Download or read book Evolutionary Change and Heterochrony written by Ken McNamara and published by . This book was released on 1995 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Recent studies have shown that relative changes in the rates and timing of growth during ontogeny, known as heterochrony, play a significant role in evolution. In this study, biologists, palaeontologists and anthropologists present overviews of current activity in heterochrony in their disciplines.

Download or read book Evolutionary Developmental Biology written by Brian K. Hall and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 485 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Although evolutionary developmental biology is a new field, its origins lie in the last century; the search for connections between embryonic development (ontogeny) and evolutionary change (phylogeny) has been a long one. Evolutionary developmental biology is however more than just a fusion of the fields of developmental and evolutionary biology. It forges a unification of genomic, developmental, organismal, population and natural selection approaches to evolutionary change. It is concerned with how developmental processes evolve; how evolution produces novel structures, functions and behaviours; and how development, evolution and ecology are integrated to bring about and stabilize evolutionary change. The previous edition of this title, published in 1992, defined the terms and laid out the field for evolutionary developmental biology. This field is now one of the most active and fast growing within biology and this is reflected in this second edition, which is more than twice the length of the original and brought completely up to date. There are new chapters on major transitions in animal evolution, expanded coverage of comparative embryonic development and the inclusion of recent advances in genetics and molecular biology. The book is divided into eight parts which: place evolutionary developmental biology in the historical context of the search for relationships between development and evolution; detail the historical background leading to evolutionary embryology; explore embryos in development and embryos in evolution; discuss the relationship between embryos, evolution, environment and ecology; discuss the dilemma for homology of the fact that development evolves; deal with the importance of understanding how embryos measure time and place both through development and evolutionarily through heterochrony and heterotrophy; and set out the principles and processes that underlie evolutionary developmental biology. With over one hundred illustrations and photographs, extensive cross-referencing between chapters and boxes for ancillary material, this latest edition will be of immense interest to graduate and advanced undergraduate students in cell, developmental and molecular biology, and in zoology, evolution, ecology and entomology; in fact anyone with an interest in this new and increasingly important and interdisciplinary field which unifies biology.

Download or read book Heterochrony written by Michael L. McKinney and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-04-17 with total page 452 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The authors outline evolutionary thought from pre-Darwinian biology to current research on the subject. They broadly label the factors of evolution as intrinsic and extrinsic, with Darwin favoring the latter by emphasizing the process of natural selection and later followers of Darwin carrying t

Download or read book Heterochrony in Evolution written by Michael L. McKinney and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-11-21 with total page 353 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: ... an adult poet is simply an individual in a state of arrested development-in brief, a sort of moron. Just as all of us, in utero, pass through a stage in which we are tadpoles, ... so all of us pass through a state, in our nonage, when we are poets. A youth of seventeen who is not a poet is simply a donkey: his development has been arrested even anterior to that of the tadpole. But a man of fifty who still writes poetry is either an unfortunate who has never developed, intellectually, beyond his teens, or a conscious buffoon who pretends to be something he isn't-something far younger and juicier than he actually is. -H. 1. Mencken, High and Ghostly Matters, Prejudices: Fourth Series (1924) Where would evolution be, Without this thing, heterochrony? -M. L. McKinney (1987) One of the joys of working in a renascent field is that it is actually possible to keep up with the literature. So it is with mixed emotions that we heterochronists (even larval forms like myself) view the recent "veritable explosion of interest in heterochrony" (in Gould's words in this volume). On the positive side, it is ob viously necessary and desirable to extend and expand the inquiry; but one regrets that already we are beginning to talk past, lose track of, and even ignore each other as we carve out individual interests.

Download or read book Beyond Heterochrony written by Miriam Zelditch and published by Wiley-Liss. This book was released on 2001-10-03 with total page 400 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Heterochrony has been a dominant theme in the explosion of interest of evolution and development. This book explores beyond heterochrony for the links between evolutionary and developmental processes, as well as the origins of morphological diversity.

