In the Light of Evolution: Essays from the Laboratory and Field

by Jonathan B. Losos (Editor)

In the Light of Evolution is a collection of essays by leading scientists, and includes essays by science writer Carl Zimmer, historian Janet Browne, and a foreword by journalist David Quammen. As Quammen says in his foreword, the book collects "reports from the field, plainspoken descriptions of lifetime obsessions, hard-earned bits of wisdom, and works in progress, pried loose from some of the most interesting, eminent researchers in evolutionary biology..." It is a book "for readers who are fascinated by evolutionary biology and who desire to understand better the day-by-day, speciesby-species, ecosystem-by-ecosystem texture of its practice as a scientific profession." The book is intended for anyone with an interest in evolution, and it can be used in a wide variety of courses, including major's and non-major's introductory biology and evolution classes.

Genres: Science, Evolution, Nonfiction, Philosophy, Nature, Biology, Popular Science

330 pages, Hardcover

First published July 28, 2010

Reviews

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as impressed as I'd hoped to be, based on the fact that Jonathan Losos was editor. This book didn't seem to know its audience: one minute it was defining terms that would be obvious to anyone with an undergrad biology background ad nauseum and the next it was breezing over much more complex topics that the layperson would probably need more explanation of. There were some high points, notably the essay by Hopi Hoekstra, but my lab group gave up reading chapters to discuss over coffee less than half-way through the book. Probably still a good read for anyone with some background in ecology and evolutionary biology, but who is not actively involved in the field.

[Erik Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished “In the Light of Evolution, Essays from the Laboratory and Field” edited by Jonathan B. Losos. 2011 from Roberts and Company publishers. What a great window into how far we have come since Darwin, and yet how the earnestness and joy of discovery of evolutionary biological research is still as fresh and wonderful as it was in Darwin’s own Origin. The other thing that struck me as I was reading was the way that taking up the challenge of evolutionary research has enriched many peoples lives, as is well represented in this book. It has taken people to the arctic, let by a study of global geological maps and satellite photos. It has taken them to “natural laboratory islands” and “test tube lakes” where the wonders of evolution can be seen in a single lifetime or lay clear the paths of diversity in crystal waters that show the forces of natural selection. It also speaks to the human experience of being “out there” as not only an observer, but a part of the biosphere, and how enriching that experience can be. Perhaps the most striking value that takes this book beyond naturalist journaling and yet makes it more reflective than much scientific prose is the way in which these authors weave tales of their adventures with new genetic, fossil, microscopic, chemical, sonic, and other analysis that occurs in their laboratories and instrumented field work. This gives us insights into how the research of evolutionary biology has transformed from Darwin’s visual observations and the flood of letters on which he could stand to observe the globe in a then unimagined clarity. Today it allows us to see into the very DNA as we watch animals interact and change in nearly real time with their environments, solving long-troublesome riddles and uncovering new unimagined beauties of adaptation. From the glory of the Peacock’s tail, to the tiktaalik’s first fishy crawl up onto land this book of adventures introduces some of the newest insights into the process of evolution just as Hubble has shown us galaxies undreamt. Each heartwarming tale is also an education and well worth the read.

[Omar Al-Zaman]

biology textbook

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book, a collection of essays by evolutionary biologists about their research programs, is actually called "In the Light of Evolution". I used it in an upper division class, in order to better engage the students with the process of science and the people who do it. The essays do a great job of conveying the highly integrative nature of evolutionary biology.

[Bettie · Rating 4 out of 5]

TTC Audio



Jonathan B Losos
Professor
Museum of Comparative Zoology
Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology
Harvard University

[Horacio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hopi Hoekstra rules!