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The title The Great Human Diasporas implies that this book is a history of human migration, but it is much more. It is a readable, accessible summary of the lifework of Luca Cavalli-Sforza, who has done more than anyone else to reveal the genetic makeup of human populations. Originally written in Italian with Cavalli-Sforza's filmmaker son Francesco, it maintains some qualities of an interview: The Great Human Diasporas is full of anecdotes about the Pygmies with whom Cavalli-Sforza works, the text is frequently personal yet not self-serving, and it clearly shows how he helped tie together population genetics, linguistics, and anthropology to offer a new, non-racist view of human diversity.
Customer Reviews:
Good introduction to anthropology.......2006-02-25
This is a book covering a wide range of topics relating to anthropology. Cavalli-Sforza tells of his experiences with African Pygmies in the Congo, and relates these experiences to ideas as to what hunter-gatherer life was like. He explains the discovery and history of the theory of evolution, and explains the human tree. The spread and migration of humans since the dawn of their evolution is described in good detail. Molecular biology is easily explained. He also describes theories of agriculture's emergence and significance. Cavalli-Sforza juxtaposes what we know of human migrations from DNA with what we know from linguistic evidence. He also discusses cultural anthropology and the concept of race. It is impressive that Cavalli-Sforza has such a good command of a wide range of subjects.
The book is a good read, especially for the layman. Overall, it is an account of humanity's evolution viewed from a variety of fields.
good account of human history.......2002-10-27
Great Huaman Diaspporas covers the history of humanity from its origins in Africa and how it spread through different parts of the world. It goes into homo saphiens forefathers and how homo saphiens forefathers evolved into modern man. It also deals with how gene environments influenced genes. It also deals with how language language and race developed.
Overall, a account of how humanity developed it in terms of genes, race and langage.
genes, languages, prehistoric human migrations.......2002-09-22
The most rewarding part of this popular science book is the middle, fifth to seventh chapters, in which Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza, Professor of Genetics at Stanford Medical School, draws on scientific research in human population genetics, in which he has been a well respected pioneer, to describe the migration of human populations beginning about 100,000 years ago out of Africa until recent times. Because patterns of genetic and linguistic evolution exhibit high intercorrelations--even though their respective elements and mechanics differ--he also cites linguistic evidence for this account of migratory prehistory.
The most valuable contribution of this book to popular understanding is that population genetics provides possibly the best though not sole scientific basis on which to construct the prehistory of human "races." By this evidence, we learn, for example, about the migration of modern Homo sapiens to Southeast Asia and Australia approximately 55,000 to 60,000 years ago or about the spread of Neolithic farmer-cultivators from the Middle East into Europe beginning about 9,000 to 10,000 years ago. I suspect that readers unfamiliar with modern human evolution will find the genetic tree of the world's populations on page 119 intriguing. The diagram shows, for example, that Northeast Asians are more closely related to Europeans than Northeast Asians are to Southeast Asians.
For as rapidly advancing a science as human population genetics, it should not be surprising that some findings are dated. Recent evidence suggests, for instance, that North Asians descended from both southern China populations that gradually migrated northward as well as Caucasian populations that migrated eastward, so that some genetic mixing all across North Asia took place and is the source of the observed racial connections between North Asians and Caucasians.
In other chapters, Cavalli-Sforza tackles related topics somewhat unevenly. His anecdotes about the African pygmies are light and sympathetic. While his description of the hominid line is accurate for the time of publication, there are more insightful not to mention updated accounts now in print. His discussion of the links between genes and culture is engaging and humane but from the standpoint of science, no better than educated. His rejoinder to the controversial The Bell Curve (1994) is scientifically persuasive.
I very much enjoyed reading this book, the first I purchased at amazon.com.
Good, but no clear objective........2002-05-29
Much interesting material, and some difficult concepts explained clearly for the general lay person. However, the book has no clear objective. It is best read as a supplement to the Pulitzer Prize winning book by Jared Diamond, "Guns, Germs and Steel".
