Convergent Evolution

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Author :
Publisher : MIT Press
ISBN 13 : 0262539098
Total Pages : 335 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (625 download)

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Book Synopsis Convergent Evolution by : George R. McGhee, Jr.

Download or read book Convergent Evolution written by George R. McGhee, Jr. and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2011-11-04 with total page 335 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An analysis of convergent evolution from molecules to ecosystems, demonstrating the limited number of evolutionary pathways available to life. Charles Darwin famously concluded On the Origin of Species with a vision of “endless forms most beautiful” continually evolving. More than 150 years later many evolutionary biologists see not endless forms but the same, or very similar, forms evolving repeatedly in many independent species lineages. A porpoise's fishlike fins, for example, are not inherited from fish ancestors but are independently derived convergent traits. In this book, George McGhee describes the ubiquity of the phenomenon of convergent evolution and connects it directly to the concept of evolutionary constraint—the idea that the number of evolutionary pathways available to life are not endless, but quite limited. Convergent evolution occurs on all levels, from tiny organic molecules to entire ecosystems of species. McGhee demonstrates its ubiquity in animals, both herbivore and carnivore; in plants; in ecosystems; in molecules, including DNA, proteins, and enzymes; and even in minds, describing problem-solving behavior and group behavior as the products of convergence. For each species example, he provides an abbreviated list of the major nodes in its phylogenetic classification, allowing the reader to see the evolutionary relationship of a group of species that have independently evolved a similar trait by convergent evolution. McGhee analyzes the role of functional and developmental constraints in producing convergent evolution, and considers the scientific and philosophical implications of convergent evolution for the predictability of the evolutionary process.

Convergent Evolution on Earth

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Publisher : MIT Press
ISBN 13 : 0262042738
Total Pages : 333 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (62 download)

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Book Synopsis Convergent Evolution on Earth by : George R. McGhee, Jr.

Download or read book Convergent Evolution on Earth written by George R. McGhee, Jr. and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2019-10-15 with total page 333 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An analysis of patterns of convergent evolution on Earth that suggests where we might look for similar convergent forms on other planets. Why does a sea lily look like a palm tree? And why is a sea lily called a “lily” when it is a marine animal and not a plant? Many marine animals bear a noticeable similarity in form to land-dwelling plants. And yet these marine animal forms evolved in the oceans first; land plants independently and convergently evolved similar forms much later in geologic time. In this book, George McGhee analyzes patterns of convergent evolution on Earth and argues that these patterns offer lessons for the search for life elsewhere in the universe. Our Earth is a water world; 71 percent of the earth's surface is covered by water. The fossil record shows that multicellular life on dry land is a new phenomenon; for the vast majority of the earth's history—3,500 million years of its 4,560 million years of existence—complex life existed only in the oceans. Explaining that convergent biological evolution occurs because of limited evolutionary pathways, McGhee examines examples of convergent evolution in forms of feeding, immobility and mobility, defense, and organ systems. McGhee suggests that the patterns of convergent evolution that we see in our own water world indicate the potential for similar convergent forms in other water worlds. We should search for extraterrestrial life on water worlds, and for technological life on water worlds with continental landmasses.

Improbable Destinies

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Publisher : Penguin
ISBN 13 : 0399184937
Total Pages : 384 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (991 download)

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Book Synopsis Improbable Destinies by : Jonathan B. Losos

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.

The Convergent Evolution of Agriculture in Humans and Insects

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Author :
Publisher : MIT Press
ISBN 13 : 0262367564
Total Pages : 339 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (623 download)

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Book Synopsis The Convergent Evolution of Agriculture in Humans and Insects by : Ted R Schultz

Download or read book The Convergent Evolution of Agriculture in Humans and Insects written by Ted R Schultz and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2022-02-15 with total page 339 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contributors explore common elements in the evolutionary histories of both human and insect agriculture resulting from convergent evolution. During the past 12,000 years, agriculture originated in humans as many as twenty-three times, and during the past 65 million years, agriculture also originated in nonhuman animals at least twenty times and in insects at least fifteen times. It is much more likely that these independent origins represent similar solutions to the challenge of growing food than that they are due purely to chance. This volume seeks to identify common elements in the evolutionary histories of both human and insect agriculture that are the results of convergent evolution. The goal is to create a new, synthetic field that characterizes, quantifies, and empirically documents the evolutionary and ecological mechanisms that drive both human and nonhuman agriculture. The contributors report on the results of quantitative analyses comparing human and nonhuman agriculture; discuss evolutionary conflicts of interest between and among farmers and cultivars and how they interfere with efficiencies of agricultural symbiosis; describe in detail agriculture in termites, ambrosia beetles, and ants; and consider patterns of evolutionary convergence in different aspects of agriculture, comparing fungal parasites of ant agriculture with fungal parasites of human agriculture, analyzing the effects of agriculture on human anatomy, and tracing the similarities and differences between the evolution of agriculture in humans and in a single, relatively well-studied insect group, fungus-farming ants.

