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BookmarkA fresh look at Darwin's most radical idea, and the mysteriously slow process by which he revealed it.Evolution, during the early nineteenth century, was an idea in the air.
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Other thinkers had suggested it, but no one had proposed a cogent explanation for how evolution occurs.
Then, in September 1838, a young Englishman named Charles Darwin hit upon the idea that "natural selection" among competing individuals would lead to wondrous adaptations and species diversity.
Twenty-one years passed between that epiphany and publication of On the Origin of Species.
The human drama and scientific basis of Darwin's twenty-one-year delay constitute a fascinating, tangled tale that elucidates the character of a cautious naturalist who initiated an intellectual revolution.The Reluctant Mr.
Darwin is a book for everyone who has ever wondered about who this man was and what he said.
Drawing from Darwin's secret "transmutation" notebooks and his personal letters, David Quammen has sketched a vivid life portrait of the man whose work never ceases to be controversial..
For more information about the title The Reluctant Mr. Darwin: An Intimate Portrait of Charles Darwin and the Making of His Theory of Evolution (Great Discoveries), read the full description at Amazon.com, or see the following related books:
The Origin of Species, Revised Edition (Abridged) — It's hard to talk about The Origin of Species without making statements that seem overwrought and fulsome. But it's true: this is indeed one of the ... > read more
Living with Darwin: Evolution, Design, and the Future of Faith (Philosophy in Action) — Charles Darwin has been at the center of white-hot public debate for more than a century. In Living With Darwin, Philip Kitcher peers into the flames ... > read more
From So Simple a Beginning: Darwin's Four Great Books (Voyage of the Beagle, The Origin of Species, The Descent of Man, The Expression of Emotions in Man and Animals) — A gorgeous gift and a landmark work that is an essential addition to everyone's personal library.Never before have the four great works of Charles ... > read more
Punctuated Equilibrium — In 1972 Stephen Jay Gould took the scientific world by storm with his paper on punctuated equilibrium, written with Niles Eldredge. Challenging a ... > read more