Really good, I Recommend it.......2002-05-15
Ok, this will be a short one. The book is really good, I recommend it vastly. As a molecular biologist I am impressed with the expertise of L. L. Cavalli-Sforza in varios areas of science. He does not only manage to comunicate in an easy manner the complexities of genetics and molecular biology (related to this subject), but also accomplishes to clarify lots of linguistic information gathered through his life studies. This last topic was the hardest for me to understand, though I believe language studies are not easy. So, as said in the beginning, this book is highly recommended.
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- The Diversity of Life
- Second time round
- The Diversity of Life
- A Good Introduction to the Tapestry Of Life
- Welcome to the Jungle. Gets worse here every day.
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The Diversity of Life
Edward O. Wilson
Manufacturer: W. W. Norton & Company
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ASIN: 0393319407 |
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Humans, the Harvard University entomologist Edward O. Wilson has observed, have an innate--or at least extremely ancient--connection to the natural world, and our continued divorce from it has led to the loss of not only "a vast intellectual legacy born of intimacy" with nature, but also our very sanity. In The Diversity of Life, Wilson takes a sweeping view of our planet's natural richness, remarking on what on the surface seems a paradox: "almost all the species that ever lived are extinct, and yet more are alive today than at any time in the past." (Wilson's elegant explanation is a scientific education in itself.) This great variety of species is, of course, threatened by habitat destruction, global climate change, and a host of other forces, and Wilson revisits his oft-stated call for the protection of wilderness and undeveloped land, noting that "wilderness has virtue unto itself and needs no extraneous justification." We should, he continues, regard every species, "every scrap of biodiversity," as precious and irreplaceable, without attempting to quantify that regard with utilitarian measures such as "bio-economics." In short, Wilson offers with this book a simple, workable environmental ethic that extends the work of Aldo Leopold and other conservationists. A remarkably productive and influential scientist, Wilson is also a fine writer, and his survey of biodiversity makes for welcome and instructive reading. --Gregory McNamee
Book Description
Harvard Professor and two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Edward Wilson takes readers through time--tracing the processes that create new species, the five cataclysmic events that have disrupted evolution over the past 600 million years, and how humans are destroying diversity at a projected rate of 20 percent over the next 30 years. "In the Amazon Basin the greatest violence sometimes begins as a flicker of light beyond the horizon. There in the perfect bowl of the night sky, untouched by light from any human source, a thunderstorm sends its premonitory signal and begins a slow journey to the observer, who thinks: the world is about to change." Watching from the edge of the Brazilian rain forest, witness to the sort of violence nature visits upon its creatures, Edward O. Wilson reflects on the crucible of evolution, and so begins his remarkable account of how the living world became diverse and how humans are destroying that diversity. Wilson, internationally regarded as the dean of biodiversity studies, conducts us on a tour through time, traces the processes that create new species in bursts of adaptive radiation, and points out the cataclysmic events that have disrupted evolution and diminished global diversity over the past 600 million years. The five enormous natural blows to the planet (such as meteorite strikes and climatic changes) required 10 to 100 million years of evolutionary repair. The sixth great spasm of extinction on earth--caused this time entirely by humans--may be the one that breaks the crucible of life. Wilson identifies this crisis in countless ecosystems around the globe: coral reefs, grasslands, rain forests, and other natural habitats. Drawing on a variety of examples such as the decline of bird populations in the United States, the extinction of many species of freshwater fish in Africa and Asia, and the rapid disappearance of flora and fauna as the rain forests are cut down, he poignantly describes the death throes of the living worlds diversity--projected to decline as much as 20 percent by the year 2020. All evidence marshaled here resonates through Wilson's tightly reasoned call for a spirit of stewardship over the worlds biological wealth. He makes a plea for specific actions that will enhance rather than diminish not just diversity but the quality of life on earth. Cutting through the tangle of environmental issues that often obscure the real concern, Wilson maintains that the era of confrontation between forces for the preservation of nature and those for economic development is over; he convincingly drives home the point that both aims can, and must, be integrated. Unparalleled in its range and depth, Wilson's masterwork is essential reading for those who care about preserving the worlds biological variety and ensuring our planets health.
