Islands in the Cosmos
More listens like this
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Paleontology
- A Brief History of Life
- By: Ian Tattersall
- Narrated by: Brett Barry
- Length: 6 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 103
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 66
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 67
Ian Tattersall, a highly esteemed figure in the fields of anthropology, archaeology, and paleontology, leads a fascinating tour of the history of life and the evolution of human beings. Starting at the very beginning, Tattersall examines patterns of change in the biosphere over time, and the correlations of biological events with physical changes in the Earth's environment.
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5 out of 5 stars
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great summary of where we are with understanding
- By david on 06-25-11
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A New History of Life
- The Radical New Discoveries About the Origins and Evolution of Life on Earth
- By: Peter Ward, Joe Kirschvink
- Narrated by: Tom Parks
- Length: 14 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 201
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 182
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 181
In their latest audiobook, Joe Kirschvink and Peter Ward will show that many of our most cherished beliefs about the evolution of life are wrong. Gathering and analyzing years of discoveries and research not yet widely known to the public, A New History of Life proposes a different origin of species than the one Darwin proposed, one which includes eight-foot-long centipedes, a frozen snowball Earth, and the seeds for life originating on Mars.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Perspective worth reading
- By serine on 01-23-16
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The History of Life
- A Very Short Introduction
- By: Michael J Benton
- Narrated by: Peter Larkin
- Length: 5 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 44
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 34
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 32
Here is the extraordinary story of the unfolding of life on Earth, told by Michael J. Benton, a world-renowned authority on biodiversity. Ranging over four billion years, Benton weaves together the latest findings on fossils, earth history, evolutionary biology, and many other fields to highlight the great leaps that enabled life to evolve from microbe to human - big breakthroughs that made whole new ways of life possible - including cell division and multicellularity, hard skeletons, the move to land, the origin of forests, the move to the air. He describes the mass extinctions, especially the Permian....
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5 out of 5 stars
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I really loved it. Very easy to follow along.
- By Terri Fuqua on 03-22-18
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Half-Earth
- Our Planet's Fight for Life
- By: Edward O. Wilson
- Narrated by: Jonathan Hogan
- Length: 6 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 130
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 107
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 106
History is not a prerogative of the human species, Edward O. Wilson declares in Half-Earth, a brave work that becomes a radical redefinition of human history. Demonstrating that we blindly ignore the histories of millions of other species, Wilson warns of a point of no return that is imminent.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Muy buen libro
- By Cliente de Amazon on 01-04-18
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The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert
- Summary, Review & Analysis
- By: Save Time Summaries
- Narrated by: Rebecca Lynn
- Length: 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 45
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 36
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 36
It's hard to believe that the sum total of all human civilization will one day be compressed into a rock layer the width of a piece of paper, but in The Sixth Extinction, Elizabeth Kolbert gives the listener an expansive overview of how Mother Earth is getting ready to clean house - again. This time, it's not just the mastodon bones being thrown out with the trash. An exploration of how humans are heading for mass extinction largely due to their own follies, The Sixth Extinction compresses anecdotes, evidence, and scientific characters into a sometimes-humorous tome of an otherwise serious topic.
