Lockshin R.A. (ed.) The Joy of Science: An Examination of How Scientists Ask and Answer Questions Using the Story of Evolution as a Paradigm

Dordrecht: Springer, 2007. — 426 p.Scientists have great passion. What could be more exhilarating than to go to work every day feeling as if you were once again a nine-year-old called up to he stage to help the magician with his trick? To be a researcher is to always be in the position of having the chance to see how the trick works. No wonder that many researchers feel that each new day is the most exciting day to be a scientist. It therefore is not surprising that scientists have such trouble communicating with non-scientists. It is difficult for the scientist to understand a life not focused on the desire to understand. The structure of this book is therefore tripartite. On the first level, we wish to demonstrate that, far from being arcane or inaccessible, the scientific approach is simply a variant of normal, common experience and judgment, easily accessible to any educated person. The second goal is to explain the structure of scientific thinking, which we will describe as the requirement for evidence, logic, and falsification (experimental testing). The third goal is to illustrate the scientific method by looking at the story of the development of the idea of evolution. It is possible to use this book for a one-semester or two-semester course. Each of the chapters may be treated briefly or in more detail—for instance, in developing the story of quantitation and statistics in Chapter 32 or following in greater or lesser detail the excursion into molecular biology in Chapters 14–16. It will also be possible to spend more time on such issues as the distinction among the various historical eras, the modern classification of animals and plants, or the relationship between ecology and evolution. If possible, it would be best to use this book in the setting of small classes in which discussion is encouraged.How Science Works.
Science is an ELF.
Origin of the Theory of Evolution: Time and Change.
The Origin of the Earth and of Species of Animals and Plants as Seen Before the Enlightenment.
The Seashells on the Mountaintop.
Were Kangaroos on Noah’s Ark?
Aristotle’s and Linnaeus’ Classifications of Living Creatures.
Darwin’s World—Species, Varieties, and the Age of the Earth. Evidences of Glaciation.
The Voyage of the Beagle.
Is the Earth Old Enough for Evolution?
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Origin of the Theory of Evolution: Social Aspects.
Evaluating Data.
The Industrial Revolution, Population Potential, Malthus, Social Pressure, and Competition.
Natural Selection: The Second Half of Darwin’s Hypothesis.
Darwin’s Hypothesis.
The Crisis in Evolution.
The Molecular Basis of Evolutionary Theory.
The Chemical Basis of Evolution.
The Stuff of Inheritance: DNA, RNA, and Mutations.
The Genetic Code 227.
The History of the Earth and the Origin of Life.
The Story of our Planet.
The Appearance of Oxygen.
The Conquest of Land—Every Criterion for the Classification of the Major Groups of Animals and Plants Refers to Adaptations for Life on Land.
The Great Ages of our Planet.
Return to Water and to Land.
Evidence for Extinctions—Why Do We Get Them?
The Violence of the Earth: Rainshadows and Volcanoes.
The Origin of Species.
Competition Among Species.
Sexual Selection.
Coevolution The Importance of Disease.
The Aids Murder Mystery—What Constitutes Proof?
The Evolution of Humans.
The Evolution of Humans.
When Did Humans Acquire a Soul?
The Impact of Evolutionary Theory: The Eugenics Society and the I.Q. Test.
Evaluating Population Measurements: Bell Curves, Statistics, and Probability.
Conclusions—Where Do We Go from Here?