Customer Reviews:
The Diversity of Life.......2007-01-10
This is an outstanding book. If you read this before you read Darwin's Origin of Species you'll get soooo much more from reading the latter. Anyway, the book encapsulates in easy to read prose much information that your mind can easily wrap itself around.
Second time round.......2007-01-04
When I received the book, it appeared that I had already an earlier edition in my bookcase. I did not regret my purchase, because the new version is updated/upgraded and E.O. Wilson is an excellent author and scientist on the subject of evolution.
The Diversity of Life.......2007-01-04
To begin with, I would like to say that this book was fairly good. The book started talking about early life on this planet, the various pioneering species of early Earth, etc. The book then goes into detail about the eolutionary paths of some of these pioneer species and of evolution in general, and of how the biodiversity on Earth has grown both in size and complexity. Towards the end, the book goes into the human influence on the environment; mostly the negative effects of human activity on theenvironment. I read this book for an AP Environmental Science class, and although this book is not the best, it had many colorful graphics and was fairly interesting and not dull like many of the books you are forced to read in school.
A Good Introduction to the Tapestry Of Life.......2006-08-27
This is a very eye-opening book which shows how important the diversity of life forms is to all of us. It demonstrates how even when we think we are conserving nature by setting aside
small areas to remain undeveloped, we are still dooming many species of life to extinction. With the loss of some species, others are threated and in the end, all of us are threatened.
I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a large view picture of nature in this world and how it is all interelated.
Welcome to the Jungle. Gets worse here every day........2006-07-02
There are some books where the superlative is simply insufficient. Edward Wilson writes with panache and vigor. He knows how to describe and keep the reader entertained. It was like I was reading fiction.
Wilson also writes with detail and accuracy. He knows his science. He knows the intricacy of ecology, and knows enough to know he can't know everything. This allows him to keep the mystery alive for the reader. I was continually astonished to see how he pulled in various aspects of Biology when telling a life story, and various sciences, to show how it All was inter-related. He would pull in constant relationships between different forms of life, and just when I thought he was done, he would go down a microscopic level. And then down another five levels. If is possible to be a savant within ecology, then this is it.
Wilson doesn't stop with good writing and excellent research. He tells us there's a problem. This is another The Jungle- only this time, there isn't much of a jungle left. Through out the book he makes clear that the planet is dying, and dying fast, and the causes of this death. Through the use of the ecological relationships, we see how an attack on one species can be an attack on thousands. Better authors are brave enough to tell us that not everything is okay.
The best authors tell us that there's a way to solve these problems. There are gloom and doom authors out there, teaching the world that everything will be destroyed, and the only thing to do now is get saved yourself. That's too little, and too easy, for Wilson. He doesn't make the situation worse than it is- his facts, studies, and research make it clear the situation is pretty bad. But it's not hopeless. He lays out how we can be changing things, and there's still time to change things. Not that it will be easy. But like an economic austerity program, sacrifices must be made, that we all might survive. To make it clear, this is a survivalist book. If you are hoping to see our species survive, then this book will assist in that. If you're okay with losing out on our currect ecological richness, with the disappearance of all the ecosystems you are familiar with, and the end of a species that can create a world wide web- but the survival of constant insect lifeforms- then there's no need to read any further.
(This review refers to the 1992 edition.)
