Microbes and Evolution: The World That Darwin Never Saw

by Roberto Kolter (Editor), Stanley R. Maloy

Explore the fundamental role of microbes in the natural history of our planet.

Inspired by a 2009 colloquium on microbial evolution convened at the Galapagos Islands, Microbes and Evolution continues to celebrate Charles Darwin and his landmark book On the Origin of Species. This title features 40 first-person essays written by microbiologists with a passion for evolutionary biology, whose thinking and career paths in science were influenced by Darwin’s seminal work. It includes personal viewpoints on the importance of evolutionary principles in the study of a variety of aspects of life science, from taxonomy, speciation, adaptation, social structure, and symbiosis to antibiotic resistance, genetics, and genomics.

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, Biology

314 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2012

Reviews

[Miriam · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are basically no books besides this that present an accessible presentation of mcrobial evolution. This book is important for the new niche it has carved out, and it is enjoyable because of the excellent and well written content. A must read for students of microbiology or evolution, and ambitious lovers of science.

[Zachary · Rating 3 out of 5]

As most books of essays by different contributors are, this was an uneven volume, but there are many good essays by fantastic workers in the field of microbial evolution. On the whole, a very enjoyable book!

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Occasionally fascinating, but generally too chatty. Also there was the tendency of the essays to end just as I was getting interested.

[Tristan Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone feeling like a neophyte in the science world/academia and wanting to explore more in the microbial ecology and evolution realm, I found these collection of essays to be extremely helpful and inspiring! So many annotations and additional reading will come from this. I want to note a couple of my favorite essays were “Lady Lump’s Mouthguard” by Jessica Green and “Do Bacteria Have Sex?” by Rosemary J. Redfield - Y’all understood and surpassed the assignment. Thank you for making science, fun and more approachable- it’s a gift to be an effective science communicator. I really thoroughly enjoyed the essays like these, that not only told you why the authors love microbes/their research, but also made them seem more human and the whole “hey maybe I can do this too”! Another great essay was written by a geobiologist who got their Bachelor’s in German studies- the microbe bug might be caught by anyone. Pun intended;)

I felt myself dragging through some really dense, insipid essays. Albeit I didn’t like those, there was information for me to glean there. I think it added variety and perhaps maybe a more versed microbiologist would enjoy those.

[juliana meurer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite the intrigue, adventure, and potential for discovery, it seems to me that microbial naturalism has not caught on as much as it should have in the 21st century. The study of microbial evolution lags behind that of macroorganisms, and it seems that there are relatively few microbiologists choosing microbial naturalism.

demorei, hein? leitura que travou todas as minhas outras, mas tudo bem. eu adorei o livro! é um livro composto por ensaios científicos, ou seja, cada capítulo era como ler um artigo mais simplificado. depois de três ou quatro capítulos, eu já estava mais do que satisfeita. isso acabou fazendo com que a leitura demorasse um pouco mais.

estudar ecologia microbiana sempre me dá um quentinho no coração. eu demorei muito tempo para perceber que esse era o tipo de pesquisa de bancada que eu gostaria de fazer e entrar a fundo nisso (no Brasil, aliás, é a área da biologia que mais conversa com a astrobiologia mesmo). ver que existem tantos cientistas incríveis que fazem esse tipo de pesquisa há tanto tempo me deixa muito feliz! obviamente os ensaios que eu mais gostei eram aqueles relacionados com a história natural dos micro-organismos, tava com pouca paciência pra ler sobre aplicações clínicas... eu gostei MUITO do capítulo do Prochlorococcus também!! acho que consegui aprender várias coisas aqui e espero ver alguns apontamentos desses ensaios reverberando na minha trajetória de pesquisa.

Fortunately, much grandeur remains. There are mysteries. There is beauty. Most is hidden in the very large and the very small, but a great deal persists in the folded spaces in between. Whenever I look closely and see something clearly for the first time, then, as with Darwin, wonder happens.

[Christian Eggers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Starts out slow, but the last several essays are very good.