anniversary sociobiology biogeography twenty-fifth

books:

65 reviews
Edward O. Wilson

Vintage, 2003

The future of life - Unifying humanity through the mystery of nature
Nature provides us with the means for our survival, but we deplete the natural resources beyond their possibilities of renewal. We urgently need the introduction of a new economic standard, like the Living Planet Index (LPI), which measures the state of forests, freshwater and marine ecosystems on a global scale. The author says : "From 1970 to 1995 the index, as calculated by the World Wide ...

From So Simple a Beginning: Darwin's Four Great Books (Voyage of the Beagle, The Origin of Species, The ...

26 reviews
Charles Darwin, Edward O. Wilson

W. W. Norton & Company, 2005

So Simple a Beginning, So Profound a Journey
I have had two worn-out paperback copies of Origin of Species and The Voyage of the Beagle for many years and enjoyed them greatly. But, my eyes are not quite as good as they used to be at reading small print, and besides I wanted nicer copies after all this time. I had never gotten around to The Descent of Man and The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals, which I wanted to read in ...

Consilience: The Unity of Knowledge

154 reviews
Edward Osborne Wilson

Vintage, 1999

An amazing ride that pulls you in and doesn't let go
This may be one of the best popular science books I've ever read. Put simply, Prof. Wilson if trying to lay out the claim that all sciences: the social and the hard, at there base level, share some common epigenetic features. His arguments span several disciplines: from biology to physics to religion to economics to ethics. His arguments are compelling, and he freely admits that he may be ...

Naturalist

15 reviews
Edward O. Wilson

Island Press, 2006

Excellent
An engaging and well-written account of the famous biologist's intellectual development from his early to his mature years and most important achievements. Nice discussions of some of his most interesting and important ideas punctuate this history. For example, there's a good section on the origin and development of his ecological ideas and the theory of island biogeography. Wilson is always a ...

Silent Spring

157 reviews
Rachel Carson

Mariner Books, 2002

Must Read
I have wanted to read this book forever. I'm glad I finally got a chance to. It is a true eye opener.

Biophilia

4 reviews
Edward O. Wilson

Harvard University Press, 1984

Still Relevant Today
Edward Wilson is an entomologist. He studies insects. It's significant that he can write a book that can appeal to so many readers, given the obscure public perception of insects and arthropods. I expected this book to be an onslaught of scientific explanations and studies, but this was clearly not the case. Wilson writes about his worldly field biology travels with such rich, sensory language. ...

Evolution: The First Four Billion Years

8 reviews

Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2009

Great overview of evolution
Got through the first half of the book, the long essays and I have to say that I am pleased with the material. I haven't gotten to the part on evolution and religion yet, but due to the 'political correctness' in the book, the two chapters covering that topic will most-likely not be too good. I'm a hard core scientist, evolution by natural selection, PERIOD! There is NO acceptable middle ground. ...

Genes, Mind, And Culture: The Coevolutionary Process

2 reviews
Charles J. Lumsden; Edward O Wilson

World Scientific Publishing Company, 2005

Brilliant ideas, flawed analysis
It is difficult to decide whether to praise this book for its (at the time) innovative and novel approach to gene-culture coevolution or criticize it for its endless slurry of ad hoc models with groundless or unspecified assumptions. One can do both. The idea they present, that there is a positive feedback mechanism between biological and cultural evolution, is by far the best working ...

The Diversity of Life

38 reviews
Edward O. Wilson

W. W. Norton & Company, 2000

The Diversity of Life
This is an outstanding book. If you read this before you read Darwin's Origin of Species you'll get soooo much more from reading the latter. Anyway, the book encapsulates in easy to read prose much information that your mind can easily wrap itself around.

On Human Nature: Revised Edition

39 reviews
Edward O. Wilson

Harvard University Press, 2004

Fascinating Introduction to Sociobiology
If you prefer a scientific approach over opinion or speculation, then you'll enjoy this book. Written around the time of the emergence of sociobiology it has a smooth and sophisticated style. For me, it starts a little slowly and a tad too philosophically, but the later rewards are worth your patience. The chapters on aggression and sex are particularly compelling as insights into our nature.