Culture History and Convergent Evolution

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Author :
Publisher : Springer Nature
ISBN 13 : 3030461262
Total Pages : 302 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (34 download)

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Book Synopsis Culture History and Convergent Evolution by : Huw S. Groucutt

Download or read book Culture History and Convergent Evolution written by Huw S. Groucutt and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2020-07-23 with total page 302 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume brings together diverse contributions from leading archaeologists and paleoanthropologists, covering various spatial and temporal periods to distinguish convergent evolution from cultural transmission in order to see if we can discover ancient human populations. With a focus on lithic technology, the book analyzes ancient materials and cultures to systematically explore the theoretical and physical aspects of culture, convergence, and populations in human evolution and prehistory. The book will be of interest to academics, students and researchers in archaeology, paleoanthropology, genetics, and paleontology. The book begins by addressing early prehistory, discussing the convergent evolution of behaviors and the diverse ecological conditions driving the success of different evolutionary paths. Chapters discuss these topics and technology in the context of the Lower Paleolithic/Earlier Stone age and Middle Paleolithic/Middle Stone Age. The book then moves towards a focus on the prehistory of our species over the last 40,000 years. Topics covered include the human evolutionary and dispersal consequences of the Middle-Upper Paleolithic Transition in Western Eurasia. Readers will also learn about the cultural convergences, and divergences, that occurred during the Terminal Pleistocene and Holocene, such as the budding of human societies in the Americas. The book concludes by integrating these various perspectives and theories, and explores different methods of analysis to link technological developments and cultural convergence.

Convergent Evolution in Stone-Tool Technology

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Publisher : MIT Press
ISBN 13 : 0262552086
Total Pages : 305 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (625 download)

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Book Synopsis Convergent Evolution in Stone-Tool Technology by : Michael J. O'Brien

Download or read book Convergent Evolution in Stone-Tool Technology written by Michael J. O'Brien and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2024-05-21 with total page 305 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Scholars from a variety of disciplines consider cases of convergence in lithic technology, when functional or developmental constraints result in similar forms in independent lineages. Hominins began using stone tools at least 2.6 million years ago, perhaps even 3.4 million years ago. Given the nearly ubiquitous use of stone tools by humans and their ancestors, the study of lithic technology offers an important line of inquiry into questions of evolution and behavior. This book examines convergence in stone tool-making, cases in which functional or developmental constraints result in similar forms in independent lineages. Identifying examples of convergence, and distinguishing convergence from divergence, refutes hypotheses that suggest physical or cultural connection between far-flung prehistoric toolmakers. Employing phylogenetic analysis and stone-tool replication, the contributors show that similarity of tools can be caused by such common constraints as the fracture properties of stone or adaptive challenges rather than such unlikely phenomena as migration of toolmakers over an Arctic ice shelf. Contributors R. Alexander Bentley, Briggs Buchanan, Marcelo Cardillo, Mathieu Charbonneau, Judith Charlin, Chris Clarkson, Loren G. Davis, Metin I. Eren, Peter Hiscock, Thomas A. Jennings, Steven L. Kuhn, Daniel E. Lieberman, George R. McGhee, Alex Mackay, Michael J. O'Brien, Charlotte D. Pevny, Ceri Shipton, Ashley M. Smallwood, Heather Smith, Jayne Wilkins, Samuel C. Willis, Nicolas Zayns

Contingency and Convergence

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Publisher : MIT Press
ISBN 13 : 0262043394
Total Pages : 329 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (62 download)

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Book Synopsis Contingency and Convergence by : Russell Powell

Download or read book Contingency and Convergence written by Russell Powell and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2020-02-25 with total page 329 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Can we can use the patterns and processes of convergent evolution to make inferences about universal laws of life, on Earth and elsewhere? In this book, Russell Powell investigates whether we can use the patterns and processes of convergent evolution to make inferences about universal laws of life, on Earth and elsewhere. Weaving together disparate philosophical and empirical threads, Powell offers the first detailed analysis of the interplay between contingency and convergence in macroevolution, as it relates to both complex life in general and cognitively complex life in particular. If the evolution of mind is not a historical accident, the product of convergence rather than contingency, then, Powell asks, is mind likely to be an evolutionarily important feature of any living world? Stephen Jay Gould argued for the primacy of contingency in evolution. Gould's “radical contingency thesis” (RCT) has been challenged, but critics have largely failed to engage with its core claims and theoretical commitments. Powell fills this gap. He first examines convergent regularities at both temporal and phylogenetic depths, finding evidence that both vindicates and rebuffs Gould's argument for contingency. Powell follows this partial defense of the RCT with a substantive critique. Among the evolutionary outcomes that might defy the RCT, he argues, cognition is particularly important—not only for human-specific issues of the evolution of intelligence and consciousness but also for the large-scale ecological organization of macroscopic living worlds. Turning his attention to complex cognitive life, Powell considers what patterns of cognitive convergence tell us about the nature of mind, its evolution, and its place in the universe. If complex bodies are common in the universe, might complex minds be common as well?

