Evolution : the story of life

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Title:

Evolution : the story of life

Author:

Palmer, Douglas.

ISBN:

9780520255111

Publication Information:

Berkeley : University of California Press, c2009.

Physical Description:

367 p. : col. ill., col. maps ; 30 cm.

General Note:

Twenty p. on folded leaves, unfold to 30 x 50 cm.

Published in association with the Natural History Museum (London) to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin's birth and the 150th anniversary of his On the origin of species.

Includes index.

Contents:

Introduction. What is evolution? ; Putting life in order -- How to use this book -- The science of evolution. Darwin ; Origin and beyond ; Time and life ; The pattern of life ; What are fossils? ; The variety of fossils ; Reconstructing the past ; Evolution today -- The story of evolution : one hundred illustrated site reconstructions -- The trees of life -- Site gazetteer -- Species listing.

Subject Term:

Evolution (Biology) -- Encyclopedias.

Evolution (Biology) -- Pictorial works.

Added Corporate Author:

Natural History Museum (London, England)

Summary:

"Evolution" recreates the 3.5 billion-year story of life on Earth in stunning detail through vivid full-color illustrations and graphics, the latest scientific information, and hundreds of photographs--a beautifully detailed panorama of communities from microbes to humankind that have lived on the planet's continents and in its oceans.

Holds:

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Library	Call Number	Status
Searching... Stillwater Public Library	576.8 PAL	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

Evolution recreates the 3.5-billion-year story of life on Earth in stunning detail through vivid full-color illustrations and graphics, the latest scientific information, and hundreds of photographs. At the heart of the book is an astonishing, beautifully detailed panorama by renowned illustrator Peter Barrett that, in 100 double-page site reconstructions, offers a freeze-frame view of the communities_from microbes to humankind_that have lived on our planet_s continents and in its oceans. These groundbreaking artworks, based on the most recent findings at some of the most famous fossil sites around the world, are paired with an authoritative and highly informative text written for a wide audience of readers. A landmark project, published to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin_s birth and the 150th anniversary of his book On the Origin of Species , Evolution has been produced in association with the Natural History Museum in London, one of the most important centers of evolution research in the world.The volume includes an index of the hundreds of species shown in the illustrations, introductory articles on evolution, and many other features, making it a must-have reference for all homes, schools, and libraries.

Author Notes

Douglas Palmer teaches at Cambridge University and is the author of many books, including Earth: The Definitive Visual Guide to our Planet, The Origins of Man: An Illustrated History of Human Evolution, and The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Life. His articles appear regularly in Science, BBC Wildlife, and New Scientist. Peter Barrett is a natural history illustrator, painter, graphic designer, and children's book author.

Reviews (3)

Booklist Review

Covering evolution from the worldwide fossil record, this lavishly illustrated source reflects the latest discoveries in paleontology, like early birds found in China and small hominids found in Indonesia. The book contains an introduction to evolution followed by chronologically arranged two-page spreads on 100 of the finest fossil sites. Also found in the volume are a Tree of Life section that covers cladistics, an alphabetical gazetteer of the 100 sites, a species listing, a glossary, an index, and a foldout time line. The depictions of individual sites detail the ecosystem as documented by the fossils found there and include a time line and rich artwork, with numbers and icons keyed to accompanying captions and other information. Also on each page set is a map of the earth and the sea level at the time represented and a map showing the fossil site. The fauna and flora (if they survived in the fossil record) reflect the biodiversity of the ancient ecosystems and document evolution over time. Each spread also gives a list of species appearing in an illustration, which takes up most of the space. Examples of illustrations include the Siwalik Hills in India and Pakistan; a rich source of fossils from the Neogene era; and Folsom, New Mexico, an important site for evidence of big-game hunters in the Holocene. The end papers offer a Panoramic View of the site illustrations. What sets this book apart from other reference books on evolution is that it is not a textbook or an encyclopedia. It is rather a pictorial history of life on earth. Science writer Palmer and well-known illustrator Peter Barrett have teamed up to create an exciting record of life on earth. It will be a big hit in reference collections, circulating collections, or on coffee tables.--O'Gorman, Jack Copyright 2009 Booklist

Choice Review

This beautifully illustrated volume is a sweeping survey of the history of life on Earth. Palmer (Univ. of Cambridge, UK) covers each topic in one or more large-format, facing-page spreads. He first presents the ideas of evolution and paleontology, along with a guide to the site reconstructions that form the heart of the book. Each of the 100 fossil-bearing localities is depicted in a painting with diagnostic life forms labeled, ranging from algal mats through a wide variety of early human relatives. Descriptive texts with location maps, fossil photographs, and blowups of painted features surround each painting. A few sites occur in more than one painting; two foldouts document the explosion of life about 550 million years ago (Ma) and the last great extinction 65 Ma when an asteroid strike led to the end of dinosaurs and many other groups. Later sections summarize the evolutionary relationships of major groups and the species shown in the reconstructions, as well as details on each site. The paintings are magnificent, the text generally excellent and current, and the writing accessible to the neophyte, while still valuable to advanced students. Faculty will want to show students the volume's excellent images to engage their interest. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Academic and general audiences, all levels. E. Delson CUNY Herbert H. Lehman College

Library Journal Review

Perhaps the most difficult concept to grasp in evolutionary theory is the massive time frames against which it occurs. Published to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin's birth, this volume illustrates approximately six million years of evolutionary history on Earth in 100 full-color double-page spreads. With an impressive density of information, this book is much more than just a checklist of facts. Natural history illustrator Barrett's reconstructions of the natural histories of over 100 major fossil sites-from the well-known Burgess Shale in Canada to more remote places like Graphite Peak in Antarctica-bring distant epochs to life in sequential "screen grabs." Combined with a detailed section on classifications and species indexes, as well as several topical fold-out sections and time lines, this serves equally well for reference and browsing. An excellent narrative companion read would be Richard Dawkins's The Ancestors' Tale, which is a backward journey through evolution. VERDICT While more of a look-it-up than read-it book, this beautiful volume is worthy of any collector's coffee table. Recommended for natural history and reference collections. [For more Darwin titles, see Sapp's roundup, "Charles Darwin at 200," LJ 12/08.-Ed.]-Gregg Sapp, Evergreen State Coll. Lib., Olympia, WA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

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Summary

Summary

Author Notes

Reviews (3)

Booklist Review

Choice Review

Library Journal Review

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