Relentless Evolution

Nonfiction, Science & Nature, Science, Biological Sciences, Ecology, Evolution
Cover of the book Relentless Evolution by John N. Thompson, University of Chicago Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: John N. Thompson ISBN: 9780226018898
Publisher: University of Chicago Press Publication: April 15, 2013
Imprint: University of Chicago Press Language: English
Author: John N. Thompson
ISBN: 9780226018898
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Publication: April 15, 2013
Imprint: University of Chicago Press
Language: English

At a glance, most species seem adapted to the environment in which they live. Yet species relentlessly evolve, and populations within species evolve in different ways. Evolution, as it turns out, is much more dynamic than biologists realized just a few decades ago.

 

In Relentless Evolution, John N. Thompson explores why adaptive evolution never ceases and why natural selection acts on species in so many different ways. Thompson presents a view of life in which ongoing evolution is essential and inevitable. Each chapter focuses on one of the major problems in adaptive evolution: How fast is evolution? How strong is natural selection? How do species co-opt the genomes of other species as they adapt? Why does adaptive evolution sometimes lead to more, rather than less, genetic variation within populations? How does the process of adaptation drive the evolution of new species? How does coevolution among species continually reshape the web of life? And, more generally, how are our views of adaptive evolution changing?

 

Relentless Evolution draws on studies of all the major forms of life—from microbes that evolve in microcosms within a few weeks to plants and animals that sometimes evolve in detectable ways within a few decades. It shows evolution not as a slow and stately process, but rather as a continual and sometimes frenetic process that favors yet more evolutionary change.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

At a glance, most species seem adapted to the environment in which they live. Yet species relentlessly evolve, and populations within species evolve in different ways. Evolution, as it turns out, is much more dynamic than biologists realized just a few decades ago.

 

In Relentless Evolution, John N. Thompson explores why adaptive evolution never ceases and why natural selection acts on species in so many different ways. Thompson presents a view of life in which ongoing evolution is essential and inevitable. Each chapter focuses on one of the major problems in adaptive evolution: How fast is evolution? How strong is natural selection? How do species co-opt the genomes of other species as they adapt? Why does adaptive evolution sometimes lead to more, rather than less, genetic variation within populations? How does the process of adaptation drive the evolution of new species? How does coevolution among species continually reshape the web of life? And, more generally, how are our views of adaptive evolution changing?

 

Relentless Evolution draws on studies of all the major forms of life—from microbes that evolve in microcosms within a few weeks to plants and animals that sometimes evolve in detectable ways within a few decades. It shows evolution not as a slow and stately process, but rather as a continual and sometimes frenetic process that favors yet more evolutionary change.

More books from University of Chicago Press

Cover of the book The Global Pigeon by John N. Thompson
Cover of the book The Trilobite Book by John N. Thompson
Cover of the book Law and the Economy in Colonial India by John N. Thompson
Cover of the book Grammars of Approach by John N. Thompson
Cover of the book Arendt and America by John N. Thompson
Cover of the book Islanded by John N. Thompson
Cover of the book Punishment and Modern Society by John N. Thompson
Cover of the book Against Fairness by John N. Thompson
Cover of the book Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes, Second Edition by John N. Thompson
Cover of the book Political Tone by John N. Thompson
Cover of the book The Color of Mind by John N. Thompson
Cover of the book Patient Zero and the Making of the AIDS Epidemic by John N. Thompson
Cover of the book Securing Approval by John N. Thompson
Cover of the book Paying with Their Bodies by John N. Thompson
Cover of the book Varieties of Social Imagination by John N. Thompson
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy