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Very Short Introductions #384
Teeth: A Very Short Introduction
Teeth are amazing -- the product of half a billion years of evolution. They provide fuel for the body by breaking apart other living things; and they must do it again and again over a lifetime without breaking in the process. This means that plants and animals have developed tough or hard tissues for protection, and teeth have evolved ways to sharpen or strengthen themselves to overcome those defenses. And just as different jobs require different tools, animals with different diets have different shaped teeth to deal with the variety of foods that they eat.
In this Very Short Introduction , Peter S. Ungar, an award-winning author and leading scientist, presents the story of teeth. Ungar outlines the key concepts, including insight into the origin of teeth and their evolution. Considering why teeth are important, he describes how they are made, and how they work, including their fundamental importance in the fossil record. Ungar finishes with a review of mammal teeth, looking at how they evolved and how recent changes to our diet are now affecting dental health.
About the
Oxford's Very Short Introductions series offers concise and original introductions to a wide range of subjects--from Islam to Sociology, Politics to Classics, Literary Theory to History, and Archaeology to the Bible. Not simply a textbook of definitions, each volume in this series provides trenchant and provocative--yet always balanced and complete--discussions of the central issues in a given discipline or field. Every Very Short Introduction gives a readable evolution of the subject in question, demonstrating how the subject has developed and how it has influenced society. Eventually, the series will encompass every major academic discipline, offering all students an accessible and abundant reference library. Whatever the area of study that one deems important or appealing, whatever the topic that fascinates the general reader, the Very Short Introductions series has a handy and affordable guide that will likely prove indispensable.
In this Very Short Introduction , Peter S. Ungar, an award-winning author and leading scientist, presents the story of teeth. Ungar outlines the key concepts, including insight into the origin of teeth and their evolution. Considering why teeth are important, he describes how they are made, and how they work, including their fundamental importance in the fossil record. Ungar finishes with a review of mammal teeth, looking at how they evolved and how recent changes to our diet are now affecting dental health.
About the
Oxford's Very Short Introductions series offers concise and original introductions to a wide range of subjects--from Islam to Sociology, Politics to Classics, Literary Theory to History, and Archaeology to the Bible. Not simply a textbook of definitions, each volume in this series provides trenchant and provocative--yet always balanced and complete--discussions of the central issues in a given discipline or field. Every Very Short Introduction gives a readable evolution of the subject in question, demonstrating how the subject has developed and how it has influenced society. Eventually, the series will encompass every major academic discipline, offering all students an accessible and abundant reference library. Whatever the area of study that one deems important or appealing, whatever the topic that fascinates the general reader, the Very Short Introductions series has a handy and affordable guide that will likely prove indispensable.
160 pages, Paperback
First published February 10, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 3, 2015
Most of us use our teeth on a daily basis. However, unless we have a toothache or some other serious dental mishap we don’t give much thought to teeth and their structure. On those occasions when we do, we realize how intricate and sophisticatedly shaped teeth are.
This short book will probably give you more information about teeth than most of us thought possible. It gives an evolutionary perspective on the development of teeth, and a lot of information on the difference in tooth structure between different species. It shows how truly structurally and mechanically remarkable teeth are. I doubt that even the best mechanical engineer would be able to design anything of comparable complexity.
The most relatable parts of the book are, naturally, those that explain the structure and the function of human teeth. Nonetheless, in order to appreciate their uniqueness it was necessary to contrast them to those of other animals, including those of primates – our closest relatives. The book offers some important insights, including the reason why has orthodontry become such a big issue in the West. Our modern diets feature prominently foods that are very preprocessed and soft, which puts far less pressure on our jaws during their development. Hence they become smaller, while still accommodating teeth of the same size. On the positive note our teeth don’t wear out as quickly as those of our ancestors, but the tradeoff is that many more of us now have to wear braces at some point.
Overall, this is a very interesting and well-written book that will provide you with a lot of new information. After reading it you will never think of your teeth the same way again.
This short book will probably give you more information about teeth than most of us thought possible. It gives an evolutionary perspective on the development of teeth, and a lot of information on the difference in tooth structure between different species. It shows how truly structurally and mechanically remarkable teeth are. I doubt that even the best mechanical engineer would be able to design anything of comparable complexity.
