Recollections Of An Herpetologist

Author : Edward Harrison Taylor
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781332301164
Total Pages : 176 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (11 download)

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Download or read book Edward H. Taylor written by Edward Harrison Taylor and published by . This book was released on 2015-08-05 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Excerpt from Edward H. Taylor: Recollections of an Herpetologist The charge to anyone doing a volume like this is complex and best met by artists, not scientists. Professor E. H. Taylor is now 86 years old and has been busy for all that time. How, short of a full biography, can we recreate in our minds the sense of and feeling for this energetic, creative, sometimes irascible man who has had an extraordinary career as naturalist, explorer, teacher, friend (especially of children), scientist, spy, consort of royalty and "father" of modern herpetology? This book senses the man only fractionally and certainly less than we expect for average persons. But this is as Professor Taylor wishes it, and his full story may never be told. This volume about Professor Taylor has had a mixed ancestry. In part, it began two or three years ago as a devoted effort to honor Professor Taylor. The original thought was that some kind of festschrift would be appropriate, pulling together a number of separate and independent scientific contributions in a traditional tribute to this great man. While this idea lurked restlessly in the backs of our minds, Professor Taylor's own efforts came to our attention and resulted in the creation of an autobiographical fragment, which has become the heart of the present volume. This section had its inception in a delightful series of radio programs presented by KFKU, K.U.'s own radio station, some 43 years ago. For the most part, these programs dealt with Professor Taylor's experiences in the Philippine Islands and were directed toward young people. Professor Taylor's many friends in the Museum of Natural History (and elsewhere) have encouraged him in his autobiographical efforts - and these continue. Professor Taylor has agreed to let us publish the memoir concerning the Philippines, and we are grateful to him for the opportunity. Thus, instead of a festschrift, we have a work about Professor Taylor. Other parts of the volume concern Professor Taylor's contributions as a teacher, his publications, and a summary or appreciation of his career as a scientist. We are indebted to many for making this book possible. Obviously, without Professor Taylor's own contribution the book would have been entirely different. Many persons assisted in a wide variety of ways in the preparation of the various contributions; in addition to the authors, these include Professor and Mrs. Kraig Adler, Ms. Marlene Orr, Professor William E. Duellman, Professor Howard K. Gloyd, Mr. Joseph T. Collins, and Dr. Stephen R. Edwards. To all of these we are grateful for their devoted tribute to Ed Taylor. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.