Written in Stone: The Hidden Secrets of Fossils and the Story of Life on Earth - Softcover

Brian Switek

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1848312628 ISBN 13: 9781848312623

Publisher: Icon Books, 2011

Synopsis

"Switek seamlessly intertwines two types of evolution: one of life on earth and the other of paleontology itself."--"Discover Magazine"

""In delightful prose, [Switek] . . . superbly shows that '[i]f we can let go of our conceit, ' we will see the preciousness of life in all its forms."--"Publishers Weekly"(starred review)

"Highly instructive . . . a warm, intelligent yeoman's guide to the progress of life."--"Kirkus Reviews"

"Magisterial . . . part historical account, part scientific detective story. Switek's elegant prose and thoughtful scholarship will change the way you see life on our planet. This book marks the debut of an important new voice."--Neil Shubin

"Elegantly and engagingly crafted, Brian Switek's narrative interweaves stories and characters not often encountered in books on paleontology--at once a unique, informative and entertaining read."--Niles Eldredge

"If you want to read one book to get up to speed on evolution, read"Written in Stone."Brian Switek's clear and compelling book is full of fascinating stories about how scientists have read the fossil record to trace the evolution of life on Earth."--Ann Gibbons

"[Switek's] accounts of dinosaurs, birds, whales, and our own primate ancestors are not just fascinating for their rich historical detail, but also for their up-to-date reporting on paleontology's latest discoveries."--Carl Zimmer

"After reading this book, you will have a totally new context in which to interpret the evolutionary history of amphibians, mammals, whales, elephants, horses, and especially humans."--Donald R. Prothero

Spectacular fossil finds make today's headlines; new technology unlocks secrets of skeletons unearthed a hundred years ago. Still, evolution is often poorly represented by the media and misunderstood by the public. A potent antidote to pseudoscience, "Written in Stone"is an engrossing history of evolutionary discovery for anyone who has marveled at the variety and richness of life.

About this title

About the Author

BRIAN SWITEK writes a blog for Wired magazine which has been featured in the Guardian, Daily Mail, New Scientist, The New York Times and The Times ('Brilliant writing about palaeontology and evolution, with great daily photos'). He has been a guest on BBC Radio 4's Material World and written for The Times and the Guardian.

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Beginning with a recently discovered 47-million-year-old primate fossil, Switek effectively and eloquently demonstrates the exponential increase in fossils that have been found since Darwin first published On the Origin of Species. In delightful prose, he blends information about fossil evidence with the scientific debates about how that evidence might be best interpreted. Switek, who writes the Smithsonian's Dinosaur Tracking blog, focuses on evidence for the evolution of major lineages, from reptiles to birds and from fish to tetrapods. He also explains at length how whales, horses, and humans evolved, marshaling compelling fossil evidence and combining it with information from molecular biology; at every step, he makes clear what is still unknown. He underscores that life forms have not "progressed" through evolution to end with Homo sapiens as the highest life form; rather, evolution has produced "a wildly branching tree of life with no predetermined path or endpoint." He superbly shows that "f we can let go of our conceit," we will see the preciousness of life in all its forms. 90 b&w illus. (Nov.) (c)
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About this edition

• Publisher: Icon Books
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 1848312628
• ISBN 13: 9781848312623
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 320