Download or read book Environment Development and Evolution written by Brian Keith Hall and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2004 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Leading researchers in evolutionary developmental biology seek linkages between, and a synthesis of, development, physiology, endocrinology, ecology, and evolution. Evolutionary developmental biology, also known as evo-devo or EDB, seeks to find links between development and evolution by opening the "black box" of development's role in evolution and in the evolution of developmental mechanisms. In particular, this volume emphasizes the roles of the environment and of hormonal signaling in evo-devo. It brings together a group of leading researchers to analyze the dynamic interaction of environmental factors with developmental and physiological processes and to examine how environmental signals are translated into phenotypic change, from the molecular and cellular level to organisms and groups of organisms. Taken together, these chapters demonstrate the crucial roles of those processes of genetic, developmental, physiological, and hormonal change that underpin evolutionary change in development, morphology, physiology, behavior, and life-history. Part I investigates links between environmental signals and developmental processes that could be preserved over evolutionary time. Several contributors evaluate the work of the late Ryuichi Matsuda, especially his emphasis on the role of the external environment in genetic change and variability ("pan-environmentalism"). Other contributors in part I analyze different aspects of environmental-genetic-evolutionary linkages, including the importance of alternate ontogenies in evolution and the paradox of stability over long periods of evolutionary time. Part II examines the plasticity that characterizes much of development, with contributors discussing such topics as gene regulatory networks and heterochronicity. Part III analyzes the role of hormones and metamorphosis in the evolution of such organisms with alternate life-history stages as lampreys, amphibians, and insects.

Download or read book Geometric Morphometrics for Biologists written by Miriam Leah Zelditch and published by Academic Press. This book was released on 2012-09-24 with total page 488 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first edition of Geometric Morphometrics for Biologists has been the primary resource for teaching modern geometric methods of shape analysis to biologists who have a stronger background in biology than in multivariate statistics and matrix algebra. These geometric methods are appealing to biologists who approach the study of shape from a variety of perspectives, from clinical to evolutionary, because they incorporate the geometry of organisms throughout the data analysis. The second edition of this book retains the emphasis on accessible explanations, and the copious illustrations and examples of the first, updating the treatment of both theory and practice. The second edition represents the current state-of-the-art and adds new examples and summarizes recent literature, as well as provides an overview of new software and step-by-step guidance through details of carrying out the analyses. Contains updated coverage of methods, especially for sampling complex curves and 3D forms and a new chapter on applications of geometric morphometrics to forensics Offers a reorganization of chapters to streamline learning basic concepts Presents detailed instructions for conducting analyses with freely available, easy to use software Provides numerous illustrations, including graphical presentations of important theoretical concepts and demonstrations of alternative approaches to presenting results

Download or read book The Shape of Life written by Rudolf A. Raff and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2012-12-14 with total page 545 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Rudolf Raff is recognized as a pioneer in evolutionary developmental biology. In their 1983 book, Embryos, Genes, and Evolution, Raff and co-author Thomas Kaufman proposed a synthesis of developmental and evolutionary biology. In The Shape of Life, Raff analyzes the rise of this new experimental discipline and lays out new research questions, hypotheses, and approaches to guide its development. Raff uses the evolution of animal body plans to exemplify the interplay between developmental mechanisms and evolutionary patterns. Animal body plans emerged half a billion years ago. Evolution within these body plans during this span of time has resulted in the tremendous diversity of living animal forms. Raff argues for an integrated approach to the study of the intertwined roles of development and evolution involving phylogenetic, comparative, and functional biology. This new synthesis will interest not only scientists working in these areas, but also paleontologists, zoologists, morphologists, molecular biologists, and geneticists.

Download or read book The Origin of Higher Taxa written by T. S. Kemp and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2016 with total page 215 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This text discusses whether the origin of radically new kinds of organisms - new higher taxa - are the result of normal Darwinian evolution proceeding, or whether unusual genetic processes and/or special environmental circumstances are necessary.

