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Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University's objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide.

Print Price: $13.50

Format:
Paperback
160 pp.
21 b/w images, 111 mm x 174 mm

ISBN-13:
9780198804369

Publication date:
August 2017

Imprint: OUP UK


Evolution: A Very Short Introduction

Second Edition

Brian Charlesworth and Deborah Charlesworth

Series : Very Short Introductions

Less than 450 years ago, all European scholars believed that the Earth was at the centre of a Universe that was at most a few million miles in extent, and that the planets, sun, and stars all rotated around this centre. Less than 250 years ago, they believed that the Universe was created essentially in its present state about 6000 years ago. Even less than 150 years ago, the view that living species were the result of special creation by God was still dominant. The recognition by Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace of the mechanism of evolution by natural selection has completely transformed our understanding of the living world, including our own origins.

In this Very Short Introduction Brian and Deborah Charlesworth provide a clear and concise summary of the process of evolution by natural selection, and how natural selection gives rise to adaptations and eventually, over many generations, to new species. They introduce the central concepts of the field of evolutionary biology, as they have developed since Darwin and Wallace on the subject, over 140 years ago, and discuss some of the remaining questions regarding processes. They highlight the wide range of evidence for evolution, and the importance of an evolutionary understanding for instance in combating the rapid evolution of resistance by bacteria to antibiotics and of HIV to antiviral drugs.

This reissue includes some key updates to the main text and a completely updated Further Reading section.

ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Readership : For those interested in evolution, whether studying the subject as part of a course or for general interest.

1. Introduction
2. The processes of evolution
3. The evidence for evolution: similarities and differences between organisms
4. The evidence for evolution: patterns in time and space
5. Adaptation and natural selection
6. The formation and divergence of species
7. Some difficult problems
8. Afterword
References
Further Reading
Index

There are no Instructor/Student Resources available at this time.

Brian Charlesworth is a Senior Honorary Professorial Fellow at the Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, and former President of the Society for the Study of Evolution. Deborah Charlesworth is a Senior Honorary Professorial Fellow at the Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, and former President of the European Society for Evolutionary Biology. Together they have written Elements of Evolutionary Genetics (Roberts & Company, 2010).

Special Features

  • Introduces in a clear and concise way the processes of evolution by natural selection, and how this leads to complex adaptations and new species.
  • Looks at the wide range of evidence for evolution.
  • Considers some of the remaining questions in evolutionary theory.
  • Explains adaptation and natural selection.
  • This reissue includes some key updates to the main text and a completely updated Further Reading section.
  • Part of the Very Short Introductions series - over eight million copies sold worldwide.