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Inheritors of the Earth
- How Nature Is Thriving in an Age of Extinction
- By: Chris D. Thomas
- Narrated by: Bob Reed
- Length: 9 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 31
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 28
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 28
It's accepted wisdom today that human beings have permanently damaged the natural world, causing extinction, deforestation, pollution, and, of course, climate change. But in Inheritors of the Earth, biologist Chris Thomas shows that this obscures a more hopeful truth - we're also helping nature grow and change. Human cities and mass agriculture have created new places for enterprising animals and plants to live, and our activities have stimulated evolutionary change in virtually every population of living species.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Essential read
- By Samuel Castonguay on 08-28-19
-
Paleontology
- A Brief History of Life
- By: Ian Tattersall
- Narrated by: Brett Barry
- Length: 6 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 103
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 66
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 67
Ian Tattersall, a highly esteemed figure in the fields of anthropology, archaeology, and paleontology, leads a fascinating tour of the history of life and the evolution of human beings. Starting at the very beginning, Tattersall examines patterns of change in the biosphere over time, and the correlations of biological events with physical changes in the Earth's environment.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
great summary of where we are with understanding
- By david on 06-25-11
-
A New History of Life
- The Radical New Discoveries About the Origins and Evolution of Life on Earth
- By: Peter Ward, Joe Kirschvink
- Narrated by: Tom Parks
- Length: 14 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 201
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 182
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 181
In their latest audiobook, Joe Kirschvink and Peter Ward will show that many of our most cherished beliefs about the evolution of life are wrong. Gathering and analyzing years of discoveries and research not yet widely known to the public, A New History of Life proposes a different origin of species than the one Darwin proposed, one which includes eight-foot-long centipedes, a frozen snowball Earth, and the seeds for life originating on Mars.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Perspective worth reading
- By serine on 01-23-16
-
The History of Life
- A Very Short Introduction
- By: Michael J Benton
- Narrated by: Peter Larkin
- Length: 5 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 44
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 34
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 32
Here is the extraordinary story of the unfolding of life on Earth, told by Michael J. Benton, a world-renowned authority on biodiversity. Ranging over four billion years, Benton weaves together the latest findings on fossils, earth history, evolutionary biology, and many other fields to highlight the great leaps that enabled life to evolve from microbe to human - big breakthroughs that made whole new ways of life possible - including cell division and multicellularity, hard skeletons, the move to land, the origin of forests, the move to the air. He describes the mass extinctions, especially the Permian....
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
I really loved it. Very easy to follow along.
- By Terri Fuqua on 03-22-18
-
Half-Earth
- Our Planet's Fight for Life
- By: Edward O. Wilson
- Narrated by: Jonathan Hogan
- Length: 6 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 130
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 107
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 106
History is not a prerogative of the human species, Edward O. Wilson declares in Half-Earth, a brave work that becomes a radical redefinition of human history. Demonstrating that we blindly ignore the histories of millions of other species, Wilson warns of a point of no return that is imminent.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Muy buen libro
- By Cliente de Amazon on 01-04-18
-
The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert
- Summary, Review & Analysis
- By: Save Time Summaries
- Narrated by: Rebecca Lynn
- Length: 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 45
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 36
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 36
It's hard to believe that the sum total of all human civilization will one day be compressed into a rock layer the width of a piece of paper, but in The Sixth Extinction, Elizabeth Kolbert gives the listener an expansive overview of how Mother Earth is getting ready to clean house - again. This time, it's not just the mastodon bones being thrown out with the trash. An exploration of how humans are heading for mass extinction largely due to their own follies, The Sixth Extinction compresses anecdotes, evidence, and scientific characters into a sometimes-humorous tome of an otherwise serious topic.
-
Inheritors of the Earth
- How Nature Is Thriving in an Age of Extinction
- By: Chris D. Thomas
- Narrated by: Bob Reed
- Length: 9 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 31
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 28
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 28
It's accepted wisdom today that human beings have permanently damaged the natural world, causing extinction, deforestation, pollution, and, of course, climate change. But in Inheritors of the Earth, biologist Chris Thomas shows that this obscures a more hopeful truth - we're also helping nature grow and change. Human cities and mass agriculture have created new places for enterprising animals and plants to live, and our activities have stimulated evolutionary change in virtually every population of living species.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Essential read
- By Samuel Castonguay on 08-28-19
-
The Future of Life
- By: Edward O. Wilson
- Narrated by: Ed Begley Jr.