The Runes of Evolution

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Publisher : Templeton Foundation Press
ISBN 13 : 1599474654
Total Pages : 480 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (994 download)

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Book Synopsis The Runes of Evolution by : Simon Conway Morris

Download or read book The Runes of Evolution written by Simon Conway Morris and published by Templeton Foundation Press. This book was released on 2015-06-30 with total page 480 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How did human beings acquire imaginations that can conjure up untrue possibilities? How did the Universe become self-aware? In The Runes of Evolution, Simon Conway Morris revitalizes the study of evolution from the perspective of convergence, providing us with compelling new evidence to support the mounting scientific view that the history of life is far more predictable than once thought. A leading evolutionary biologist at the University of Cambridge, Conway Morris came into international prominence for his work on the Cambrian explosion (especially fossils of the Burgess Shale) and evolutionary convergence, which is the process whereby organisms not closely related (not monophyletic), independently evolve similar traits as a result of having to adapt to similar environments or ecological niches. In The Runes of Evolution, he illustrates how the ubiquity of convergence hints at an underlying framework whereby many outcomes, not least brains and intelligence, are virtually guaranteed on any Earth-like planet. Conway Morris also emphasizes how much of the complexity of advanced biological systems is inherent in microbial forms. By casting a wider net, The Runes of Evolution explores many neglected evolutionary questions. Some are remarkably general. Why, for example, are convergences such as parasitism, carnivory, and nitrogen fixation in plants concentrated in particular taxonomic hot spots? Why do certain groups have a particular propensity to evolve toward particular states? Some questions lead to unexpected evolutionary insights: If bees sleep (as they do), do they dream? Why is that insect copulating with an orchid? Why have sponges evolved a system of fiber optics? What do mantis shrimps and submarines have in common? If dinosaurs had not gone extinct what would have happened next? Will a saber-toothed cat ever re-evolve? Cona Morris observes: “Even amongst the mammals, let alone the entire tree of life, humans represent one minute twig of a vast (and largely fossilized) arborescence. Every living species is a linear descendant of an immense string of now-vanished ancestors, but evolution itself is the very reverse of linear. Rather it is endlessly exploratory, probing the vast spaces of biological hyperspace. Indeed this book is a celebration of how our world is (and was) populated by a riot of forms, a coruscating tapestry of life.” The Runes of Evolution is the most definitive synthesis of evolutionary convergence to be published to date.

In the Light of Evolution

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Author :
Publisher : Sackler Colloquium
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 388 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

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Book Synopsis In the Light of Evolution by : National Academy of Sciences

Download or read book In the Light of Evolution written by National Academy of Sciences and published by Sackler Colloquium. This book was released on 2007 with total page 388 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Arthur M. Sackler Colloquia of the National Academy of Sciences address scientific topics of broad and current interest, cutting across the boundaries of traditional disciplines. Each year, four or five such colloquia are scheduled, typically two days in length and international in scope. Colloquia are organized by a member of the Academy, often with the assistance of an organizing committee, and feature presentations by leading scientists in the field and discussions with a hundred or more researchers with an interest in the topic. Colloquia presentations are recorded and posted on the National Academy of Sciences Sackler colloquia website and published on CD-ROM. These Colloquia are made possible by a generous gift from Mrs. Jill Sackler, in memory of her husband, Arthur M. Sackler.

Convergent Evolution

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Publisher : MIT Press
ISBN 13 : 0262016427
Total Pages : 335 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (62 download)

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Book Synopsis Convergent Evolution by : George R. McGhee

Download or read book Convergent Evolution written by George R. McGhee and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2011 with total page 335 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Convergent evolution occurs on all levels, from tiny organic molecules to entire ecosystems of species.

SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein Convergent Evolution

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Publisher : Springer Nature
ISBN 13 : 3030873242
Total Pages : 140 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (38 download)

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Book Synopsis SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein Convergent Evolution by : Daniele Focosi

Download or read book SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein Convergent Evolution written by Daniele Focosi and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2021-10-11 with total page 140 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book reviews the current knowledge of the globally circulating SARS-CoV-2 variants, highlights their distinct genetic characteristics and associated conformational changes in the viral spike protein, and profoundly discusses the mechanisms of convergent evolution that led to the rise of these mutated strains at different geographic regions during the Covid-19 pandemic. Furthermore, the book explores how these variants do and may impact the efficacy of established neutralizing antibody-based (nAb) vaccines and therapeutics by analysing latest in vivo and in vitro clinical data. Finally, the author discusses ways on how nAb Covid-19 treatment derived immune escape of SARS-CoV-2 could be minimized in the future.

