Summaries | Headlines

Beyond A 'Speed Limit' On Mutations, Species Risk Extinction (October 4, 2007) -- Scientists have identified a virtual "speed limit" on the rate of molecular evolution in organisms, and the magic number appears to be six mutations per genome per generation -- a level beyond which ... > full story

Driving Force Of Evolution? Evolution Of Proteins Linked To Species' Metabolic Rate (October 4, 2007) -- "Survival of the fittest" has popularly described evolution for more than a century, but a new study provides further evidence that random genetic mutations over millions of years may also play a ... > full story

Huge New Dinosaur Had A Serious Bite (October 3, 2007) -- The newest dinosaur species to emerge from Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument had some serious bite, according to researchers. 'It was one of the most robust duck-billed dinosaurs ever,' ... > full story

Galapagos Hawk's Evolutionary History Illuminated (October 2, 2007) -- Scientists used DNA sequences from feather lice to study how island populations of their host, the Galápagos Hawk might have colonized the Galápagos islands, home to the endangered and declining ... > full story

Fossil Data Plugs Gaps In Current Knowledge, Study Shows (October 2, 2007) -- Researchers have shown for the first time that fossils can be used as effectively as living species in understanding the complex branching in the evolutionary tree of life. While many scientists feel ... > full story

Census Of Protein Architectures Offers New View Of History Of Life (October 1, 2007) -- Protein architectures -- the three-dimensional structures of specific regions within proteins -- provide an extraordinary window on the history of life. Scientists compiled a global census of protein ... > full story

Antarctic Plants And Animal Life Survived Ice Ages (September 30, 2007) -- Springtails, mites, worms and plant life could help solve the mystery of Antarctica's glacial history according to new research. Scientists report that the evolutionary history of Antarctica's ... > full story

Fish Diet Linked To Evolution, Ten Million Year Old Chipped Teeth Show (September 30, 2007) -- Chips from 10 million years ago have revealed new insights into fish diets and their influence on fish evolution, according to a new article in Science. The chips were found, along with scratches, on ... > full story

DNA Extracted From Woolly Mammoth Hair (September 27, 2007) -- Scientists discovered that hair shafts provide an ideal source of ancient DNA -- a better source than bones and muscle for studying the genome sequences of extinct animals. They sequenced the entire ... > full story

Human Ancestors More Primitive That Once Thought (September 26, 2007) -- Analysis of the earliest known hominid fossils outside of Africa has revealed that the first human ancestors to inhabit Eurasia were more primitive than previously thought. The fossils, dated to 1.8 ... > full story

New Light Shed On The 'Hobbit' (September 25, 2007) -- Researchers have completed a new study on Homo floresiensis, commonly referred to as the "hobbit," a 3-foot-tall, 18,000-year-old hominin skeleton, discovered four years ago on the Indonesian island ... > full story

Why Are Some Groups Of Animals So Diverse? (September 20, 2007) -- A new study on finger-sized Australian lizards sheds light on one of the most striking yet largely unexplained patterns in nature: why some groups of animals have evolved into hundreds, even ... > full story

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Evolution in Four Dimensions : Genetic, Epigenetic, Behavioral, and Symbolic Variation in the History of Life (Life and Mind: Philosophical Issues in Biology and Psychology)
Ideas about heredity and evolution are undergoing a revolutionary change. New findings in molecular biology challenge the gene-centered version of Darwinian theory according to which adaptation ... > read more

The Plausibility of Life: Resolving Darwin's Dilemma
In the 150 years since Darwin, the field of evolutionary biology has left a glaring gap in understanding how animals developed their astounding variety and complexity. The standard answer has been ... > read more

Darwin's Dangerous Idea: Evolution and the Meanings of Life
One of the best descriptions of the nature and implications of Darwinian evolution ever written, it is firmly based in biological information and appropriately extrapolated to possible applications ... > read more

Biology : The Unity and Diversity of Life (with CD-ROM and InfoTrac)
Cecie Starr and Ralph Taggart are among the most successful authors in introductory, biological science instruction because of their lively approach, engaging writing style, current coverage of the ... > read more

Evolution of the Insects
This book chronicles the complete evolutionary history of insects--their living diversity and relationships as well as 400 million years of fossils. Introductory sections cover the living species ... > read more

The Complete World of Human Evolution
A compelling, authoritative, and superbly illustrated account of the rise and eventual domination of our species.Human domination of the earth is now so complete that it is easy to forget how ... > read more

From So Simple a Beginning: Darwin's Four Great Books (Voyage of the H.M.S. Beagle, The Origin of Species, The Descent of Man, The Expression of Emotions in Man and Animals)
A gorgeous gift and a landmark work that is an essential addition to everyone's personal library.Never before have the four great works of Charles Darwin—Voyage of the H.M.S. Beagle (1845), The ... > read more

Biological Science (2nd Edition)
Infused with the spirit of inquiry, Freeman's Biological Science helps teach readers the fundamentals while introducing them to the excitement that drives the science. By presenting unifying concepts ... > read more

Myths of the Archaic State : Evolution of the Earliest Cities, States, and Civilizations
Classical archaeology promotes the view that a state's evolution reflects general, universal forces. Norman Yoffee challenges the model in this book by presenting more complex and multi-linear models ... > read more

Earth: Portrait of a Planet
This survey is the first to weave together the three major intellectual revolutions in the Earth Sciences that have occurred in the last forty years--the theory of plate tectonics, the ... > read more