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A Primer of Conservation Genetics
Richard Frankham ,
Jonathan D. Ballou , and
David A. Briscoe
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Introduction to Conservation Genetics
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ASIN: 0521538270 |
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Intended for those with a limited background in genetic studies, this concise, entry-level text in conservation genetics is presented in a user-friendly format, with main points clearly highlighted. Solved problems are provided throughout to help illustrate key equations, although a basic knowledge of Mendelian genetics and simple statistics is assumed. A glossary and suggestions for further reading provide additional support for the reader. Numerous pen-and-ink portraits of endangered species bring the material to life. Also available: Introduction to Conservation Genetics "...balance[s] student need for clarity and brevity with the requirements of conservation professionals for detailed applications." Choice 0-521-63014-2 Hardback $130.00 C 0-521-63985-9 Paperback $50.00 D
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Diversity of Cognition: Evolution, Development, Domestication And Pathology
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In this innovative celebration of diversity and affirmation of individuality in animals and humans, Joan Roughgarden challenges accepted wisdom about gender identity and sexual orientation. A distinguished evolutionary biologist, Roughgarden takes on the medical establishment, the Bible, social science--and even Darwin himself. She leads the reader through a fascinating discussion of diversity in gender and sexuality among fish, reptiles, amphibians, birds, and mammals, including primates. Evolution's Rainbow explains how this diversity develops from the action of genes and hormones and how people come to differ from each other in all aspects of body and behavior. Roughgarden reconstructs primary science in light of feminist, gay, and transgender criticism and redefines our understanding of sex, gender, and sexuality. Witty, playful, and daring, this book will revolutionize our understanding of sexuality.
Roughgarden argues that principal elements of Darwinian sexual selection theory are false and suggests a new theory that emphasizes social inclusion and control of access to resources and mating opportunity. She disputes a range of scientific and medical concepts, including Wilson's genetic determinism of behavior, evolutionary psychology, the existence of a gay gene, the role of parenting in determining gender identity, and Dawkins's "selfish gene" as the driver of natural selection. She dares social science to respect the agency and rationality of diverse people; shows that many cultures across the world and throughout history accommodate people we label today as lesbian, gay, and transgendered; and calls on the Christian religion to acknowledge the Bible's many passages endorsing diversity in gender and sexuality. Evolution's Rainbow concludes with bold recommendations for improving education in biology, psychology, and medicine; for democratizing genetic engineering and medical practice; and for building a public monument to affirm diversity as one of our nation's defining principles.
Download Description
In this innovative celebration of diversity and affirmation of individuality in animals and humans, Joan Roughgarden challenges accepted wisdom about gender identity and sexual orientation. A distinguished evolutionary biologist, Roughgarden takes on the medical establishment, the Bible, social science--and even Darwin himself. She leads the reader through a fascinating discussion of diversity in gender and sexuality among fish, reptiles, amphibians, birds, and mammals, including primates. Evolution's Rainbow explains how this diversity develops from the action of genes and hormones and how people come to differ from each other in all aspects of body and behavior. Roughgarden reconstructs primary science in light of feminist, gay, and transgender criticism and redefines our understanding of sex, gender, and sexuality. Witty, playful, and daring, this book will revolutionize our understanding of sexuality. Roughgarden argues that principal elements of Darwinian sexual selection theory are false and suggests a new theory that emphasizes social inclusion and control of access to resources and mating opportunity. She disputes a range of scientific and medical concepts and dares social science to respect the agency and rationality of diverse people. Evolution's Rainbow concludes with bold recommendations for improving education in biology, psychology, and medicine; for democratizing genetic engineering and medical practice; and for building a public monument to affirm diversity as one of our nation's defining principles.
Customer Reviews:
a biological reason for tolerance.......2007-06-27
a very interesting and mindful book. interesting in that it shows how the gender dichotomy of western societies is ever so rigid and needs to loosen up. mindful in that it exudes tolerance and simply makes you appreciate diversity. i enjoyed reading it.
A celebration of diversity.......2007-03-08
Roughgarden's work in Evolution's Rainbow should be required reading for all college and high school students in the country. Starting with relatively simple animals and working into increasingly complex organisms (finally culminating with humans), Roughgarden convincingly and irrefutably demonstrates how sexual diversity is widespread in nature, not simply "weird statistical anomalies" as many believe. In fact, an over-abundance of examples from nature in the first section of the book is often somewhat exhausting to follow, but serves to establish the widespread nature of homosexuality, transsexuality, and even intersexuality in nature. And finally, the ending sections of the book, demonstrating how various societies have accepted/incorporpated sexually diverse elements, should serve as a motivation for LGBTI peoples around the world. Overall an excellent and politically timely book that can be appreciated by biologists and non-scientists alike.
