Time Before History: 5 Million Years of Human Impact [Paperback]

Colin Tudge (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0684807262 | ISBN-13: 978-0684807263 | Publication Date: January 22, 1996

Chronicles the period in evolution during which human beings progressed from simians to hominids, citing the pivotal roles of climate, ecology, and geological movements while predicting future changes. 15,000 first printing.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

With majestic sweep and subtle wit, British science writer Tudge brings an astonishing perspective to the story of humanity by telescoping three intertwined dramas: the past 40,000 years, in which Homo sapiens truly got into its stride, set against the five-million-year history of hominids, set against the 3.5 billion years of life preceding the hominids' arrival. Tudge views primates (lemurs, monkeys, apes, humans) as a "fifth column," creeping up on other creatures over an 80-million-year period, rarely dominating but ultimately producing a lineage that evolved into us. He favors the multi-migration model of the "Out of Africa" hypothesis, which holds that Homo ergaster, not Homo erectus, evolved to produce modern Homo sapiens. Drawing on the latest research, he discusses the five mass extinctions that interrupted life on Earth; the drift of continents; the Tibetan plateau as the planet's principal cooling mechanism; the growth of our "all-purpose" brain and its invention of language. Tudge concludes by scanning the next million years, with emphasis on devising sustainable economies, conserving species and feeding the world's population. His eloquent, immensely rewarding synthesis fosters a new appreciation of the interdependence of our fragile biosphere. BOMC, QPB, History Book Club and Library of Science alternates.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Nearly everyone thinks of human history as covering the past 2000 years. Yet, this conventional time period only tells us about the specific activities of human beings after they already controlled the world and mastered its other species; it does not tell us about the changing nature of plate tectonics and their impact on species evolution; it does not encompass the significance of how we separated from other animals in our own evolutionary development, nor of the tremendous impact we have had on our environment and other species. Science writer Tudge (The Engineer in the Garden: Genes and Genetics, LJ 2/15/95) begins by putting time into perspective so that we can understand how vast is our past; he helps us see that all evolution is part of a bigger whole-an unfolding process affected by shifting continents, climactic changes, and our own impact on the planet and its ecosystems. He presents an exceptional account of human evolution in a concise yet original manner. He defines our origins in a biological, as well as historical, context and applies the lessons that we should learn from our mistakes as well as our achievements to provide a blueprint for the future. Highly recommended for most libraries.
Gloria Maxwell, Kansas City P.L., Kan.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Scribner (January 22, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684807262
• ISBN-13: 978-0684807263
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,759,268 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a decent book on human prehistory, March 1, 2001

By 

Tim F. Martin (Madison, AL United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Time Before History: 5 Million Years of Human Impact (Paperback)

Tudge has an interesting book with "The Time Before History." He spends a great deal of the book laying the groundwork for the appearence of the ancestors of humans, with detailed discussions of geology, climate, and the evolution of fauna and flora. The chapter on prehistoric creatures was pretty interesting, and considering the dearth of popular works on extinct mammals make this book a worthwhile read alone.

Tudge though is at his best when describing the various types of early humans and protohumans -from the various types of Australopithecines to Homo sapiens - and how they evolved, how they lived, and in some cases, how they spread. Useful are his discussion of ecomorphs and how the generalized ecomorphs of primates favored the development of bipedal, tool-using, intelligent protohumans, and his coverage of the diet of australopithecines and early humans and how this affected our evolution, as well as what we know of these beings. Tudge also provides a lot of interesting theories and information regarding the spread of not only Homo sapiens into the world but Homo erectus before him; also theories as to what happened to the Neanderthals and if they were a seperate species or not are detailed as well.

The Tudge book is not perfect though. I think he spends too much time on background prior to discussions of early man. Though interesting, they take up a sizeable section of the book. Some of the asides in the chapter on extinct mammals while interesting are controversial, though he does provide citations for those interested in checking on things. Examples include his mentioning of the theory that giant ground sloths may have been arboreal, that the mastodon genus Cuvieronius may have survived in Central America until several centuries after Christ, and that the dwarf mammoth of Wrangel Island (which survived into historic times, this has been well documented) is actually pictured on a pharaoh's tomb in Egypt, according to some having been illustrated when one was presented as a gift!

Still, I wouldn't let some of these controversial statements steer potential readers away from this book. It still provides decent coverage of extinct mammals, concepts in paleontology, and a good coverage of eartly man, his development, and spread around the globe.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An extraordinary, awesome, stimulating read!, January 4, 2001

By 

Stephen A. Haines (Ottawa, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Time Before History: 5 Million Years of Human Impact (Paperback)

Colin Tudge is a very concerned man. Here, he constructs one of the most complete pictures of human evolution's course. Drawing on geology, meteorology and biology in setting a framework, Tudge explains how and to what extent Homo sapiens emerged from Africa to override the planet. That's a hefty task, particularly in less than four hundred pages. Especially given that he allocates ten per cent of those pages to assessing the future. Tudge's concern about human impact on the environment is the theme of his other works, but this one rests on a solid foundation of evolutionary biology.

Tudge Dances Through Time in explaining the movements of continents and the impact of that mobility on life forms. Movement, an adventure life normally avoids, is forced by changes in environment. In seeking to stay with the familiar, life migrates in response to change. With environments continually shifting, life must adapt to survive. Humans have broken the pattern, invading the globe's many environments. We are the most adaptable species to emerge.

The price of our adaptation has been the extinction of many species, particularly large prey animals and birds. On every continent large birds and mammals ceased leaving fossil remains shortly after the appearance of Home Sapiens on the scene. The timing is too consistent to be purely coincidental and the ensuing patterns of human behaviour show we remain essentially ignorant of our impact on Nature's balance. We shouldn't be surprised at his finding. Today we face decimated cod and salmon populations. Whales remain under assault in the face of a 'moratorium' on their killing. The number of populations exterminated due to our occupation of their habitat is beyond counting. Tudge's concern is valid and it must be hoped infectious given the background he provides.

Those who grizzle about Tudge being "wordy" are misleading you. He's precise with words, although this book must set some kind of record for superlatives. New readers take note: Tudge has one disturbing habit. He will introduce a term [edentates, for example] and never find an alternative thereafter. When you encounter a term you don't know, make certain you understand it before continuing. This habit detracts neither from the worth, clarity of presentation nor value of this fine book. At first read the lack of a Bibliography seemed a flaw. Second thoughts showed that a suggested reading list would likely have doubled the size of the book. Build the bibliography yourself as you encounter authors and titles in the text. If the citations are unfamiliar to you, spend the energy. Tudge is too good an introduction to the topic to ignore.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars outstanding, May 7, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Time Before History: 5 Million Years of Human Impact (Paperback)

I just taught this book in a Philosophy and the Environment course, and I would jope that my students enjoyed it as much as I did.

An excellent overview of all aspects of the earth sciences (geological disasters, ice ages, asteroid collisions, atmospheric chemistry, plant and animal life). The concept of the "ecomorph" was a fascinating one that I had never heard of before but will not soon forget following Tudge's lucid presentation. He also makes some eye-opening remarks about the impact of agriculture and the human species in general on many now-extinct or soon-to-be-extinct animal species. I actually found the final chapter slightly anticlimactic: not bad, but not nearly as riveting as some of the earlier ones.

Even so, this book has turned me into a nature enthusiast for the first time since early childhood, and will surely be only of the first of hundreds of books I will read on the topics he discusses. In that sense, Tudge has had a huge impact on my life, and if you read this book attentively it is likely that he can do the same for you.