Thoughts on “The Greatest Show on Earth” by Richard Dawkins – Chapter 3 “The Primrose Path to Macro-Evolution”

Chapter 3 discusses examples of naturally occurring evolutionary change. The previous chapter illustrated that humans consciously breed many different species of both plants and animals for all manner of economic and aesthetic purposes. This chapter moves us from artificial selection to natural selection.

Dawkins makes the argument that insects “domesticated” flowers long before humans did (along with hummingbirds, bats, frogs etc.). Flowers need a way to transport pollen in order to fertilize other flowers. This is done via luring an agent, such as an insect looking for nectar. When the insect lands, their legs are dusted with a bit of pollen destined to get dropped off at the next flower. Insect can see well into the ultraviolet spectrum, beyond what humans can see. If you look at certain flowers with an ultraviolet camera, patterns that the insects see that we can’t become apparent. If a flower is more attractive to an insect, it is more likely to reproduce. Therefore, based on the behavior of the insects, certain attributes of the flower are naturally selected.

This same phenomenon can be seen in the mating preferences within a species. Male pheasants are known to have very brightly colored and elaborate plumage, which is somewhat of a disadvantage since they are not well camouflaged. However the bright colors are preferred by female pheasants and therefore they are selectively bred for. The trick is that the peacocks tail has to be elaborate enough to attract a female, but not too much that it attracts a predator. With these countering  pressures, a balance is achieved. In areas with decreased numbers of predators, peacock tails are observed to be consistently longer and more brightly colored.

In this chapter, Dawkins uses very familiar and easy to understand examples of natural selection. I’ve just summarized two of them in this post, but he elaborates on several others.

Thoughts on “The Greatest Show on Earth” by Richard Dawkins – Chapter 2 “Dogs, Cows and Cabbages”

Cross-Posted on The Ramblings of a Jewish Skeptic

Chapter 2 further displays Richard Dawkins’s ability to put forth a very understandable and logical argument in a way that most readers can follow very easily.

In this chapter Dawkins begins the argument for evolution by providing a possible explanation as to why it might be so counterintuitive. We are introduced to Plato’s concept of the essentialism, a philosophical concept that everything is just an imperfect shadow of its true essence. We learn that this is very misleading and inaccurate when applied to biology.

When applied to biology, this mode of thinking makes it appear that all species of animals are clearly separate and neatly contained in groups. For example a rabbit would be the shadow of the true essence of “rabbit.” This type of thinking makes it hard for us to conceptualize that lineages of animals change gradually over long periods of time and that all species have various common ancestors.

We then move on to very tangible and inarguable examples of how humans have bred different animals and plants. This is under the heading “Sculpting the Gene Pool.” He uses examples of the various breeds of dogs, the various types of vegetables that were formed from cabbage, and domesticated dairy cows.

It was interesting to learn about the different species of dogs, how they evolved from wolves and the  process in which they became domesticated. He discusses an experiment in which the foxes were domesticated by selectively breeding the tamest individuals from each generation. After only five or six generations the foxes became quite tame. Interesting as well they also started to assume some of the characteristics of dogs, such as non-bushy tails and floppy ears.

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Book Review: Free Range Chickens by Simon Rich

This is a very short collection of humorous vignettes compiled by Simon Rich who, among other things, was a former Harvard Lampoon editor and a writer for Saturday Night Live and Mad Magazine. I had just finished reading the book Middlesex, which I have recently reviewed. In searching for a new book to read I decided to look at a friends book-list on Goodreads.com. My strategy was to and scroll down until I got the first book that he rated five stars and read that one no matter what. This was an experiment in randomness.

I thought this book was really funny. I enjoyed reading it, and I enjoyed even more sharing the vignettes with my wife (who didn’t quite get it as much as I did.) The best vignette I thought was the one titled Acupuncture School, which was hilarious. It pretty much sums up my feelings about acupuncture and pseudoscience/alternative medicine. I also enjoyed reading Dracula’s match.com profile.

The one disappointing thing about this book was that it was really short. I read it in about an hour and a half. However I did reread several sections. I also read several sections out loud to my wife as she was getting ready for bed (much to her annoyance.)

Overall I would recommend this book. It was very funny however very short. Some may feel that it was too short to warrant the price, but it is something that you can reread and share with friends. In fact it’s the kind of book that actually gets more funny when you reread it and when you share with other people.