A great start.......2006-10-20
Finally, someone is putting together all of the real, scientific information regarding sexuality and gender variance in the animal world.
Roughgarden may well have taken on too much for one book - there is something of a rushed pace and she often drops dissertation-worthy bits of information into one page - but she has gathered some wonderful examples of the true nature of diversity in the animal kingdom.
Her reasons for writing the book may be political and personal in nature, but I think her reasoning and biology are sound.
Evolution's Rainbow... required reading for students I feel.......2006-10-13
No matter what one may think about Roughgarden's hypotheses (though these are to my mind often inspired) Evolution's Rainbow was a great read if only for the sheer quantity of information it encapsulates. One comes away from this book with a profoundly altered idea of what constitutes "natural" in reference to sexuality and gender.
The only criticism I have is of the rather strained effort at the end of the book to reconcile the Bible with homosexuality. While I agree the Sodom story is primarily aimed at a lack of hospitality other scriptures e.g. Romans 1:31-32 are more explicit. It is unfortunate that an exemplary scientist still feels the need to pander to moral constructs based upon faith i.e. the belief in things that cannot be seen or demonstrated. By this criteria the 9/11 terrorists were very moral people.
Clouded by Strong Biases.......2006-09-21
This book provides some good descriptions of sexual and gender diversity in nature and in a variety of human cultures, and makes a number of valid criticisms of biases against diversity in the scientific community and in society at large.
Many of her attempts to criticize sexual selection theory are plausible criticisms of beliefs that don't have much connection to sexual selection theory (e.g. the belief that all sexually reproducing organisms fall into one of two gender stereotypes).
Her more direct attacks on the theory amount to claiming that "almost all diversity is good" and ignoring the arguments of sexual selection theorists who describe traits that appear to indicate reduced evolutionary fitness (see Geoffrey Miller's book The Mating Mind). She practically defines genetic defects out of existence. She tries to imply that biologists agree on her criteria for a "genetic defect", but her criteria require that a "trait be deleterious under all conditions" (I suspect most biologists would say "average" instead of "all"), and that it reduce fitness by at least 5 percent.
Her "alternative" theory, social selection, may have some value as a supplement to sexual selection theory, but I see no sign that it explains enough to replace sexual selection theory.
She sometimes talks as if she were trying to explain the evolution of homosexuality, but when doing so she is referring to bisexuality, and doesn't attempt to explain why an animal would be exclusively homosexual.
Her obsession with discrediting sexual selection comes from an exaggerated fear that the theory implies that most diversity is bad. This misrepresents sexual selection theory (which only says that some diversity represents a mix of traits with different fitnesses). It's also a symptom of her desire to treat natural as almost a synonym for good (she seems willing to hate diversity if it's created via genetic engineering).
She tries to imply that a number of traits (e.g. transsexualism) are more common than would be the case if they significantly reduced reproductive fitness, but her reasoning seems to depend on the assumption that those traits can only be caused by one possible mutation. But if there are multiple places in the genome where a mutation could produce the same trait, there's no obvious limit to how common a low-fitness trait could be.
Her policy recommendations are of very mixed quality. She wants the FDA to regulate surgical and behavioral therapies the way it regulates drugs, and claims that would stop doctors from "curing" nondiseases such as gender dysphoria. But she doesn't explain why she expects the FDA to be more tolerant of diversity than doctors. Instead, why not let the patient decide as much as possible whether to consider something a disease?
