Remarkable Creatures: Epic Adventures in the Search for the Origin of Species

In1809,whenDarwinwasborn,muchoftheworldwasanunexploredwilderness.Ourknowledgeofthepastwasnonexistent,andourpictureofourspecies’historylittlemorethanasetoffantasticmythsandfairytales.Butanewerawasdawning.Fivedecadeslater,OntheOriginoftheSpecieswasabletodrawonthepioneeringworkofexplorersandnaturaliststoproduceatheorythatrevolutionizedourconceptionofourworld.Andtherevolutiondidn’tstopwiththepublicationofDarwin’smasterwork.150yearslater,his‘dangerousidea’isstillheadlinenews,deniedbymany,capableofenraginganddividing,evenasbiologistsdecipherthe3-billion-yearhistoryoflifeaswritteninourveryDNA.Thisbooktellsthestoriesofthemostdramaticadventuresandimportantdiscoveriesintwocenturiesofnaturalhistory-fromAlexandervonHumboldt’sepicjourneysinSouthAmericatothehi-techgenome-readingprojectsmakingheadlinestoday-andhowtheygavebirthtoandhavenourishedtheevolutionrevolution.--ThistextreferstothePaperbackedition.