Download or read book Ecological Morphology written by Peter C. Wainwright and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 1994-08-15 with total page 375 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ecological morphology examines the relation between an animal's anatomy and physiology—its form and function—and how the animal has evolved in and can inhabit a particular environment. Within the past few years, research in this relatively new area has exploded. Ecological Morphology is a synthesis of major concepts and a demonstration of the ways in which this integrative approach can yield rich and surprising results. Through this interdisciplinary study, scientists have been able to understand, for instance, how bat wing design affects habitat use and bat diet; how the size of a predator affects its ability to capture and eat certain prey; and how certain mosquitoes have evolved physiologically and morphologically to tolerate salt-water habitats. Ecological Morphology also covers the history of the field, the role of the comparative method in studying adaptation, and the use of data from modern organisms for understanding the ecology of fossil communities. This book provides an overview of the achievements and potential of ecological morphology for all biologists and students interested in the way animal design, ecology, and evolution interact.

Download or read book Shapes of Time written by Ken McNamara and published by . This book was released on 1997 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How did evolution produce specific characteristics, such as the feet of amphibians, or the eye and brain that allow us to read these words? Museum curator Kenneth McNamara delves into the fascinating field of heterochrony to show the errant results when a normal pattern of embryological development is gently nudged off-course. 60 illustrations.

Download or read book Evolutionary Developmental Biology written by Laura Nuno de la Rosa and published by Springer. This book was released on 2020-11-15 with total page 1000 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This reference work provides an comprehensive and easily accessible source of information on numerous aspects of Evolutionary Developmental Biology. The work provides an extended overview on the current state of the art of this interdisciplinary and dynamic scientific field. The work is organized in thematic sections, referring to the specific requirements and interests in each section in far detail. “Evolutionary Developmental Biology – A Reference Guide” is intended to provide a resource of knowledge for researchers engaged in evolutionary biology, developmental biology, theoretical biology, philosophy of sciences and history of biology.

Download or read book Developmental Plasticity and Evolution written by Mary Jane West-Eberhard and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2003-03-13 with total page 815 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first comprehensive synthesis on development and evolution: it applies to all aspects of development, at all levels of organization and in all organisms, taking advantage of modern findings on behavior, genetics, endocrinology, molecular biology, evolutionary theory and phylogenetics to show the connections between developmental mechanisms and evolutionary change. This book solves key problems that have impeded a definitive synthesis in the past. It uses new concepts and specific examples to show how to relate environmentally sensitive development to the genetic theory of adaptive evolution and to explain major patterns of change. In this book development includes not only embryology and the ontogeny of morphology, sometimes portrayed inadequately as governed by "regulatory genes," but also behavioral development and physiological adaptation, where plasticity is mediated by genetically complex mechanisms like hormones and learning. The book shows how the universal qualities of phenotypes--modular organization and plasticity--facilitate both integration and change. Here you will learn why it is wrong to describe organisms as genetically programmed; why environmental induction is likely to be more important in evolution than random mutation; and why it is crucial to consider both selection and developmental mechanism in explanations of adaptive evolution. This book satisfies the need for a truly general book on development, plasticity and evolution that applies to living organisms in all of their life stages and environments. Using an immense compendium of examples on many kinds of organisms, from viruses and bacteria to higher plants and animals, it shows how the phenotype is reorganized during evolution to produce novelties, and how alternative phenotypes occupy a pivotal role as a phase of evolution that fosters diversification and speeds change. The arguments of this book call for a new view of the major themes of evolutionary biology, as shown in chapters on gradualism, homology, environmental induction, speciation, radiation, macroevolution, punctuation, and the maintenance of sex. No other treatment of development and evolution since Darwin's offers such a comprehensive and critical discussion of the relevant issues. Developmental Plasticity and Evolution is designed for biologists interested in the development and evolution of behavior, life-history patterns, ecology, physiology, morphology and speciation. It will also appeal to evolutionary paleontologists, anthropologists, psychologists, and teachers of general biology.

