Thevillageatheist - 14 August 2012 06:40 PM

God no, I have never read Zoonomia. I read about it and Darwin’s grandfather in different places. From what I have seen, though, I really don’t think it was such a big deal.

Can we at least agree then that his writing (I promise not to call it a theory) had some influence on Darwin who in turn influenced Dawkins who in his turn influenced us?

 

Cap’t Jack

Okay, Jack. We agree. 

Wow, I didn’t realize that this posting still had a discussion on it.. I feel bad for not contributing.

Hey, don’t feel bad.  I’m a moderator and there are some threads I wouldn’t touch with a five to six foot Czech. 

Occam

Six, Occam. 

I figured that, but we scientists usually like to give ranges rather than specific numbers.  That way it’s harder to show we made an error. 

Occam

Jack, check out this new book, Darwin’s Ghosts: The Secret History of Evolution:

Darwin’s Ghosts tells the story of the collective discovery of evolution, from Aristotle, walking the shores of Lesbos with his pupils, to Al-Jahiz, an Arab writer in the first century, from Leonardo da Vinci, searching for fossils in the mine shafts of the Tuscan hills, to Denis Diderot in Paris, exploring the origins of species while under the surveillance of the secret police, and the brilliant naturalists of the Jardin de Plantes, finding evidence for evolutionary change in the natural history collections stolen during the Napoleonic wars.

It’s a “must-read” for both of us. Let’s have Rebecca Scott settle our dispute. 

It’s a “must-read” for both of us. Let’s have Rebecca Scott settle our dispute. 

Just read two reviews of the book George and am buying it today. I’ll get into it as soon as I finish Ann Gibbons’ “The First Human”. Lot’s of info on the beginning of paleo anthropology. I had no idea how important The Leaky’s (all of them) were in the field!

Cap’t Jack

Yeah, I know. Gibbons’s book is awesome!

It’s really filling in a lot of blanks for me as, and I hate to admit it, most of my knowledge of them came from National Geo. don’t get me wrong, the articles were very informative and the photos are fantastic but until recently I hadn’t read much on the subject. Now I can’t read enough! I daily visit Hawk’s site. Fascinating, especially the Denisovan find!!!

Cap’t Jack