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The Panda's Thumb: More Reflections in Natural History (Paperback)

~ (Author) "FEW HEROES LOWER their sights in the prime of their lives; triumph leads inexorably on, often to destruction..." (more)
Key Phrases: warmblooded dinosaurs, radial sesamoid, coralline sponges, Smith Woodward, South American, Fig Tree (more...)

4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)

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Hen's Teeth and Horse's Toes: Further Reflections in Natural History by Stephen Jay Gould
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Editorial Reviews

Review

It is a wonder what Mr. Gould can do with the most unlikely phenomena: a tiny organism's use of the earth's magnetic field as a guide to food and comfort, for instance, or the panda's thumb—which isn't one. . . . Science writing at its best. (The New Yorker )

Stephen Jay Gould is a serious and gifted interpreter of biological theory, of the history of ideas and of the cultural context of scientific discovery. . . . The Panda's Thumb is fresh and mind-stretching. Above all, it is exultant. So should its readers be. (H. Jack Geiger - New York Times Book Review )

Product Description

With sales of well over one million copies in North America alone, the commercial success of Gould's books now matches their critical acclaim. Reissued in a larger format, with a handsome new cover, The Panda's Thumb will introduce a new generation of readers to this unique writer, who has taken the art of the scientific essay to new heights. Illustrations.

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Product Details

Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: W.W. Norton & Co. (August 17, 1992)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0393308197
ISBN-13: 978-0393308198
Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
Shipping Weight: 11 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #132,023 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
Popular in this category: (What's this?)
#39 in Books > Science > Essays & Commentary

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Inside This Book (learn more)

First Sentence:
FEW HEROES LOWER their sights in the prime of their lives; triumph leads inexorably on, often to destruction. Read the first page

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
warmblooded dinosaurs, radial sesamoid, coralline sponges, placental carnivores, juvenile features, channeled scablands

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Smith Woodward, South American, Fig Tree, Mickey Mouse, Thomas Henry Huxley, Louis Agassiz, British Museum, Charles Darwin, New Guinea, D'Arcy Thompson, Georges Cuvier, Porto Santo, Adam Smith, Charles Lyell, Harlen Bretz, North America, Origin of Species, Alfred Russel Wallace, Grafton Elliot Smith, Sir Arthur Keith, Woods Hole

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Citations (learn more)

This book cites 32 books:

The Descent of Man (Penguin Classics) by Charles Darwin on page 51, page 52, and page 53
On the Origin of Species (Penguin Classics) by Charles Darwin on page 19, page 48, and page 239
The Origin Of Species: 150th Anniversary Edition by Charles Darwin on page 19, page 48, and page 239
The Descent of Man (Great Minds Series) by Charles Darwin on page 51, page 52, and page 53
The Origin of Species by Charles Darwin on page 19, page 48, and page 239

See all 32 books this book cites

153 books cite this book:

Critical Strategies for Academic Thinking and Writing by Mike Rose in Table of Contents, page 22, and Index
The Body in Pain: The Making and Unmaking of the World by Elaine Scarry in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
The Hand: How Its Use Shapes the Brain, Language, and Human Culture by Frank R. Wilson in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
Managing Strategic Innovation and Change: A Collection of Readings by Michael L. Tushman in Table of Contents, and page 129
Kiddie Lit: The Cultural Construction of Children's Literature in America by Professor Beverly Lyon Clark on page 177, and Back Matter

See all 153 books citing this book

Books on Related Topics (learn more)

Bringing Fossils To Life by Donald R. Prothero

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The Structure of Evolutionary Theory by Stephen Jay Gould

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Evolution of the Earth by Roger Lyman Batten

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The Book of Life by Stephen Jay Gould

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	5% buy The Mismeasure of Man 3.8 out of 5 stars (97) $12.21
	5% buy The Flamingo's Smile: Reflections in Natural History 4.2 out of 5 stars (8) $12.71

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Customer Reviews

17 Reviews

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4.5 out of 5 stars (17 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great fun, October 31, 1999

By	ADP (Washington, DC USA) - See all my reviews

What Carl Sagan is to astronomy, Stephen Jay Gould is to biology. Both men can write about their subjects fascinatingly and in layman's terms without dumbing down the material. That said, Gould is more down-to-earth, with a sense of humor that is more uplifting than caustic. In "Bathybius and Eozoon" (no, that's not a comic book duo) and "Crazy Old Randolph Kirkpatrick," he takes a look back at two of science's more oddball mistakes while reminding us that scientists are more human than shallow stereotypes might allow. "The Great Scablands Debate" questions the widely-held notion that all geological (and, by extension, evolutionary) change happens at a snail's pace. In "Women's Brains" and "Dr. Down's Syndrome," he questions some of the uses to which science has been put in the past, while not (unlike certain feminists who should know better) discarding the whole idea of science altogether. There are even essays on the (supposed) stupidity of dinosaurs and on Mickey Mouse, which might make excellent reading for a child with good reading skills and an incipient interest in science.