Book Description
Island biogeography is the study of the distribution and dynamics of species in island environments. Due to their isolation from more widespread continental species, islands are ideal places for unique species to evolve, but they are also places of concentrated extinction. Not surprisingly, they are widely studied by ecologists, conservationists and evolutionary biologists alike. There is no other recent textbook devoted solely to island biogeography, and a synthesis of the many recent advances is now overdue. This second edition builds on the success and reputation of the first, documenting the recent advances in this exciting field and explaining how islands have been used as natural laboratories in developing and testing ecological and evolutionary theories. In addition, the book describes the main processes of island formation, development and eventual demise, and explains the relevance of island environmental history to island biogeography. The authors demonstrate the huge significance of islands as hotspots of biodiversity, and as places from which disproportionate numbers of species have been extinguished by human action in historical time. Many island species are today threatened with extinction, and this work examines both the chief threats to their persistence and some of the mitigation measures that can be put in play with conservation strategies tailored to islands.
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Flowering Plants. Eudicots (The Families and Genera of Vascular Plants)
C. Bayer , and
P.F. Stevens
Manufacturer: Springer
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ASIN: 3540322140 |
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In this volume, the ninth of the series, treatments are offered for 52 families containing 432 genera belonging to 13 eudicot orders, many of which have recently been newly designed; four families remain unassigned to order. Emphasis is on the early-diverging eudicots and basal core eudicots the phylogenetic relationships and diversification of which have recently been in focus and are critically discussed. Systematically relevant information includes descriptions of families and genera, keys to the genera, and references to recent revisions. Introductions to the families provide convenient, in-depth overviews of key aspects of systematics. The wealth and precision of information contained in this volume will make it an important source of reference for both the scholar and the practitioner in the fields of pure and applied plant sciences.
Book Description
All living things on earth—from individual species to entire ecosystems—have evolved through time, and evolution is the acknowledged framework of modern biology. Yet many areas of biology have moved from a focus on evolution to much narrower perspectives.
Daniel R. Brooks and Deborah A. McLennan argue that it is impossible to comprehend the nature of life on earth unless evolution—the history of organisms—is restored to a central position in research. They demonstrate how the phylogenetic approach can be integrated with ecological and behavioral studies to produce a richer and more complete picture of evolution. Clearly setting out the conceptual, methodological, and empirical foundations of their research program, Brooks and McLennan show how scientists can use it to unravel the evolutionary history of virtually any characteristic of any living thing, from behaviors to ecosystems. They illustrate and test their approach with examples drawn from a wide variety of species and habitats.
The Nature of Diversity provides a powerful new tool for understanding, documenting, and preserving the world's biodiversity. It is an essential book for biologists working in evolution, ecology, behavior, conservation, and systematics. The argument in The Nature of Diversity greatly expands upon and refines the arguments made in the authors' previous book Phylogeny, Ecology, and Behavior.
Book Description
Animals diverge from common ancestry through changes in their DNA, but what are the genes that control morphology? In this landmark work, the author team led by Dr. Sean Carroll presents the general principles of the genetic basis of morphological change through a synthesis of evolutionary biology with genetics and embryology. The text first addresses the history of animal evolution, model system developmental genetics, and genetic regulatory mechanisms, and then examines case studies of evolutionary change at different genetic and morphological levels.In this extensively revised second edition, the authors delve into the latest discoveries, incorporating new coverage of comparative genomics, molecular evolution of regulatory proteins and elements, and microevolution of animal development. This new edition also includes major insights from recent genome studies, incorporates new findings from evo-devo biology research, and adds a new chapter focusing on models of variation and divergence among closely related species.An engaging style, clear, four-color illustrations, and up-to-date content all combine to make this text a highly accessible and definitive synthesis of the field.
Customer Reviews:
user.......2007-09-04
this book is well orgnized and clear stated. It contains many concepts about evo-devo field. Also this version includes many updated information about development and evolution.
Start from very basic phenomena and go further to the molecular level. Easy to read for anyone who is interested in this field.
Prelude to a Text.......2007-06-02
In a sense, Carroll has written the same book three times. "The making of the Fittest" is a work for the general reader explaining how our knowledge of genetics and embryonic development impacts and expands our knowledge of evolutionary biology (and vice-versa). His most famous book, "Endless Forms Most Beautiful," is aimed at college upperclassmen, and deal in more detail with the science of "Evo-Devo," evolutionary development. "From DNA to Diversity" covers much the same ground, but does so in a more technical and sophisticated manner. It appears aimed at graduate students and upper-division zoology majors. Presumably Carroll's next step it to write a graduate-level textbook. Toward the ent, "From DNA" reads like one.