- Length: 7 hrs and 21 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 199
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 76
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 76
Today we understand that our world is infinitely richer than was ever previously guessed. Yet it is so ravaged by human activity that half its species could be gone by the end of the century. These two contrasting truths - unexpected magnificence and underestimated peril - have become compellingly clear during the past two decades of research on biological diversity. In his dazzlingly intelligent book, Wilson describes the treasures of the natural world we are about to lose forever and how we can save them.
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4 out of 5 stars
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A scientifically-grounded case for the environment
- By Lucas on 01-24-10
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Improbable Planet
- How Earth Became Humanity's Home
- By: Hugh Ross
- Narrated by: Bob Souer
- Length: 7 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 113
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 99
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 98
Most of us remember the basics from science classes about how Earth came to be the only known planet that sustains complex life. But what most people don't know is that the more thoroughly researchers investigate the history of our planet, the more astonishing the story of our existence becomes. The number and complexity of the astronomical, geological, chemical, and biological features recognized as essential to human existence have expanded explosively within the past decade.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Wonderful Teaching of Complex requirements for Lif
- By Eric on 09-29-17
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The Next Species
- The Future of Evolution in the Aftermath of Man
- By: Michael Tennesen
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 10 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 23
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 22
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Story4 out of 5 stars 21
While examining the history of our planet and actively exploring our present environment, science journalist Michael Tennesen describes what life on Earth could look like after the next mass extinction.
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Beaks, Bones and Bird Songs
- How the Struggle for Survival Has Shaped Birds and Their Behavior
- By: Roger Lederer
- Narrated by: Charles Constant
- Length: 7 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 177
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 158
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 158
When we see a bird flying from branch to branch happily chirping, it is easy to imagine they lead a simple life of freedom, flight, and feathers. What we don't see is the arduous, life-threatening challenges they face at every moment. Beaks, Bones and Bird Songs guides the listener through the myriad, and often almost miraculous, things that birds do every day to merely stay alive. Like the goldfinch, which manages extreme weather changes by doubling the density of its plumage in winter.
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5 out of 5 stars
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very dense but good info
- By K. on 03-20-19
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Here on Earth
- By: Tim Flannery
- Narrated by: Tim Flannery
- Length: 8 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 72
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 59
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Story4 out of 5 stars 56
Tim Flannery’s first major book since The Weather Makers charts the history of life on our planet. Here on Earth, which draws its points of departure from Darwin and Wallace, Lovelock and Dawkins, is an extraordinary exploration of evolution and sustainability. Our success as a species has had disastrous effects on many of the Earth’s ecosystems and could lead to our downfall. But equally, Flannery argues, we are now equipped as never before to explore our true relationship with the planet on which our biological, economic and cultural futures depend.
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5 out of 5 stars
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The Next Jared Diamond
- By Michael Dowd on 08-19-11
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Improbable Destinies
- Fate, Chance, and the Future of Evolution
- By: Jonathan B. Losos
- Narrated by: Marc Cashman
- Length: 12 hrs
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 68
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 60
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 60
Improbable Destinies will change the way we think and talk about evolution. Losos' insights into natural selection and evolutionary change have far-reaching applications for protecting ecosystems, securing our food supply, and fighting off harmful viruses and bacteria. This compelling narrative offers a new understanding of ourselves and our role in the natural world and the cosmos.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Too much trivia.
- By Anthony W. Shallin on 07-08-18
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Timefulness
- How Thinking Like a Geologist Can Help Save the World
- By: Marcia Bjornerud
- Narrated by: Tanya Eby
- Length: 5 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 62
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 59
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 59
Few of us have any conception of the enormous timescales in our planet's long history, and this narrow perspective underlies many of the environmental problems we are creating for ourselves. Our everyday lives are shaped by processes that vastly predate us, and our habits will in turn have consequences that will outlast us by generations. Timefulness reveals how knowing the rhythms of Earth's deep past and conceiving of time as a geologist does can give us the perspective we need for a more sustainable future.