Live Long and Evolve

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Publisher : Princeton University Press
ISBN 13 : 0691203938
Total Pages : 210 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (912 download)

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Book Synopsis Live Long and Evolve by : Mohamed A. F. Noor

Download or read book Live Long and Evolve written by Mohamed A. F. Noor and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2020-02-25 with total page 210 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "In Star Trek, crew members travel to unusual planets, meet diverse beings, and encounter unique civilizations. In these remarkable space adventures, does Star Trek reflect biology and evolution as we know it? What can the science in the science fiction of Star Trek teach us?"--Back cover

Ecology and Evolution of Communities

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Publisher : Harvard University Press
ISBN 13 : 9780674224445
Total Pages : 572 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (244 download)

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Book Synopsis Ecology and Evolution of Communities by : Martin L. Cody

Download or read book Ecology and Evolution of Communities written by Martin L. Cody and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 1975 with total page 572 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The evolution of species abundance and diversity; Competitive strategies of resource allocation; Community structure; Outlook.

Evolutionary Biology

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Publisher : Springer
ISBN 13 : 9783319823232
Total Pages : 422 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (232 download)

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Book Synopsis Evolutionary Biology by : Pierre Pontarotti

Download or read book Evolutionary Biology written by Pierre Pontarotti and published by Springer. This book was released on 2018-06-23 with total page 422 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents selected contributions to the 19th Evolutionary Biology Meeting, which took place in September 2015 in Marseille. It consists of 22 chapters, which are grouped in four sections: · Convergent Evolution · Evolution of Complex Traits · Concepts · Methods The annual Evolutionary Biology Meetings in Marseille serve to gather leading evolutionary biologists and other scientists using evolutionary biology concepts, e.g for medical research, to promote the exchange of ideas and to encourage interdisciplinary collaborations. Offering an up-to-date overview of recent findings in the field of evolutionary biology, this book is an invaluable source of information for scientists, teachers and advanced students.

Encyclopedia of Caves

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Publisher : Academic Press
ISBN 13 : 0128141255
Total Pages : 1250 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (281 download)

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Book Synopsis Encyclopedia of Caves by : William B. White

Download or read book Encyclopedia of Caves written by William B. White and published by Academic Press. This book was released on 2019-05-10 with total page 1250 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Encyclopedia of Caves, Third Edition, provides detailed background information to anyone with a serious interest in caves. This includes students, both undergraduate and graduate, in the earth, biological and environmental sciences, and consultants, environmental scientists, land managers and government agency staff whose work requires them to know something about caves and the biota that inhabit them. Caves touch on many scientific interests in geology, climate science, biology, hydrology, archaeology, and paleontology, as well as more popular interests in sport caving and cave exploration. Case studies and descriptions of specific caves selected for their special features and public interest are also included. This book will appeal to these audiences by providing in-depth essays written by expert authors chosen for their expertise in their assigned subject. Features 14 new chapters and 13 completely rewritten chapters Contains beautifully illustrated content, with more than 500 color images of cave life and features Provides extensive bibliographies that allow readers to access their subject of interest in greater depth

Life's Solution

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Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 1139440802
Total Pages : pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (394 download)

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Book Synopsis Life's Solution by : Simon Conway Morris

Download or read book Life's Solution written by Simon Conway Morris and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2003-09-04 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The assassin's bullet misses, the Archduke's carriage moves forward, and a catastrophic war is avoided. So too with the history of life. Re-run the tape of life, as Stephen J. Gould claimed, and the outcome must be entirely different: an alien world, without humans and maybe not even intelligence. The history of life is littered with accidents: any twist or turn may lead to a completely different world. Now this view is being challenged. Simon Conway Morris explores the evidence demonstrating life's almost eerie ability to navigate to a single solution, repeatedly. Eyes, brains, tools, even culture: all are very much on the cards. So if these are all evolutionary inevitabilities, where are our counterparts across the galaxy? The tape of life can only run on a suitable planet, and it seems that such Earth-like planets may be much rarer than hoped. Inevitable humans, yes, but in a lonely Universe.

Evolution in Isolation

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Author :
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 1108422012
Total Pages : 239 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (84 download)

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Book Synopsis Evolution in Isolation by : Kevin C. Burns

Download or read book Evolution in Isolation written by Kevin C. Burns and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2019-05-16 with total page 239 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Tests for repeated patterns in evolution of island plants, which together comprise an 'island syndrome' analogous to animals.