Lyons - Evolution: The Basics

EVOLUTION

THE BASICS

Evolution: The Basics is an engaging introduction to the history, development and science of the theory of evolution. Beginning pre- Darwin and concluding with the latest research and controversies, readers are introduced to the origins of the idea of evolution, the ways in which it has developed and been adapted over time, and the science underpinning it all. Topics addressed include:

• Early theories of evolution
• The impact of Darwins On the Origin of Species
• The discovery of genetics and Mendels experiments
• Molecular evolution and the discovery of DNA
• The expansion of life and the persistence of disease
• Revisiting evolutionary ethics and the development of empathy.

Evolution: The Basics examines the role of evolution in current debates and discusses the possible future developments in the field. This book is invaluable reading for all students and individuals seeking to understand the wide-ranging sphere of evolutionary theory.

Sherrie Lyons is Assistant Professor at the Center for Distance Learning of Empire State College, State University of New York. She is author of Species, Serpents, Spirits, and Skulls: Science at the Margins in the Victorian Age and Thomas Henry Huxley: The Evolution of a Scientist.

The Basics

ACTING

BELLA MERLIN

ANTHROPOLOGY

PETER METCALF

ARCHAEOLOGY (SECOND EDITION)

CLIVE GAMBLE

ART HISTORY

GRANT POOKE AND DIANA NEWALL

THE BIBLE

JOHN BARTON

BUDDHISM

CATHY CANTWELL

CRIMINAL LAW

JONATHAN HERRING

CRIMINOLOGY (SECOND EDITION)

SANDRA WALKLATE

ECONOMICS (SECOND EDITION)

TONY CLEAVER

EUROPEAN UNION (SECOND EDITION)

ALEX WARLEIGH-LACK

FILM STUDIES

AMY VILLAREJO

FINANCE (SECOND EDITION)

ERIK BANKS

HUMAN GENETICS

RICKI LEWIS

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

PETER SUTCH AND JUANITA ELIAS

ISLAM (SECOND EDITION)

COLIN TURNER

JUDAISM

JACOB NEUSNER

LANGUAGE (SECOND EDITION)

R.L. TRASK

LAW

GARY SLAPPER AND DAVID KELLY

LITERARY THEORY (SECOND EDITION)

HANS BERTENS

LOGIC

JC BEALL

MANAGEMENT

MORGEN WITZEL

MARKETING (SECOND EDITION)

KARL MOORE AND NIKETH PAREEK

PHILOSOPHY (FOURTH EDITION)

NIGEL WARBURTON

PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY

JOSEPH HOLDEN

POETRY (SECOND EDITION)

JEFFREY WAINWRIGHT

POLITICS (FOURTH EDITION)

STEPHEN TANSEY AND NIGEL JACKSON

THE QURAN

MASSIMO CAMPANINI

RELIGION (SECOND EDITION)

MALORY NYE

RESEARCH METHODS

NICHOLAS WALLIMAN

ROMAN CATHOLICISM

MICHAEL WALSH

SEMIOTICS (SECOND EDITION)

DANIEL CHANDLER

SHAKESPEARE (SECOND EDITION)

SEAN MCEVOY

SOCIOLOGY

KEN PLUMMER

TELEVISION STUDIES

TOBY MILLER

TERRORISM

JAMES LUTZ AND BRENDA LUTZ

THEATRE STUDIES

ROBERT LEACH

WORLD HISTORY

PETER N. STEARNS

WORLD MUSIC

RICHARD NIDEL

EVOLUTION

THE BASICS

sherrie lyons

First published 2011

by Routledge

2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN

Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada

by Routledge

711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business

2011 Sherrie Lyons

The right of Sherrie Lyons to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Lyons, Sherrie Lynne, 1947

Evolution / Sherrie Lyons.

p. cm. (The basics)

Includes bibliographical references.

1. Evolution (Biology) I. Title.

QH367.L956 2012

576.8-dc22

2011002891

ISBN: 978-0-415-59225-3 (hbk)

ISBN: 978-0-415-59226-0 (pbk)

ISBN: 978-0-203-80806-1 (ebk)

FIGURES

Acknowledgements

Reproduced with permission from John van Wyhe ed., The Complete Work of Charles Darwin Online (http://darwin-online.org.uk/)

2004 Human Evolutionary Genetics, by M. A. Jobling, M. E. Hurles and C. Tyler-Smith.

Reproduced by permission of Garland Science/Taylor & Francis LLC.

2002 Genetics for Healthcare Professionals, by Heather Skirton and Christine Patch.

Reproduced by permission of Garland Science/Taylor & Francis LLC.

2008 Molecular Biology of the Cell, 5th edn, by Bruce Alberts et al.

Reproduced by permission of Garland Science/Taylor & Francis LLC.

Introduction

Why Study Evolution?

Evolution is the great unifying theory for biology. No idea in biology has been more scientifically powerful. Evolution has in the past and continues today to provide a research program in diverse fields including paleontology, molecular biology, embryology, ecology, human behavior, and medicine. It has impacted other fields as well, from computer animation software design to economic theory. Because of this, evolution is increasingly relevant for understanding human society. Evolution is not just about dinosaurs and fossils or our common ancestry with apes. Evolutionary ideas have provided insight into topics such as decision-making, mating habits, morality, mental illness, and religion. It explains why most of us love the taste of foods that are high in fat, salt, and sugar. It helps elucidate why we are capable of both extremely selfish and unselfish behavior, exhibit both honesty and deceit, and are sometimes spiteful while at other times forgiving. Evolution reveals that we are all interconnected in the great web of life and can provide guidance in taking care of our amazing planet earth. Charles Darwins good friend Thomas Huxley (182595) wrote over 100 years ago, there is no field of biological inquiry in which the influence of the Origin of Species is not traceable and that as the embodiment of an hypothesis it is destined to be the guide of biological and psychological speculation for the next three or four generations. Huxleys words were prophetic.

The Meaning of Evolution

Life on earth today is the result of its ever-changing complex history that began billions of years ago. However, this idea is a relatively recent development in Western thought. The Christian world view from the Middle Ages almost up to Darwins time held that the world was both constant and of short duration. The idea of evolution, i.e. that