Life Cycles: Reflections of an Evolutionary Biologist (Princeton Legacy Library) - Hardcover

Bonner, John Tyler

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0691033196 ISBN 13: 9780691033198

Publisher: Princeton University Press, 1993

Synopsis

Within a single captivating narrative, John Bonner combines an intensely personal memoir of scientific progress and an overview of what we now know about living things. Bonner, a major participant in the development of biology as an experimental science, draws on his life-long study of slime molds for an understanding of the life cycle-the foundation of all biology. In an age of increasing specialization and fragmentation among subfields of biology, this is a unique work of reflection and integration.

Originally published in 1993.

The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

About this title

About the Author

John Tyler Bonner, is George M. Moffett Professor of Biology Emeritus at Princeton University.

Reviews

Charming, fascinating, and insightful, this slim volume combines a memoir of a life in science with an accessible distillation of what we know about the workings of living things. Bonner (The Evolution of Complexity by Means of Natural Selection, 1988--not reviewed, etc.) is the professor we all wish we had. There's a vaguely 19th-century air about him--in his love for his work, his gentle sense of humor, his devotion to teaching, and his veneration of the teachers who guided his studies. ``I have devoted my life to slime molds,'' he begins, and after introducing us to the life cycle of the odd little organisms he's specialized in, he makes us a gift of the immensely potent lesson he's gleaned from their study: that an organism isn't just its adult form but its entire life cycle, and that it's the life cycle upon which evolution acts. With this understanding in mind, and with life cycles as his framework (interspersed with engaging anecdotes from his career), Bonner leads us through a variety of biological phenomena, micro and macro, that add up to a thorough overview of current biological thought, including the evolution of sexual reproduction; the mechanics of DNA and RNA; the evolution of size; and the development--instinctual as well as cultural--of self- awareness and of communication between species as well as within them. The best Bio 101 you're likely to find. (Twenty-four line illustrations) -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

All living creatures, be they a minute bacteria, a giant sequoia, or a lion, have a life cycle. Bonner, professor emeritus of biology at Princeton University, reviews what the life cycle is, how genes are integral to its operation, what the role of multicellularity and size are in development, and how the mysterious process of evolution contributes to the cycle. Writing in clear, nontechnical language, Bonner draws examples from the animal and plant world, including his own lifelong work with slime molds. Bonner's book has two unique aspects: it sees beyond the organism to the whole world, and it is partly autobiographical by revealing Booner's own development as a biologist. For general science collections.
- Michael D. Cramer, VPI&SU Lib., Blacksburg, Va.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Princeton University Press
• Publication date: 1993
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0691033196
• ISBN 13: 9780691033198
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 224