Darwinism And Its Discontents

by Michael Ruse

• ISBN13: 9780521829472
• ISBN10: 052182947X
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2006-07-31
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

"This book presents an ardent defense of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution against its many critics by one of the leading experts on this subject. Offering a clear and comprehensive exposition of the thinking of Darwin, Michael Ruse brings the story up to date, examining important issues such as the origins of life, the fossil record, the mechanism of natural selection, and rival theories such as punctuated equilibrium, the story of human evolution (including the recently found "hobbits," Homo floresiensis), fraud in biological science, literary approaches to evolution, and the philosophical and religious implications of Darwinism, notably a discussion of Creationism and its modern day offshoot, Intelligent Design Theory. Ruse draws upon the most recent discoveries, but writes with a minimum of jargon."--BOOK JACKET.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	ix
Introduction	1	(4)
CHAPTER ONE Charles Darwin and His Revolution	5	(20)
CHAPTER TWO The Fact of Evolution	25	(27)
CHAPTER THREE The Origin of Life	52	(20)
CHAPTER FOUR The Path of Evolution	72	(31)
CHAPTER FIVE The Cause of Evolution	103	(31)
CHAPTER SIX Limitations and Restrictions	134	(32)
CHAPTER SEVEN Humans	166	(28)
CHAPTER EIGHT Fact or Fiction?	194	(20)
CHAPTER NINE Dishonest Science?	214	(22)
CHAPTER TEN Philosophy	236	(22)
CHAPTER ELEVEN Literature	258	(17)
CHAPTER TWELVE Religion	275	(16)
References	291	(18)
Index	309