 50 sites where they can find something Paleozoic. Also included are a dozen amazing science activities and a complete guide to fossil hunting. Ages 5-8

Overpopulation, depletion of natural resources, hunting of nonhuman species to extinction: paleontologist Niles Eldredge questions the long term survival of humans, given our propensity for living beyond our ecological means. In Dominion he reviews the relation between biological and cultural evolution, showing how the agricultural revolution freed humans from dependence on local ecosystems and allowed us to assert our dominion, as the Christian Bible has it, over the beasts of the field. Unless we quickly change our homocentric ways, we'll irretrievably destroy our own habitat.

Cities need healthy chunks of the world's ecosystems to persist if they are to survive; yet cities, like parasites, grow and prosper by local destruction of these very ecosystems. In this absorbing and wide-ranging book, the authors use New York City as a microcosm to explore both the positive and negative sides of the relationship between cities, the environment, and the future of global biodiversity. They illuminate the mass of contradictions that cities present by offering the best and the worst of human existence. Eldredge and Horenstein demonstrate that, though cities have voracious appetites for resources such as food and water, they also represent the last hope for conserving healthy remnants of the world's ecosystems and species. With their concentration of human beings, they bring together centers of learning, research, government, finance, and media--institutions that increasingly play active roles in solving environmental problems.
Some of the topics covered in "Concrete Jungle"
--The geological history of the New York region, including remnant glacial features visible today
--The early days of urbanization on Manhattan Island, focusing on the history of Central Park, Collect Pond, and Manhattan Square
--The history of early railway lines and the development of New York's iconic subway system
--The problem of producing enough safe drinking water for an ever-expanding population
--Prominent civic institutions, including universities, museums, and zoos