Evolution: The History of an Idea
10 best books like Evolution: The History of an Idea (Peter J. Bowler): Why Evolution Is True, The God Delusion, Ever Since Darwin: Reflections in Natural History, The Third Culture: Beyond the Scientific Revolution, Beyond the Hoax: Science, Philosophy and Culture, Evolution: Making Sense of Life, The Copernican Revolution: Planetary Astronomy in the Development of Western Thought, Higher Superstition: The Academic Left and Its Quarrels with Science, Seven Clues to the Origin of Life: A Scientific Detective Story, A Feeling for the Organism: The Life and Work of Barbara McClintock
| Author | Jerry A. Coyne |
| ISBN | 0670020532 |
Why evolution is more than just a theory: it is a fact.
In all the current highly publicized debates about creationism and its descendant "intelligent design," there is an element of the controversy that is rarely mentioned-the "evidence," the empirical truth of evolution by natural selection....
| Author | Richard Dawkins |
| ISBN | 0618680004 |
A preeminent scientist - and the world's most prominent atheist - asserts the irrationality of belief in God, and the grievous harm religion has inflicted on society, from the Crusades to 9/11.
With rigor and wit, Dawkins examines God in all his forms, from the sex-obsessed tyrant of the Old...
Ever Since Darwin: Reflections in Natural History
| Author | Stephen Jay Gould |
| ISBN | 0393308189 |
More than any other modern scientists, Stephen Jay Gould has opened up to millions the wonders of evolutionary biology. His genius as an essayist lies in his unmatched ability to use his knowledge of the world, including popular culture, to illuminate the realm of science.
Ever Since Darwin,...
| Author | John Brockman |
| ISBN | 0684823446 |
Thirty-five years ago, C. P. Snow, in a now famous essay, wrote about the polarization of the "two cultures" -- literary intellectuals on the one hand, and scientists on the other. Although he hoped for the emergence of a "third culture" that would bridge the gap, it is only recently that science has changed...
| Author | Alan Sokal |
| ISBN | 0199239207 |
When physicist Alan Sokal revealed that his 1996 article, "Transgressing the Boundaries: Toward a Transformative Hermeneutics of Quantum Gravity," published in Social Text, was a hoax, the ensuing scandal made the front page of the New York Times and caused an uproar amongst the post-modernists...
| Author | Carl Zimmer |
| ISBN | 1936221691 |
Science writer Carl Zimmer and evolutionary biologist Douglas Emlen have teamed up to write a textbook intended for biology majors that will inspire students while delivering a solid foundation in evolutionary biology. Zimmer brings the same story-telling skills he displayed in The Tangled Bank,...
| Author | Thomas S. Kuhn |
| ISBN | 0674171039 |
For scientist and layman alike this book provides vivid evidence that the Copernican Revolution has by no means lost its significance today. Few episodes in the development of scientific theory show so clearly how the solution to a highly technical problem can alter our basic thought processes and...
| Author | Paul R. Gross |
| ISBN | 0801857074 |
With the emergence of "cultural studies" and the blurring of once-clear academic boundaries, scholars are turning to subjects far outside their traditional disciplines and areas of expertise. In Higher Superstition scientists Paul Gross and Norman Levitt raise serious questions about the growing...
| Author | A.G. Cairns-Smith |
| ISBN | 0521398282 |
A general, generic understanding of the origin of life is that organic chemicals came together by chance in just the right way so that replication occurred. Then random variation and natural selection took it from there and favored the better replicators. Cairns-Smith doubts this speculative account...
Quotes I love---
"The word 'understanding' and the particular meaning she attributed to it, is the cornerstone of Barbara McClintock's entire approach to science. For her, the smallest details provided the keys to the larger whole. It was her conviction that the closer her focus, the greater...
