Biology: An Illustrated History of Life Science

Ponderables: 100 Discoveries that Changed History, Who Did What When

by Tom Jackson

Here is the essential guide to biology, an authoritative reference book and fold out timeline that examines how we have uncovered the secrets of lifethe most complex process in the Universe. From the workings of molecules to the way entire oceans or continents of lifeforms interact, biology seeks to understand how it is that something can be alive, how it fends off death and how it leaves more life in its wake. We follow the journey through the history of life science to find out why the dolphin got its name (it is the womb fish), how a seven-foot strand of DNA is able to build your body, and what gives a lobster its blue blood. The great names, such as Darwin and Linnaeus, are joined by lesser known discoverers, such as Karl von Frisch who discovered that bees dance and Jan Baptist van Helmont who found a plant uses air and water to grow. Biology today is still very much a live science, finding a purpose in robot design and helping us to understand non-living complex systems like the Internet. Biology has changed the way we understand ourselves. What will it tell us next?

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, Biology

168 pages, Hardcover

Published October 9, 2017

About the author

"I'm a non-fiction author and project editor (plus I do a bit of journalism). I'm available for project development, writing, project management and I also work as a packager. Click on the links above to see examples of my work.

But first some background: Over the last 20 years, I've written books, magazine and newspaper articles, for online and for television. I get to write about a wide range of subjects, everything from axolotls to zoroastrianism. However, my specialties are natural history, technology and all things scientific. I've worked on projects with Brian May, Patrick Moore, Marcus de Sautoy and Carol Vorderman and for major international publishers, such as Dorling Kindersley, National Geographic, Scholastic, Hachette, Facts on File and BBC Magazines.

I spend my days finding fun ways of communicating all kinds of facts, new and old, to every age group and reading ability. I live in Bristol, England, with my wife and three children. I studied zoology at Bristol University and have had spells working at the zoos in Jersey and Surrey. I used to be something of a conservationist, which included planting trees in Somerset, surveying Vietnamese jungle and rescuing buffaloes from drought-ridden Zimbabwe. Writing jobs have also taken me to the Galápagos Islands, the Amazon rainforest, the coral reefs of Indonesia and the Sahara Desert. Nowadays, I can be found mainly in the attic."
~http://tomjackson.weebly.com/

Reviews

[Degenerate Chemist · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this as a Christmas present and I wasn't expecting much from it. I was pleasantly surprised.

This is basically a coffee table book, but it could also be used to introduce children to biological concepts. It has beautiful photographs and is well researched. It covers an impressive range of topics and is fun to read.

The first 100 pages of this book cover the most influential ideas in biology starting with Aristotle and ending with astrobiology. In between there are discussions on epigenetics, medieval bestiarys, and Darwin. Each topic gets approximately one page of discussion. This is meant to introduce topics in very general terms, not explain them in detail.

The remainder of the book dedicates a few pages to the basic tenets of biology, current topics biologists are being investigated, and a brief list of influential biologists.

I was impressed with this book. It is a great introduction to a lot of ideas. I learned something new from reading it. This is definitely worth looking at if you have a basic interest in biological sciences but not much of a background in biology.

[David Dunnagan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great illustrated primer on the disciplines, history and major discoveries of biology.

It does a great job of placing discoveries in their historical context, which shows how discoveries build on each other to make new advances possible.

I thought there were a handful sections that did a poor job of explaining their subject. Especially the short section on Alternation of Generations that provides no useful information at all if you don't already understand the topic.

But overall this served as an engrossing, highly readable refresher on the fundamentals of biology.

[Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I always enjoy perusing these "ponderables" on the topics they've chosen for the series. It feels like a combination of a classic DK and anthology on a topic. Nothing needs to be read in order. A reader can skip around or read a few of them related to a topic they're interested in without needing the context of what came before it or what will come afterward.

The inset pictures complimenting the explanations and textboxes make it engaging.

[Indah Threez Lestari · Rating 4 out of 5]

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