Life Cycles: Reflections of an Evolutionary Biologist

John Tyler Bonner

Published by Princeton University Press 1993

Life Cycles

Reflections of an Evolutionary Biologist

John Tyler Bonner

Volume 1769 in the series Princeton Legacy Library

https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400872770

Overview
Contents

About this book

Within a single captivating narrative, John Bonner combines an intensely personal memoir of scientific progress and an overview of what we now know about living things. Bonner, a major participant in the development of biology as an experimental science, draws on his life-long study of slime molds for an understanding of the life cycle-the foundation of all biology. In an age of increasing specialization and fragmentation among subfields of biology, this is a unique work of reflection and integration.

Originally published in 1993.

The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Reviews

"This, then, is not only a book that grapples with some of the most profound issues in biology but also a professional autobiography; a life history that has intertwined with the life cycles under study....Bonner's book ought to be a classic."---Peter Calow, The Times Higher Education Supplement

"Bonner's prose is a felicitous blend of science simply explained, gentle but insistent rigor, and a fetching triad of wry humor, personal anecdote and unexpected diversion. This makes for an enchanting book that reflects a thoughtful preoccupation with life cycles and their evolution...rang[ing]...widely from the inherent importance of the size of particular organisms to the nature of animal thought and human culture."---Bernard Dixon, New Scientist

"Charming, fascinating, and insightful, this slim volume combines a memoir of a life in science with an accessible distillation of what we know about the workings of living things."

"If we measure books by the degree to which they alter our perceptions, then this one is certainly a winner. We will never be able to look at a rotting log in quite the same way again or dig through the soil in the garden."---Steven Austad, Natural History

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	vii
Preface Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	ix
The Background
Chapter I. Beginnings Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	3
Chapter 2. The Life Cycle Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	15
The Period of Size Increase
Chapter 3. Becoming Larger By Becoming Multicellular Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	39
Chapter 4. Becoming Larger By Developing Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	68
Chapter 5. Becoming Larger During Evolution Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	93
The Adult Period
Chapter 6. Becoming Aware Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	123
Chapter 7. Becoming Social Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	158
Chapter 8. Becoming Cultural Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	179
Selected Reading Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	201
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	205