Book Review: The Blind Watchmaker by Richard Dawkins

I enjoyed reading this book. It was written in the late 80’s by British evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins. It is a detailed description of how evolution works with many examples. It also goes into various 1980’s computer models of evolution, which is kind of entertaining to read in 2009. There are some direct refutations of creationist counter arguments that are very much old news to anyone who has read anything about this debate.

Evolution is the cornerstone of modern biology. Its fundamental premises are not really even questioned anymore by biologists that are doing scientifically sound and rigorous research. Sure there are still points of disagreement and areas that still need to be researched, but that is the way science works. It works by pushing back the darkness and sorting out what we see. As the evidence comes in, we change our theories and premises. This is what is cool about science. It thrives on the complex and the unknown.

The religious arguments against evolution are such a distraction. As new evidence comes to light that refutes the written word of a bronze-age civilization, the religiously dogmatic scramble to either retrofit it into their belief system or to outright refute it. This is so far outside of the way I see the world that it is hard for me to understand how someone can feel comfortable doing this. It truly blows my mind.

Anyway, this was a good book, but there are other, more contemporary books on the topic.

Book Review: Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides

Middlesex is the story of a hermaphrodite that was raised as a female, then later in life identified as a male. It is, however, more than just an Oprah-esque freak show.

The narrative extends back to the narrators grandparents flee from Greece during an invasion by the Turks, and their immigration to Detroit. There are very compelling descriptions of warfare, and class struggle. It then moves forward to the story of her parents ascent into the middle class. Then it settles into the meat of the story, the narrators troubled experience with puberty.

The characters are all very intriguing and well-developed. It is clear who they are and what their motivations are. The writing style is somewhat whimsical, with the narrator at times stepping out of character in an artful way.

I only gave the book 4 stars because I thought the pacing was off. I was interested in the story throughout, but at times I was really wondering where this was all going and felt on the brink of loosing interest. Mid-way through, as the plot focuses on Cal as a pre-teen, it becomes more engaging.

Overall this is an enjoyable and worthwhile book.

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Book Review: The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

I loved this book!

It is a broad and sweeping romance with prominent elements of mystery and horror. But it remains endearing. Set in the politically unstable and corrupt environment of post World War II Madrid, the tone is sad, dark and poetic.There are some scenes in the book that are so disturbing that I had to put the book down for a moment, only to quickly pick it right back up.

The overall theme of the book is obsessive passion. My take is that passion is a good thing to a degree, but when it reaches the point of obsession, it can be dismal and toxic.

This book is a big recommend!

Book Review: The Rocket that Fell to Earth by Jeff Pearlman

The Rocket That Fell to Earth: Roger Clemens and the Rage for Baseball Immortality by Jeff Pearlman

This is a well written book about someone that I used to idolize

Roger Clemens was an intimidating pitcher that dominated well into his 40’s. He was known for his work ethic, and his longevity was attributed to his hard work in the gym while off the field.

It turns out that this, in fact, was too good to be true. There is ample evidence that when Clemens started to show signs of aging, and he lost his zip, he turned to steroids.

This, unfortunately, was not that unusual. Baseball was riddled with performance enhancing drugs. What is amazing is the arrogance, deceit, and malignant competitiveness. Clemens was a great pitcher, because that is all he did. It seems that his development was arrested in almost every other way. The praise and worship that he received from fans, and even other players was constant, and he began to believe it. The myth overshadowed the reality so much that even Clemens was under its spell.

When the allegations of steroid use were made public by the Mitchell report, he unraveled much like he often did while pitching in high pressure situations. Instead of owning up to his transgressions and settling with a modicum of dignity, he took the low road and feverishly (and at times comically) denied steroid use. This escalated all the way up to lying under oath before congress and exposing himself to the real risk of doing some serious prison time.

This was a captivating story that made clear the dangers inherent in fame and fortune. Excellent summer reading.

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Review – Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follet

The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

rating: 4 of 5 stars
Ken Follet, formerly known as a cold war spy novelist, has indulged his fascination with Englands historical cathedrals and castles by writing this epic tale. The story chronicles the lives and the intrigue required to build a cathedral. All the while, the reader is also given a very descriptive and textured (and often graphic) historical look at day to day existence in medieval Englan

It explores themes of passion, faith, greed and corruption. The villain, William Haleigh, is truly despicable, while the heroes (Tom, Jack etc.) are flawed and at times reluctant.

Although it clocks in at almost 1000 pages, it is well paced and held my attention quite well. It was well worth the time and effort.

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