George Gaylord Simpson

Name: George Gaylord Simpson
Brand: Columbia University Press
Price: 112.99 AUD

Paleontologist and Evolutionist

By: Leo Laporte

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Paperback | 26 September 2000 | Edition Number 1

At a Glance

Paperback
256 Pages

Age
22+

Dimensions(cm)
22.53 x 14.98 x 2.22

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$112.99

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In 1978 the distinguished paleontologist George Gaylord Simpson published his autobiography, Concession to the Improbable, which gave the basic facts of his life but left more questions than it answered. Now L o F. Laporte presents this absorbing intellectual study of Simpson's major areas of work.

Focusing on Simpson's scientific contributions, Laporte provides chapters on Simpson's earliest paleontological research through his distinguished Alexander Agassiz professorship at Harvard and his extensive fieldwork for the American Museum of Natural History, where he developed the core themes set forth in his most prestigious work, Tempo and Mode in Evolution (Columbia University Press, 1944). Simpson was arguably the first evolutionary paleontologist to combine descriptive taxonomy with the modern approaches of genetics and statistical analysis.

Despite his brilliance Simpson was a difficult person to know; Laporte addresses the nature of Simpson's interpersonal problems with colleagues during his life. An introductory overview provides the biographical context of Simpson's career and provides the framework for his major paleontological and evolutionary contributions.

Industry Reviews

An informative and engaging biography...The book shows how hugely influential and productive Simpson was. -- Michael Novacek Nature Simpson's position in intellectual history is secure and is made the more so by the welcome publication of Laporte's book. -- Niles Eldredge Science Through his very skillful interpretation... Laporte provides a marvelous story of one man's pursuit of the riddles of nature. -- William R. Brice, University of Pittsburgh American Paleontologist

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Preface	p. xi
Acknowledgments	p. xv
Biographical Introduction	p. 1
Paleontology and the Expansion of Biology	p. 17
Biology and Fossils at Yale	p. 19
Biology and Fossils at the American Museum	p. 21
Simpson's Biological Insights of the 1930s	p. 25
Tempo and Mode in Evolution	p. 29
Response to Tempo and Mode	p. 31
Adoption of the Population Concept of Species	p. 34
Disciplinary Independence for Paleontology	p. 37
The Summer of 1924	p. 41
"A Very Promising Graduate Student"	p. 41
"Digressing All Over the Landscape"	p. 45
"Some Discovery to Rival the Boss's"	p. 47
"A Considerable Piece of Work"	p. 50
"Bone is Abundant"	p. 56
"Busy Collecting Other Men's Prospects"	p. 57
"First Paper I Ever Wrote"	p. 61
"Beginning a Series of Raids"	p. 62
Darwin's World	p. 67
Prologue	p. 67
Presbyterianism and Apostasy	p. 70
Evolution and Darwin	p. 72
Six Darwinian Themes	p. 73
Selected Simpson Commentaries on Darwin	p. 78
Paleocene Mammals of Montana	p. 80
The Invitation	p. 81
First Field Season--1932	p. 83
South American Interlude	p. 84
Second Field Season--1935	p. 86
"New Ways of Going at Things"	p. 87
On Species	p. 96
From Types to Statistical Inferences	p. 98
From Statistics to Ecology	p. 105
From Species to Higher Categories	p. 107
Species as an Evolutionary Concept	p. 109
Tempo and Mode in Evolution	p. 112
Two Door-Openers	p. 113
The New Genetics	p. 115
Genetics and the Origin of Species	p. 117
The Contemporary Paleontology	p. 120
Tempo and Mode in Evolution	p. 126
Micro-, Macro-, and Mega-Evolution	p. 139
Low-Rate and High-Rate Lines	p. 144
Inertia, Trend, and Momentum	p. 147
Organism and Environment	p. 151
Modes of Evolution	p. 155
Reception and Impact	p. 162
Final Perspective	p. 171
Mentor for Paleoanthropology	p. 174
The Evolutionary Synthesis	p. 175
Simpson's Credentials	p. 176
Simpson as Mentor	p. 178
Simpson as Critic	p. 182
Simpson as Apologist	p. 189
Wrong for the Right Reasons	p. 195
Background	p. 196
Wegener and Fossils	p. 197
Simpson's Response to Drift	p. 198
Structure of Simpson's Rebuttal	p. 200
The Plate Tectonics Revolution	p. 213
Simpson's Conversion	p. 215
Summing Up	p. 217
The Mind's Eye	p. 221
Showing What Is Observed	p. 223
Visual Induction	p. 223
Visual Deduction	p. 227
The Visual as Effect and Affect	p. 236
The Awkward Embrace	p. 240
Prelude to the American Museum Appointment	p. 241
Simpson Joins the American Museum	p. 241
American Museum Research and Expeditions	p. 243
New Directions with a New Director	p. 245
Simpson as Administrator	p. 247
Accident in Brazil	p. 249
"Plus Ca Change ..."	p. 251
Concession to the Ineluctable	p. 256
Magruder's Misadventure	p. 257
The Nature of Time	p. 259
Past Life's Lessons	p. 261
Melancholia	p. 263
Simpson as Sam Magruder	p. 264
Notes	p. 267
Bibliography	p. 305
Index	p. 319
Table of Contents provided by Syndetics. All Rights Reserved.

George Gaylord Simpson

Paleontologist and Evolutionist

At a Glance

Paperback

Industry Reviews

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