Download or read book Keywords in Evolutionary Biology written by Evelyn Fox Keller and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 1992 with total page 434 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In science, more than elsewhere, a word is expected to mean what it says, nothing more, nothing less. But scientific discourse is neither different nor separable from ordinary language--meanings are multiple, ambiguities ubiquitous. Keywords in Evolutionary Biology grapples with this problem in a field especially prone to the confusion engendered by semantic imprecision. Written by historians, philosophers, and biologists--including, among others, Stephen Jay Gould, Diane Paul, John Beatty, Robert Richards, Richard Lewontin, David Sloan Wilson, Peter Bowler, and Richard Dawkins--these essays identify and explicate those terms in evolutionary biology which, though commonly used, are plagues by multiple concurrent and historically varying meanings. By clarifying these terms in their many guises, the editors Evelyn Fox Keller and Elisabeth Lloyd hope to focus attention on major scholarly problems in the field--problems sometimes obscured, sometimes reveals, and sometimes even created by the use of such equivocal words. "Competition," "adaptation," and "fitness," for instance, are among the terms whose multiple meaning have led to more than merely semantic debates in evolutionary biology. Exploring the complexity of keywords and clarifying their role in prominent issues in the field, this book will prove invaluable to scientists and philosophers trying to come to terms with evolutionary theory; it will also serve as a useful guide to future research into the way in which scientific language works.

Download or read book Origins of Intelligence written by Sue Taylor Parker and published by Johns Hopkins University Press+ORM. This book was released on 2012-10-15 with total page 613 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A look at the origins of cognitive abilities in primate species. Since Darwin’s time, comparative psychologists have searched for a good way to compare cognition in humans and nonhuman primates. In Origins of Intelligence, Sue Parker and Michael McKinney offer such a framework and make a strong case for using human development theory (both Piagetian and neo-Piagetian) to study the evolution of intelligence across primate species. Their approach is comprehensive, covering a broad range of social, symbolic, physical, and logical domains, which fall under the all-encompassing and much-debated term intelligence. A widely held theory among developmental psychologists and social and biological anthropologists is that cognitive evolution in humans has occurred through juvenilization—the gradual accentuation and lengthening of childhood in the evolutionary process. In this work, however, Parker and McKinney argue instead that new stages were added at the end of cognitive development in our hominid ancestors, coining the term adultification by terminal extension to explain this process. Drawing evidence from scores of studies on monkeys, great apes, and human children, this book provides unique insights into ontogenetic constraints that have interacted with selective forces to shape the evolution of cognitive development in our lineage. “The authors’ elegant theory and comprehensive empirical synthesis of how the development of human intelligence and brain evolved opens up cascading heuristic avenues for creatively answering one of the great questions in the human history of ideas.” —Jonas Langer, Human Development “A handy source of information on comparative cognitive abilities related to life history and brain variables.” —James Anderson, Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute

Download or read book Embryos and Ancestors written by Sir Gavin De Beer and published by . This book was released on 1958 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Improbable Destinies written by Jonathan B. Losos and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2017-08-08 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A major new book overturning our assumptions about how evolution works Earth’s natural history is full of fascinating instances of convergence: phenomena like eyes and wings and tree-climbing lizards that have evolved independently, multiple times. But evolutionary biologists also point out many examples of contingency, cases where the tiniest change—a random mutation or an ancient butterfly sneeze—caused evolution to take a completely different course. What role does each force really play in the constantly changing natural world? Are the plants and animals that exist today, and we humans ourselves, inevitabilities or evolutionary flukes? And what does that say about life on other planets? Jonathan Losos reveals what the latest breakthroughs in evolutionary biology can tell us about one of the greatest ongoing debates in science. He takes us around the globe to meet the researchers who are solving the deepest mysteries of life on Earth through their work in experimental evolutionary science. Losos himself is one of the leaders in this exciting new field, and he illustrates how experiments with guppies, fruit flies, bacteria, foxes, and field mice, along with his own work with anole lizards on Caribbean islands, are rewinding the tape of life to reveal just how rapid and predictable evolution can be. Improbable Destinies will change the way we think and talk about evolution. Losos's 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.