It is a marvellous book, and like a text, it requires and rewards re-reading. Unlike a text, however, it virtually demands to be read in order; not only do the latter chapters build on the earlier ones, but the degree of difficulty in the presentation increases dramatically as the pages turn. As befits a book which assumes a sophisticated readership, there are fewer "detours" into polemics supporting green politics or mocking creationist theory. The photograpsh and the charts are terrific -- full color, clear, and as easy to read and interpret as the difficult subject matter will allow.
Because of the nature of the book, the discussion is less "thesis-bound" than Carrroll's other writings. Rather, he begins with a history of animal life, brings in detail about how embryonic development and genetic control of that process produces the diversity upon which natural selection can act, and weaves the two themes together to demonstrate how the process of forming animal bodies interacts with the changing environment to produce the multiplicity of animal forms we see today. And, Carroll goes on to show, the process is endless and at once aleatory and highly constrained.
I recall an episode of the old "Twilight Zone" series where a British World War One fighter pilot flies through a time warp and lands on an American Air Force base, circa 1960. He talks to one of the airman, and says, "We had no idea how advanced you are." The reader of Carroll's book is likely to have the same thoughts about the field of evo-devo. In Thirty years, these people have gone from the discovery of the nature of the DNA molecule to the brink of an ability to create life a test-tube. I had no idea they had advanced so far so fast.
Evo-Devo For The Graduate Student.......2006-09-06
We have about 25,000 genes. Some of these are "tool kit" genes that we share with all other animals. They evolved well before the Cambrian explosion over 540 million years ago from a bilaterally symmetrical common ancestor. Almost exact counterparts are found in apes and mice, and close counterparts in arthropods and worms. Next to most genes is a stretch of so-called "junk DNA" that does not code for genes. These DNA segments contain from three to twenty (or more) switches that collectively turn that gene on or off. The switches are activated or repressed by the differing concentration gradients of the protein products of other genes produced by neighboring cells. By virtue of the servo-feedback loops creating unique combinations of the protein products of tool kit genes, cells of the early embryo create a geographical map of their future body.
An escalating orchestra of domino effects builds complexity, each new development affecting the others. The tool kit genes and the other core genes that control biochemical function from bacteria to man are resistant to mutation. Novelty and speciation comes from the infinite variety of changes that come from the readily mutable genetic switches - allowing for changes in a segment without mortally wounding the rest of the animal. Not a single biologist 40 years ago would have predicted these discoveries.
The exciting developments of evo-devo have sent jolts of electricity through the evolutionary community. Nothing basic has been overturned; much has been enhanced. For example: It used to be thought that eyes had evolved independently many, many times - after all, the lumps of light sensitivity in primitive wormlike creatures, the compound eyes of insects, and the eyes of mammals have more differences than commonalities. As it turns out, the making of each eye-like organ is directed by a PAX6 tool kit gene. Not only that, if the PAX6 gene from the mouse is artificially introduced into the genetic material destined for the leg of the fly, an eye will form on the fly leg...and it's not a mouse eye - it's a fly eye. The mouse PAX6 gene switches - influenced by chemical gradients from adjacent tissue in the fly embryo - cause the gene to produce a fly eye! Astounding!
Tool kit genes (and other genes) are frequently named after the anomaly that doesn't develop when that gene is absent. The TINMAN gene controls development of the heart and circulatory system from butterflies to badgers - named after the Wizard of Oz character who had no heart. The wealth of information presented in this book will surprise, educate, and entertain the reader - and evo-devo researchers have just scratched the surface. New graduates in biology are surging into this explosive and previously neglected science.
There are three other books that I know of that cover these captivating discoveries of the last 30 years:
"Coming to Life," by Christiane Nusslein-Volhard. This fine book, written by a Nobel Prize winner for her meticulous ground-breaking work on fruit flies emphasizes the concentration gradients, which are indeed central to the story.
