Promotional Information

"This is a wonderful book that beautifully explains in layperson's terms the vast evidence for evolution in the paleontological record. Its publication comes at a critical time. By concentrating the diverse scientific literature into numerous lucid examples, Donald R. Prothero does the fields of geology, biology, and science education a major service. He provides a unique source that will be invaluable to college professors and high school teachers alike, and because his book provides abundant, clearly described examples of evolution in the fossil record, and also synthesizes important information about the Bible, it will make a valuable addition to any scientist's library." -- Bruce Lieberman, the University of Kansas "Donald R. Prothero is not only one of the leading evolutionary scientists of our time, he writes with clarity and his prose sparkles. Prothero's book is more thorough and comprehensive than any other book for the general public on the evolution versus creationism controversy." -- Michael Shermer, Michael Shermer, publisher of Skeptic magazine, monthly columnist for Scientific American, and author of Why Darwin Matters: The Case Against Intelligent Design

Table of Contents

Foreword: Why People Do Not Accept Evolution To the Reader: Is Evolution a Threat to Your Religious Beliefs? Prologue: Fossils and Evolution Acknowledgments Part I: Evolution and the Fossil Record 1. The Nature of Science 2. Science and Creationism 3. The Fossil Record 4. The Evolution of Evolution 5. Systematics and Evolution Part II: Evolution? The Fossils Say YES! 6. Life's Origins 7. Cambrian "Explosion"-or Slow Fuse? 8. Spineless Wonders of Evolution 9. Fish Tales 10. Fish Out of Water 11. Onto the Land and Back to the Sea: The Amniotes 12. Dinosaurs Evolve-and Fly 13. Mammalian Explosion 14. Bossies and Blowholes 15. The Ape's Reflection? 16. Why Does It Matter? Bibliography Index

About the Author

Donald R. Prothero is professor of geology at Occidental College in Los Angeles and lecturer in geobiology at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. A fellow of the Geological Society of America, the Paleontological Society, and the Linnaean Society of London, Prothero is on the editorial board of Skeptic magazine and has received fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Science Foundation. In 1991 he received the Schuchert Award for outstanding paleontologist under the age of 40. He is the author, coauthor, editor, or coeditor of 22 books and over 200 scientific papers, and his titles for Columbia University Press are From Greenhouse to Icehouse and The Eocene-Oligocene Transition.

Reviews

"This book demonstrates the importance of paleontology to the study of evolution." -- Publishers Weekly "This is one of the best books of its kind." -- Christopher diCarlo, Guelph Mercury