The most relatable parts of the book are, naturally, those that explain the structure and the function of human teeth. Nonetheless, in order to appreciate their uniqueness it was necessary to contrast them to those of other animals, including those of primates – our closest relatives. The book offers some important insights, including the reason why has orthodontry become such a big issue in the West. Our modern diets feature prominently foods that are very preprocessed and soft, which puts far less pressure on our jaws during their development. Hence they become smaller, while still accommodating teeth of the same size. On the positive note our teeth don’t wear out as quickly as those of our ancestors, but the tradeoff is that many more of us now have to wear braces at some point.
Overall, this is a very interesting and well-written book that will provide you with a lot of new information. After reading it you will never think of your teeth the same way again.
May 7, 2023
Perfect book for those who enjoy reading about the gory details of dental anatomy. Ungar's writing is sharp, witty, and refreshingly accessible, making even the most arcane topics seem approachable. His in-depth exploration of the evolution, function, and cultural significance of teeth is as fascinating as it is informative.
This book will leave you with a newfound appreciation for your pearly whites and maybe get you to brush at night too.
This book will leave you with a newfound appreciation for your pearly whites and maybe get you to brush at night too.
January 28, 2025
This book has incredible educational value… but it is oh so dry!
April 14, 2017
This book gave me a new perspective on the parts of our body that touch every single thing that we eat, functionally the mediator between the things that go from outside to inside our bodies, the eater and the eaten, as the author puts it.
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Although teeth rarely excite the attention that their importance warrants, their evolution among the early vertebrates without a doubt played an unrivaled role in the successful adaptation of these animals and their achievement of rapid and effective dominance in the organic world.
Some animals are homodont, all their teeth look about the same. Mammals and other animals that need to chew and break food into pieces are usually heterodont, their front and back teeth differ, with a dental division of labour for food acquisition and processing respectively. The planes of motion their lower jaws are capable of are also wider to facilitate crushing of food(side-to side, front-to-back, not just up and down).
In fact, the presence of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) is one of the defining characteristics of the mammalian family.
One of the reasons for mammals having only two sets of teeth is that endless replacements or ever-growing jaws would mess up the precise alignments between opposing teeth needed for mastication (chewing). Once adult size is reached the teeth can be permanent.
The key to the remarkable diversity of mammals is endothermy, the ability to heat the body from within. This allows mammals to live in colder climates and places with more fluctuating temperatures, and be active during the cool, dark night. It means more controlled conditions for chemical reactions in the body, so more complex systems can develop. And it permits sustained activity and higher travel speeds for larger territories and greater migration distances, stamina for foraging, predator avoidance, and parental care. It also allows for longer periods of growth and development of energy-hungry tissues, such as the brain.
The price of such is that a mammal at rest typically guzzles fuel at a rate five to ten times that of similar-sized animals that rely on their surroundings for heat.
A possible reason for the prevalence of misaligned teeth and crowded jaws is that our jaws our too small because they don't get enough exercise with modern day's highly processed foods. Such foods don't provide the strain necessary to stimulate normal growth of the jaw during childhood.
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Although teeth rarely excite the attention that their importance warrants, their evolution among the early vertebrates without a doubt played an unrivaled role in the successful adaptation of these animals and their achievement of rapid and effective dominance in the organic world.
Some animals are homodont, all their teeth look about the same. Mammals and other animals that need to chew and break food into pieces are usually heterodont, their front and back teeth differ, with a dental division of labour for food acquisition and processing respectively. The planes of motion their lower jaws are capable of are also wider to facilitate crushing of food(side-to side, front-to-back, not just up and down).
In fact, the presence of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) is one of the defining characteristics of the mammalian family.
One of the reasons for mammals having only two sets of teeth is that endless replacements or ever-growing jaws would mess up the precise alignments between opposing teeth needed for mastication (chewing). Once adult size is reached the teeth can be permanent.
The key to the remarkable diversity of mammals is endothermy, the ability to heat the body from within. This allows mammals to live in colder climates and places with more fluctuating temperatures, and be active during the cool, dark night. It means more controlled conditions for chemical reactions in the body, so more complex systems can develop. And it permits sustained activity and higher travel speeds for larger territories and greater migration distances, stamina for foraging, predator avoidance, and parental care. It also allows for longer periods of growth and development of energy-hungry tissues, such as the brain.
The price of such is that a mammal at rest typically guzzles fuel at a rate five to ten times that of similar-sized animals that rely on their surroundings for heat.
A possible reason for the prevalence of misaligned teeth and crowded jaws is that our jaws our too small because they don't get enough exercise with modern day's highly processed foods. Such foods don't provide the strain necessary to stimulate normal growth of the jaw during childhood.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews