This early work by Alfred Russel Wallace was originally published in 1858 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introductory biography. 'On the Tendency of Species to form Varieties' is a landmark article on Wallace's ideas of natural selection in relation to evolutionary theory. Alfred Russel Wallace was born on 8th January 1823 in the village of Llanbadoc, in Monmouthshire, Wales. Wallace was inspired by the travelling naturalists of the day and decided to begin his exploration career collecting specimens in the Amazon rainforest. He explored the Rio Negra for four years, making notes on the peoples and languages he encountered as well as the geography, flora, and fauna. While travelling, Wallace refined his thoughts about evolution and in 1858 he outlined his theory of natural selection in an article he sent to Charles Darwin. Wallace made a huge contribution to the natural sciences and he will continue to be remembered as one of the key figures in the development of evolutionary theory.

This early work by Alfred Russel Wallace was originally published in 1858 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introductory biography. 'On the Tendency of Varieties to Depart Indefinitely From the Original Type' is a short article on variation and evolutionary theory. Alfred Russel Wallace was born on 8th January 1823 in the village of Llanbadoc, in Monmouthshire, Wales. Wallace was inspired by the travelling naturalists of the day and decided to begin his exploration career collecting specimens in the Amazon rainforest. He explored the Rio Negra for four years, making notes on the peoples and languages he encountered as well as the geography, flora, and fauna. While travelling, Wallace refined his thoughts about evolution and in 1858 he outlined his theory of natural selection in an article he sent to Charles Darwin. Wallace made a huge contribution to the natural sciences and he will continue to be remembered as one of the key figures in the development of evolutionary theory.

This is the first edition of Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species, published on November 24, 1859 in London by John Murray. It is a seminal work in scientific literature and a landmark work in evolutionary biology. It introduced the theory that populations evolve over the course of generations through a process of natural selection. It presented a body of evidence that the diversity of life arose by common descent through a branching pattern of evolution. The starting chapters introduce the theory of natural selection, explaining why certain species thrive, while others decrease in number, how the members of nature are in competition with each other and why organisms tend to vary and change with time. Much of this work is based on experiments and observations seen within domestic animals and plants. The later chapters defend the theory of natural selection against apparent inconsistencies, why geological records are incomplete, why we find species so widespread and how sterility can be inherited when the organisation is unable to reproduce and more. The book is approachable for any audience.

"Ecological questions are at the center of many of the most important decisions faced by humanity. Roots of Ecology documents the deep ancestry of this enormously important science from the early ideas of Herodotus, Plato, and Pliny; up through those of Linnaeus and Dawin, to those that inspired Ernst Haeckel's mid-nineteenth-century neologism ecology. Based on a long-running series of regularly published columns, this important work gathers a vast literature that illustrates the development of the ecological concepts, environmental ideas, and creative reasoning that have led to our modern view of ecology. Roots of Ecology should be on every ecologist's shelf."--Back cover.

The explosion of the field of genetics over the last decade, with the new technologies that have stimulated research, suggests that a new sort of reference work is needed to keep pace with such a fast-moving and interdisciplinary field. Brenner's Encyclopedia of Genetics, Second Edition, Seven Volume Set, builds on the foundation of the first edition by addressing many of the key subfields of genetics that were just in their infancy when the first edition was published. The currency and accessibility of this foundational content will be unrivalled, making this work useful for scientists and non-scientists alike. Featuring relatively short entries on genetics topics written by experts in that topic, Brenner's Encyclopedia of Genetics, Second Edition, Seven Volume Set provides an effective way to quickly learn about any aspect of genetics, from Abortive Transduction to Zygotes. Adding to its utility, the work provides short entries that briefly define key terms, and a guide to additional reading and relevant websites for further study. Many of the entries include figures to explain difficult concepts. Key terms in related areas such as biochemistry, cell, and molecular biology are also included, and there are entries that describe historical figures in genetics, providing insights into their careers and discoveries. This 7-volume set represents a 25% expansion from the first edition, with over 1600 articles encompassing this burgeoning field Thoroughly up-to-date, with many new topics and subfields covered that were in their infancy or not inexistence at the time of the first edition. Timely coverage of emergent areas such as epigenetics, personalized genomic medicine, pharmacogenetics, and genetic enhancement technologies Interdisciplinary and global in its outlook, as befits the field of genetics Brief articles, written by experts in the field, which not only discuss, define, and explain key elements of the field, but also provide definition of key terms, suggestions for further reading, and biographical sketches of the key people in the history of genetics

Written in a clear, accessible style, this authoritative and wide-ranging dictionary contains entries on all aspects of ecology and related environmental scientific disciplines such as biogeography, genetics, soil science, geomorphology, atmospheric science, and oceanography. Entries cover topics such as plant and animal physiology, animal behaviour, pollution, conservation, habitat management, population, evolution, environmental pollution, climatology, and meteorology. It also includes many line drawings and useful appendices. Fully revised, updated, and expanded, with over 300 new entries that include beach replenishment, delta method, urban heat island, and zonal soils, this new edition is invaluable to students of ecology, biology, and environmental and conservation studies, and professionals in related areas, as well as the general reader with an interest in the natural world.

Darwin's discovery of evolution is as celebrated as Galileo's laws of motion or Newton's discovery of gravity. But this was only half the story. Not content to prove that evolution had happened, Darwin sought to convey its full humbling implications. Thus he formulated the theory of natural selection. Contrary to popular belief, this theory ran exactly counter to scientific reason and was consequently rejected by the scientific community of the time. This wasn’t the only reason Darwin’s critics recoiled. His theory robbed the ruling orders of any easy recourse to consolatory tales of nature’s harmony and design. The fate of his ideas, for the time being at least, would be left to the heretics he inspired in other domains. Darwin's radical thought anticipated Nietzsche's Godless philosophy, Marx's class-based economics and Freud's psychological theories of the unconscious. It would take a further 80 years for Darwinism to become accepted as mainstream science, but it came at the expense of its counter-scientific core. For the remainder of the twentieth century a popularized Darwinism would become the touchstone for backlash movements in philosophy, economics and psychology—disciplines he once so radicalized. This is the story of how the most revolutionary idea of the nineteenth century became the most reactionary idea of the twentieth.

This book aims to encourage the reading of "On the Origin of Species" and to include it in the teaching of evolution. With a comprehensive overview of the development of Darwin's theory, the volume provides relevant aspects of Darwin's life and work in connection with the broader context of his time. The historical and philosophical analysis, mirrored in the socio-cultural scope, enables the diachronic reading of the text. It is built on various sources of historians and philosophers of science and sheds fresh light on them. Its uniqueness is the broad structure that covers four parts: the pre-Darwinian concepts of species changes; some key elements of Darwin's pursuit of the causes of evolution, from his voyage on Beagle to the publication of his groundbreaking work; chapter-by-chapter analysis of the "Origin"; and subsequent developments in evolutionary thought. This book is of interest to undergraduate and graduate students, scholars in history, philosophy, and sociology of science and science education, as well as the general public.