More Than Darwin: An Encyclopedia of the People and Places of the Evolution-Creationism Controversy - Hardcover

Moore, Randy; Decker, Mark

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0313341559 ISBN 13: 9780313341557

Publisher: Greenwood, 2008

Synopsis

Since the middle of the 19th century, debates over evolution have occurred almost non-stop. From the publication of Charles Darwin's Origin of Species to the recent Kitzmiller v. Dover trial, there has rarely been a time in which scientists, educators, theologians, politicians, and judges have not been involved in these debates. How can anyone keep all of these individuals straight without a scorecard? More than Darwin: An Encyclopedia of the People and Places of the Evolution-Creationism Controversy is that resource, providing accessible and balanced synopses of every major person, organization, and place involved in the long history of the evolution-creationism controversies.

About this title

About the Author

Randy Moore, PhD, is professor of biology and H.T. Morse-Alumni Distinguished Teaching Professor at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis-St. Paul, USA.

Reviews

Grade 9 Up—The vast majority of these nearly 500 entries cover individuals, but they also include organizations, locations, and important court cases. Articles range in length from a few sentences to several pages, and about a quarter of them list further reading (usually one popular literature citation). The authors are carefully neutral. However, Charles Darwin and the Scopes Trial are overemphasized, with every person and place even remotely connected to them noted. The book is surprisingly unprofessional. There are neither cross-references nor a glossary. Evolution and creationism are never defined; while much of the material is accessible to high school students, the authors at times assume a college-level scientific and religious background. This results in some difficult, unexplained vocabulary ("biblical flat-Earthism," "Young-Earth creationism," "pangenesis"). Many articles omit key facts or are tantalizingly incomplete. Human-interest material abounds, including awards and prizes, marriage(s), children, and burial places, while scientific relevance is underplayed. Minor individuals get a limited snapshot relating to evolution or creationism; the entry on Sinclair Lewis, for example, only mentions his novel Elmer Gantry. Major players receive more comprehensive biographies, which plunge into their lives without concisely identifying their significance, and lack summaries. There are scattered black-and-white illustrations. The preface mentions the publisher's related Web site without indicating its address. Finally, the index oddly includes quotations, many under "A," "An," or "The," as are book titles. Stanley A. Rice's Encyclopedia of Evolution (Facts On File, 2006) provides more complete coverage. Nothing similar is available on creationism.—Ann W. Moore, Schenectady County Public Library, NY
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Considering the controversy surrounding evolution and creationism over the last century and a half, and its role in the modern-day curriculum, the publication of this volume is timely. The audience is students and adults who need to be informed about the issues. School-board members who may be voting on a local ordinance come to mind immediately. Entries cover both sides of the controversy and include people, places, and events. Biographical entries treat figures such as William Jennings Bryan, Jerry Falwell, and E. O. Wilson. Some portraits and photos are included as well as some quotes by the individuals. Some of the events that are covered include the forced sterilization of Carrie Buck by the state of Virginia and the famous Scopes trial in Dayton, Tennessee. There are also entries for the Young-Earth creationist theory regarding the origins of the Grand Canyon and roadside dinosaur replicas used to promote creationism. Some entries list one or two resources for further information. An appendix showing Scopes trial sites precedes a general bibliography. A good complement to reference sources on evolution, More than Darwin adds to the growing documentation of the evolution-creationism controversy. Recommended for most libraries. --Jack O'Gorman

Edition details

• Publisher: Greenwood
• Publication date: 2008
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0313341559
• ISBN 13: 9780313341557
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 448