The Biophilia Hypothesis (A Shearwater book)

5 reviews

Island Press, 1995

Wonderful reading
This was recommended by a scientist-science teacher-friend and I was simply blown away by the implications. If this theory is correct, then it explains the human descent into madness brought on by increased development without thought.

Land Mosaics: The Ecology of Landscapes and Regions

1 review
Richard T. T. Forman

Cambridge University Press, 1995

Basic concepts
This is an introductory level text for those interested in landscape ecology. The authors do a nice job of defining jargon common to the field and provide some equations for various chapter subjects in chapter appendices. The references cited section of the book is comprehensive and useful. Personally, I found the appendices and the reference list at the end of the book to be more useful than ...

The Ants

23 reviews
Bert Holldobler, Edward O. Wilson

Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1990

Outstanding achievement
This book is truly remarkable. Written in the cool, precise, and accessible language of a traditional biological monograph, the text presents a comprehensive understanding of myrmecology. It is difficult to imagine a relevant topic which is not touched upon in the work. The large-format book runs to 732 pages, is divided into 20 chapters, and includes a glossary and an extensive annotated ...

Journey to the Ants: A Story of Scientific Exploration

25 reviews
Bert Hölldobler, Edward O. Wilson

Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1998

Truly a fascinating adventure to another world
Journey to the Ants is a shorter version of the authors' monumental The Ants (1990), a 732-page tome aimed at professional biologists with a lot of technical language and a clear encyclopedic intent. This book, as Holldobler and Wilson explain in the Preface, is of "a more manageable length, with less technical language and with an admitted and unavoidable bias toward those topics and species on ...

Sociobiology: The New Synthesis, Twenty-fifth Anniversary Edition

9 reviews
Edward O. Wilson

Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2000

The Tests of Time
Dr. Wilson's "Sociobiology," together with "The Insect Societies" and "On Human Nature" (that three volume set is essential to any thinking man's library) is sufficient to challenge and focus any perspective on Evolution and Society. These volumes, even after 30 yrs., simply do not allow themselves to be ignored. Someone without both concentration and some technical background will have a tough ...

Nature Revealed: Selected Writings, 1949-2006

4 reviews
Edward O. Wilson

The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2006

A Superb Collection ...
This is a superb collection of over sixty original scientific papers, book extracts and other articles by Ed Wilson, one of the all-time great scientists. Each article is placed into historical context with a new introduction by Wilson. Organized by major theme area rather than chronologically, the book illustrates how Wilson's grander biological theories have been underpinned by a deep, ...

The Theory of Island Biogeography (Princeton Landmarks in Biology)

4 reviews
Robert H. MacArthur, Edward O. Wilson

Princeton University Press, 2001

Reprint of MacArthur's and Wilson's Seminal Ecological Tome
Originally published as part of the Princeton University Press' Monographs in Population Biology series, Robert MacArthur's and Edward O. Wilson's "Theory Of Island Biogeography" is regarded by many as the most influential tome in theoretical ecology published in the latter half of the 20th Century. Its importance is due to its success in predicting the causes and outcomes of variations in ...

Cockroaches: Ecology, Behavior, and Natural History

1 review
William J. Bell, Louis M. Roth, ...

The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2007

A specialty pick well suited for any collection delving into insect natural history.
College-level collections strong in entomological references will find an invaluable detail to COCKROACHES, a review of the approximately 4,000 species within the suborder Blattaria. Chapters explore the history and behavior of cockroaches, describing their colors, shapes, diet, reproduction habits and more, and including analysis of the ecology and evolution of the species. Over 100 ...

The Diversity of Life

1 review
Edward O. Wilson

Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1992

flannerysgreenguide.com review
Great book for Biology enthusiasts. I liked his new discoverys. Particularly as the pertained to Orbitid Mites and Ocean Eco-Systems.

Sociobiology: The Abridged Edition

2 reviews
Edward O. Wilson

Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2004

Impressive
Wilson really is one of the "twentieth centuries greatest thinkers." This is a dense and demanding publication requiring a scientifically literate audience. It covers basic concepts from altruism, selfishness, and spite; including communication, aggression, social roles, sex, and parenting from "invertebrates" to vertebrates. Now, in 2007, this is really more of a 'classic'. For intro ...

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