"The Plausibility of Life," by Kirschner and Gerhart. These authors are so excited about the new findings, they think it deserves a name - facilitated variation - and of course, they thought of the name. It is an excellent book with more basic sciences than the book under review, emphasizing how evo-devo facilitates novelty through an enhanced Baldwin Effect.
"Endless Forms Most Beautiful," also by Sean B. Carroll, written more for the college graduate who has taken a little biology.
I have studied them all. For the general public, "Endless Forms Most Beautiful" is the best. For those more familiar with molecular biochemistry and genetics, "DNA to Diversity" contains much more specific information - although anyone who would like one book would like the other.
"From DNA to Diversity" is a superbly written book -essential reading for the advanced reader who wishes to keep up with the stunning advances that have occurred in evolutionary knowledge during the past thirty years.
Which Evo-Devo Book for You?.......2005-11-16
High School, College, Grad School? This book is at the grad school level. Carroll has also written Endless Forms Most Beautiful at the college level and The Making of the Fittest at the high school level. (You can check on "Read all my reviews" to read more about these.)
My own background is this: My formal education in biology consisted of an introductory course in college 40-odd years ago. Since then I've read a lot and in the last two years I've had a very strong interest in molecular and evolutionary biology. (For more info, click on my name, above. My Profile also has a link to my Listmania list of evolution books. Note that you don't have to be a grad student to read this book.)
I read From DNA to Diversity first and it was too much for me. I then read Endless Forms. That was pretty understandable, so I went back to Diversity and found it reasonable clear. I have since read it a third time and I am very fond of it.
Of the thousands of genes involved in the early development of animals, this book concentrates on a few, along with the proteins with which they interact and the various body parts they affect. Special attention is paid to the Hox genes and their insect homologues. Because these have large-scale effects in development, changes in them and in their regulation have profound effects on evolution. I especially enjoyed the section where Carroll combined many bits of information to show us the basic features that must have been present in the first bilaterally symmetric animal, that tiny but promising ancestor of us all. This is one of the bonuses we get for making the extra effort to read the grad-level book.
I find the text very clear and the overall organization - starting with the workings of the major toolkit genes, proceeding through descriptions of how those genes direct the overall shaping of the animal, and on to general considerations of evolution -- proceeds nicely.
[2 June 2007: This was one of the first reviews I wrote and I have added bits as my skills have improved. It got to be a bit patchy, so I have just finished a mafor revision.]
Excellent Evo/Devo text.......2002-10-09
I havn't read the book all the way through, but from what I've seen, its an excellent book, good illustrations, straightforward info. This particular area of biology - using developmental genetics to elucidate evolutionary processes and relationships, is in my opinion one of the most exciting areas of biology today. I've had some advanced level classes in developmental and evolutionary biology myself, and I would probably have to say that for the lay person, the book may be somewhat out of grasp.
In regards to the mouse/fly eye develompent experiment, it is simply showing that the genes that regulate the most fundamental levels of development in the eye (or any part of the organism) are the same for fly and mouse... over the years, the end results have evolved to be much different, but at the deepest levels, the the genes that regulate the most fundamental develpment are still the same. ie. eye gene in mouse = mouse eye, eye gene in fly = fly eye. eye gene does the same thing in fly our mouse.
Books:
- Biology: The Unity and Diversity of Life (with CD-ROM and InfoTrac)
- Bring Back the Buffalo!: A Sustainable Future for America's Great Plains
- Building Genetic Medicine: Breast Cancer, Technology, and the Comparative Politics of Health Care (Inside Technology)
- Catastrophes and Lesser Calamities: The Causes of Mass Extinctions
- Chemical Oceanography
- Coaching for Improved Work Performance, Revised Edition
- Darwin on Trial
- Darwinian Psychiatry
- Dispersal Biology of Desert Plants (Adaptations of Desert Organisms)
- Earth System History
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