| Contents Notes |
'Eldredge - the invertebrate palaeontologist renowned for his role in developing the theory of punctuated equilibria and the epistemological approach to phylogenetic pattern recognition known as cladistics - now gives us ... one of the more important challenges to the neo-Darwinian evolutionary synthesis ... This is a must for anyone, of any persuasion, interested in evolutionary theory.' Science Books and Films Review Published: September 2015. In this interesting and provocative book Eldredge discusses a controversial but convincing argument that contemporary evolutionary theory-``the modern synthesis''-``is not directly addressed to the actual events of the history of life.'' The author is well known for previous journal publications with S.J. Gould on punctuated equilibria. As the book's title implies, Eldredge maintains that present thought concerning evolutionary theory, while not incorrect, is incomplete since it focuses only on genes, organisms, demes, and species and does not consider adequately ecological entities such as populations and communities. He focuses on two neglected areas: the unfinished genealogic hierarchy (genes, organisms, demes, species, and the individuals involved in replication) and the ecological hierarchy (proteins, organisms, populations, communities, and regional systems of plant and animal life). One of the challenges of the Eldredge hypothesis is that it can explain many of the questions that ``the modern synthesis'' cannot answer, such as why there is so much genetic variation in populations of animals and plants and how selection operates at the higher levels of animal and plant classification. A must for those with a genuine interest in the processes of evolution.-J.N. Carpenter, University of Kentucky.-Choice Review. |
