Darwin for BeginnersThe Beginner Books -- "Their cartoon format and irreverent wit make difficult ideas accessible and entertaining." -- Newsday aking us through the upheavals in biological thought which made The Origins of Species possible, Jonathan Miller introduces us to that odd revolutionary, Charles Darwin -- a remarkably timid man who spent most of his life in seclusion; a semi-invalid riddled with doubts, fearing the controversy his theories might unleash; yet also the man who finally undermined belief in God's creation. Along the way we meet a fascinating cast of characters: Darwin's scientific predecessors, his contemporaries (including Alfred Russell Wallace, whose anticipation of natural selection forced Darwin to publish), his opponents, and his successors whose work in modern genetics provided necessary modifications to Darwin's own work. Splendidly illustrated, this clever, witty, highly informative book is the perfect introduction to Darwin's life and thought. |
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18th century ADAM SEDGWICK adapted adult alternative animals argument from design Beagle became belief biological change biologists breeding BUFFON Cape Verde cells Chagas disease CHARLES DARWIN Christian controversy Creationism Creationist creatures Darwin began Darwin recognised Darwin's theory DESCENT WITH MODIFICATION distinct doctrine dogmas dwarf earth Erasmus evidence evolution evolutionary thought Exhibit explain EXTINCT fact favour fertilized FitzRoy fluens FORTUITOUS NOVELTIES fossil types Galapagos gemmules genetic factors geneticists genotype geological gradually hereditary HMS Beagle human Huxley idea individual Islands J.D. Hooker Lamarck living things Lunar Society Lyell mates mechanism Mendel Mendelian morphological mutation natural history natural selection naturalist notebook notion organism Origin of Species permanent phenotype physical plants population predecessors proteins published regarded represented reproductive isolation RESEMBLANCE result scientific scientists separate sexual reproduction sperm stage structure struggle for existence survive T.H. Huxley tall transformation undergone Uniformitarianism unsolicited novelties variation voyage Wedgwood Weismann