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3 out of 5 stars
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The narration was so bad I put it aside
- By 11104 on 10-13-18
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The Making of the Fittest
- DNA and the Ultimate Forensic Record of Evolution
- By: Sean B. Carroll
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 8 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 320
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 148
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 148
DNA is the genetic material that defines us as individuals. Over the last two decades, it has emerged as a powerful tool for solving crimes and determining guilt and innocence. But, very recently, an important new aspect of DNA has been revealed: it contains a detailed record of evolution. That is, DNA is a living chronicle of how the marvelous creatures that inhabit our planet have adapted to its many environments, from the freezing waters of the Antarctic to the lush canopy of the rain forest.
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5 out of 5 stars
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So that's Evolution
- By Roy on 04-26-09
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The Story of Earth
- The First 4.5 Billion Years, from Stardust to Living Planet
- By: Robert M. Hazen
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 827
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 717
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 711
Earth evolves. From first atom to molecule, mineral to magma, granite crust to single cell to verdant living landscape, ours is a planet constantly in flux. In this radical new approach to Earth’s biography, senior Carnegie Institution researcher and national best-selling author Robert M. Hazen reveals how the co-evolution of the geosphere and biosphere - of rocks and living matter - has shaped our planet into the only one of its kind in the Solar System, if not the entire cosmos.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Makes minerals interesting
- By Gary on 07-31-12
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Astrobiology: A Very Short Introduction
- By: David C. Catling
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 4 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 33
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 31
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 31
Astrobiology is the study of the origin and development of life on this and other planets. What fascinates people about astrobiology is that it seeks answers to long-standing unsolved questions: How quickly did life evolve on Earth and why did life persist here? Is there life elsewhere in the Solar System or beyond? The research of astrobiology has become more crucial than ever in recent decades, as biologists have discovered microbes that live in ever more extreme settings, such as bubbling hot springs, in acid, or deep within rocks.
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Why Evolution Is True
- By: Jerry A. Coyne
- Narrated by: Victor Bevine
- Length: 9 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,507
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,082
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,077
Why evolution is more than just a theory: it is a fact. In all the current highly publicized debates about creationism and its descendant "intelligent design", there is an element of the controversy that is rarely mentioned: the evidence, the empirical truth of evolution by natural selection.
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5 out of 5 stars
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As great as everyone says it is
- By Joseph on 12-01-10
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The Equations of Life
- How Physics Shapes Evolution
- By: Charles S. Cockell
- Narrated by: Ian Porter
- Length: 11 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 110
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 94
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 95
In The Equations of Life, biologist Charles S. Cockell makes the forceful argument that the laws of physics narrowly constrain how life can evolve, making evolution's outcomes predictable. If we were to find something very much like a lady bug eating something very much like an aphid on a distant planet, we shouldn't be surprised. The forms of life are guided by a limited set of rules, and, as a result, there is a narrow set of solutions to the challenges of existence.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Too many equations, not enough insights
- By Alec Drumm on 09-24-18
Publisher's Summary
How is it that we came to be here? The search for answers to that question has preoccupied humans for millennia. Scientists have sought clues in the genes of living things; in the physical environments of Earth, from mountaintops to the depths of the ocean; in the chemistry of this world and those nearby; in the tiniest particles of matter; and in the deepest reaches of space. In Islands of the Cosmos, Dale A. Russell traces a path from the dawn of the universe to speculation about our future on this planet. He centers his story on the physical and biological processes in evolution, which interact to favor more successful and eliminate less successful forms of life. Marvelously, these processes reveal latent possibilities in life's basic structure and propel a major evolutionary theme: the increasing proficiency of biological function. It remains to be seen whether the human form can survive the dynamic processes that brought it into existence. Yet the emergence of the ability to acquire knowledge from experience, to optimize behavior, to conceptualize, to distinguish "good" from "bad" behavior all hint at an evolutionary outcome that science is only beginning to understand.
The book is published by Indiana University Press.
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