History of Life - Hardcover

Cowen, Richard

4.18

55 ratings by Goodreads

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0470671734 ISBN 13: 9780470671733

Publisher: Wiley–Blackwell, 2013

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This text is designed for students and anyone else with an interest in the history of life on our planet. The author describes the biological evolution of Earth s organisms, and reconstructs their adaptations to the life they led, and the ecology and environment in which they functioned. On the grand scale, Earth is a constantly changing planet, continually presenting organisms with challenges. Changing geography, climate, atmosphere, oceanic and land environments set a stage in which organisms interact with their environments and one another, with evolutionary change an inevitable result. The organisms themselves in turn can change global environments: oxygen in our atmosphere is all produced by photosynthesis, for example. The interplay between a changing Earth and its evolving organisms is the underlying theme of the book. The book has a dedicated website which explores additional enriching information and discussion, and provides or points to the art for the book and many other images useful for teaching. See: www.wiley.com/go/cowen/historyoflife.

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Review:

"For both lecturers and students, the book has an appealing website, made to explore the topic further." (Geological Journal, 25 January 2015

"Though biogeographical patterns take a backseat to the grand narrative of descent, as an entry?]level textbook this is hard to surpass." (Frontiers of biogeography, 5 February 2013)

About the Author:

Richard Cowen learned how to write and think critically at Cambridge University, and how to teach and think creatively at the University of California, Davis. He received a campus Distinguished Teaching Award in 1993 and designed the course History of Life there. The book was written specifically for that course, and has gone on to become a best-selling textbook.

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