- Hardcover: 464 pages
- Publisher: Cambridge University Press (April 28 1997)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0521472326
- ISBN-13: 978-0521472326
- Product Dimensions: 25.3 x 17.7 x 2.5 cm
- Shipping Weight: 1.2 Kg
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- See Complete Table of Contents
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Product Details |
Product Description
Review
"It is in my view the most important book in vertebrate evolution since Simpson's Tempo and Mode in Evolution (1944), because of what it offers as a summary, an integration, and above all a prospectus for vertebrate biologists of a new synthesis that is showing all signs of a very healthy infancy. Our next generation of scientists would do well to train themselves as Carroll has done in order to fulfill his vision of what integrative vertbrate biology can become." Science
"Every now and again, a brave paleontologist stands back and looks over the collection for anything that links all the tales together...Robert Carroll has broken new ground. He views the fossil record with the eyes of a biologist and a geologist...Not since 1953, when George Gaylord Simpson published Major Features of Evolution has there been such a well-founded overview of vertebrate fossils, their distribution in time and space, relationships with other organisms and with the environment..." New Scientist
"Bob Carroll's latest book provides the first modern review of large scale patterns in the evolution of vertebrates viewed in the context of current evolutionary theory. A veritable tour de force...Carroll's book is well written and effectively illustrated...Patterns and Processes of Vertebrate Evolution will form an essential resource for all students of the evolution of vertebrates, but it can also be read with profit by anyone concerned with general issues of contemporary evolutionary biology." American Paleontologist
"Patterns and Processes of Vertebrate Evolution is a masterful overview of evolution as it is understood by many vertebrate paleontologists and others today...Carroll writes clearly and rapidly-the whole is remarkably up to date, with meaningful incorporation of much current literature...this is a fine book." The Society for the Study of Evolution
"...excellent review of the vast recent literature on development, particularly rewarding reading." American Paleontologist
"Carroll's overview is welcome, well organized...and will prove to be a very useful backdrop to undergraduate courses on general evolution, or vertabrate history." Geological Magazine
"The book covers a broad compass and the author provides accounts of the immense range of biological and geological topics. It is a useful addition to the literature on fossils and evolution." Historical Biology
"Every now and again, a brave paleontologist stands back and looks over the collection for anything that links all the tales together...Robert Carroll has broken new ground. He views the fossil record with the eyes of a biologist and a geologist...Not since 1953, when George Gaylord Simpson published Major Features of Evolution has there been such a well-founded overview of vertebrate fossils, their distribution in time and space, relationships with other organisms and with the environment..." New Scientist
"Bob Carroll's latest book provides the first modern review of large scale patterns in the evolution of vertebrates viewed in the context of current evolutionary theory. A veritable tour de force...Carroll's book is well written and effectively illustrated...Patterns and Processes of Vertebrate Evolution will form an essential resource for all students of the evolution of vertebrates, but it can also be read with profit by anyone concerned with general issues of contemporary evolutionary biology." American Paleontologist
"Patterns and Processes of Vertebrate Evolution is a masterful overview of evolution as it is understood by many vertebrate paleontologists and others today...Carroll writes clearly and rapidly-the whole is remarkably up to date, with meaningful incorporation of much current literature...this is a fine book." The Society for the Study of Evolution
"...excellent review of the vast recent literature on development, particularly rewarding reading." American Paleontologist
"Carroll's overview is welcome, well organized...and will prove to be a very useful backdrop to undergraduate courses on general evolution, or vertabrate history." Geological Magazine
"The book covers a broad compass and the author provides accounts of the immense range of biological and geological topics. It is a useful addition to the literature on fossils and evolution." Historical Biology
Product Description
This new text provides an integrated view of the forces that influence the patterns and rates of vertebrate evolution from the level of living populations and species to those that resulted in the origin of the major vertebrate groups. The evolutionary roles of behavior, development, continental drift, and mass extinctions are compared with the importance of variation and natural selection that were emphasized by Darwin. It is extensively illustrated, showing major transitions between fish and amphibians, dinosaurs and birds, and land mammals to whales. No book since Simpson's Major Features of Evolution has attempted such a broad study of the patterns and forces of evolutionary change. Undergraduate students taking a general or advanced course on evolution, and graduate students and professionals in evolutionary biology and paleontology will find the book of great interest.
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First Sentence
Evolution is the greatest unifying principle in biology. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
Evolution is the greatest unifying principle in biology. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Major Work on Evolution refutes Gould,
By
This review is from: Patterns and Processes of Vertebrate Evolution (Paperback)
This is a very extensive treatment of evolution, mostly focused on vertebrate evolution. It is a very detailed and up-to-date discussion of all the effects that influence evolution, not just natural selection. Recent finds illustrate the major transitions from fish to amphibian, from dinosaur to bird, from land mammal to whale. It also is a polemic book, aimed at debunking the theories of S. J. Gould.While the constraints of development and mass extinctions are taken into account, the book still shows the importance of Darwinian selection, even with respect to speciation, a fact denied by Gould and his followers. This is an advanced book, aimed at advanced undergraduate students, graduate students and professionals. It is not a coffee-table book on vertebrate evolution, like Carroll's previous "Vertebrate Paleontology and Evolution", but it is well illustrated and clear enough to be of interest to non-specialists. A short review cannot do this book justice. The amount of information presented is enormous. This is the first attempt of a grand synthesis since Simpson's "Major Features of Evolution". Simpson's book was also a polemic work, aimed at the German paleontologist Schindewolf (even if this is not clear from the text, since Schindewolf was not explicitly quoted and his works had not been published in English at the time.) Not surprisingly, Gould was somehow influenced by Schindewolf and introduced a translation of his work. The fight for the correct understanding of evolution has to be fought again every generation! It is unfortunate that Gould became the official writer on evolution for the educated non-specialists (at least in the USA). This book is a good antidote, but is much harder to read that the Conway Morris book (The Crucible of Creation). If you can get through it, though, it is very rewarding.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Evolution - the big picture,
By Howard Schneider (Thornhill, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Patterns and Processes of Vertebrate Evolution (Paperback)
This reference starts off by noting problems in evolutionary theory, particularly that while short-term microevolution shows Darwinian characteristics, long-term macroevolution based on the fossil record does not, with species suddenly appearing and then persisting for long periods with few changes. Vertebrates are proposed as a model for studying evolution, noting that they are a monophyletic group, have sexual reproduction, share a similar body plan, and most importantly have an excellent fossil record. While the knowledgeable reader will find this reference interesting in its integration of the forces affecting vertebrate evolution, the more general reader will find a variety of topics from fundamentals of population genetics to evolutionary development to the origins of major vertebrate groups, useful reading.
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5.0 out of 5 stars (1 customer review) 12 of 16 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Evolution - the big picture,
By Howard Schneider - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Patterns and Processes of Vertebrate Evolution (Paperback)
This reference starts off by noting problems in evolutionary theory, particularly that while short-term microevolution shows Darwinian characteristics, long-term macroevolution based on the fossil record does not, with species suddenly appearing and then persisting for long periods with few changes. Vertebrates are proposed as a model for studying evolution, noting that they are a monophyletic group, have sexual reproduction, share a similar body plan, and most importantly have an excellent fossil record. While the knowledgeable reader will find this reference interesting in its integration of the forces affecting vertebrate evolution, the more general reader will find a variety of topics from fundamentals of population genetics to evolutionary development to the origins of major vertebrate groups, useful reading.
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