Author: Paul B. Wignall
Narrator: Jonathan Cowley
Unabridged: 4 hr 7 min
Format: Digital Audiobook
Publisher: Tantor Audio
Published: 09/10/2019
Most people are familiar with the dodo and the dinosaur, but extinction has occurred throughout the history of life, with the result that nearly all the species that have ever existed are now extinct. Today, species are disappearing at an ever increasing rate, while past losses have occurred during several great crises. Issues such as habitat destruction, conservation, climate change, and, during major crises, volacanism and meteorite impact, can all contribute towards the demise of a group. In this Very Short Introduction, Paul B. Wignall looks at the causes and nature of extinctions, past and present, and the factors that can make a species vulnerable. Summarizing what we know about all of the major and minor extinction events, he examines some of the greatest debates in modern science, such as the relative role of climate and humans in the death of the Pleistocene megafauna, including mammoths and giant ground sloths, and the roles that global warming, ocean acidification, and deforestation are playing in present-day extinctions.
Our sense of smell—or olfaction as it is technically known—is our most enigmatic sense. It can conjure up memories, taking us back to very specific places and emotions, whilst powerful smells can induce strong feelings of hunger or nause...
Lewis Thomass fascinating observations of the quirkiness of the worlds lifeforms cause the listener to ponder simultaneously a tiny organism and the workings of the cosmos. In one chapter he examines the medusa jellyfish and a sea slug, mutually par...
The fundamentals of biology beam its searchlight on all the basic principles contained in various aspects of life sciences, like recombinant DNA, genetics, molecular biology and biochemistry. Via the in-depth study of these principles, humans can ad...
Microbiology, along with mathematics, chemistry, and physics, is one of the fundamental branches of basic sciences. The knowledge and detailed study of microorganisms and their functions can establish its use in a variety of applications, from medic...
Sex- it's not just for humans! Dive into this wacky but scientific exploration of all things sex. Get answers to all of the random questions you might never have thought to ask yourself: • How did dinosaurs have sex millions of years ago? &bull...
For going on two decades, Scientific American’s “Ask the Experts” column has been answering reader questions on all fields of science. We’ve taken your questions from the basic to the esoteric and reached out to top scientist...
Systems biology came about as growing numbers of engineers and scientists from other fields created algorithms which supported the analysis of biological data in incredible quantities. Whereas biologists of the past had been forced to study one item...
Astrobiology is an exciting new subject, and one, arguably, more interdisciplinary than any other. Astrobiologists seek to understand the origin and evolution of life on Earth in order to illuminate and guide the search for life on other planets. In...
The Soul of the White Ant by Eugene Marais is a passionate, insightful account into the world of termites. It is a meticulously researched expose of their complex, highly structured community life.Originally translated into English in 1937, the...