Darwin's Backyard

How Small Experiments Led to a Big Theory

By: James T. Costa

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Paperback | 12 October 2018 | Edition Number 1

At a Glance

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464 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
2.1 x 1.4 x 0.2

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James T. Costa takes readers on a journey from Darwin's childhood through his voyage on the HMS Beagle, where his ideas on evolution began, and on to Down House, his bustling home of forty years. Using his garden and greenhouse, the surrounding meadows and woodlands, and even the cellar and hallways of his home-turned-field-station, Darwin tested ideas of his landmark theory of evolution through an astonishing array of experiments without using specialized equipment. From those results, he plumbed the laws of nature and drew evidence for the revolutionary arguments of On the Origin of Species and other watershed works.

This unique perspective introduces us to an enthusiastic correspondent, collaborator, and, especially, an incorrigible observer and experimenter. And it includes eighteen experiments for home, school, or garden.

Finalist for the 2018 AAAS/Subaru SB&F Prizes for Excellence in Science Books.

Industry Reviews

"If you've ever fantasized walking and conversing with the great scientist on the subjects that consumed him, and now wish to add the fullness of reality, read this book." -- Edward O. Wilson
"Darwin's Backyard, is a passionate but balanced celebration of the Victorian scientist's lifelong obsession with enquiry and how the fields and meadows around his home were a microcosm of the wider world... Costa more than achieves his stated goals of revealing the evolution of Darwin's insights and the relevance of his methods now." -- Nature
"It is a charming book about Darwin's homespun experiments..." -- Times Literary Supplement
"...excellent Darwin's Backyard... James Costa has written an intimate and big-hearted book. In its pages, readers will discover the real Darwin, a complicated man behind a revolutionary theory." -- Science Lives
"With Darwin's Backyard, Costa has written an intimate and big-hearted book. In its pages, young readers will discover the complicated man behind the revolutionary theory." -- Science Magazine
"Entertaining." -- David Dobbs - The New York Times Book Review

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