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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Two Panda's thumbs up., January 2, 2001

By	Leonardo Alves (Houghton, Michigan USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

First published on 1980, The Panda's Thumb is a collection of slightly edited essays from Professor Gould's monthly column at Natural History Magazine.

The thirty one essays are grouped in eight chapters according to their similarities. The Chapters are:

Perfection and imperfection: A trilogy on a panda's thumb - that deals with comparative anatomy;

Darwiniana - that brings the context of Darwin's revolution and the preceding ideas;

Human evolution - that also brings an article on Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse evolution;

Science and politics of Human differences - that shows how science used to foster or justify prejudice and sexism.

The pace of change - in which Gould introduces his and Niles Eldredge's theory of Punctuated Equilibrium;

Early life - a chapter on pre-Cambrian biology or early ideas about pre-Cambrian biology.

They were despised and rejected - on evolutionary dead ends or not quite as in the essay about birds descending from dinosaurs and;

Size and time.

Most essays are very interesting and surprisingly up to date despite the fact that many were written almost thirty years ago. The essays can be read one by one in no particular order since they bring references to each other when necessary. The scope of the book goes way beyond biology including also geology, history of science, gender and race relations, and the ever lasting debate between science and religion. The style is again accessible and witty. After introducing the only exponential equation on the whole book the author almost apologizes.

In my opinion some of the most interesting essays are The Death Before Birth of a Mite; Caring Groups and Selfish Genes; Dr. Down's Syndrome; Nature Odd Couples; Our Allotted Lifetimes; Time's Vastness; and all essays under the chapter The Pace of Change.

The Pace of Change is the most original and still controversial chapter of the book. It introduces Gould and Eldredge's theory of Punctuated Equilibrium that is, in short, a slight correction on Darwin's belief of slow and continuous change throughout the process of evolution.

This is a very interesting and enjoyable book. I doubt anyone interested in science, just by reading a random article of this book, would not feel compelled to read the rest of the book and also other Stephen Gould's books.

Leonardo Alves - January 2001

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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Splendid Collection Of Essays On Science By Gould, December 22, 2001

By	John Kwok (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

"Panda's Thumb" is the second volume in a series of essay collections culled primarily from Gould's column "This View Of Life" that was published for nearly thirty years in Natural History magazine, the official popular journal of the American Museum of Natural History. Once more readers are treated to elegantly written, insightful pieces on issues ranging from racial attitudes affecting 19th Century science to evolutionary dilemnas such as the origins of the Panda's thumb (Not really a dilemna, though "scientific" creationists might argue otherwise; instead Gould offers an elegant description of how evolution via natural selection works.) and the evolutionary consequences of variations in size and shape among organisms. Gould is differential to the work of other scientists, carefully considers views contrary to his own, and even points the virtues of the faulty science he criticizes. Those who say contemporary science is dogmatic should reconsider that view after carefully reading this volume or any of the others in Gould's series. Instead, what we see are the thoughts of a fine scientist rendered in splendid, often exquisite, prose.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars More Stephen Jay Gould
More essays by Stephen Jay Gould. They are brilliant, as always. And, as always, Gould's essays give me something to think about.

Published 10 months ago by Ms. Write

5.0 out of 5 stars In Memorium
This is the book that reminds us why Stephen Jay Gould was the Great One. He was perhaps the greatest naturalist of his generation, as measured by being able to get across... Read more

Published on November 6, 2006 by Jedidiah Palosaari

5.0 out of 5 stars Two Panda's Thumbs up!!
The "argument from design" traces back at least to the medieval theology as a favorite proof for the existence of God. Read more

Published on September 17, 2005 by Jean E. Pouliot

4.0 out of 5 stars Evolutionary theory meets Mickey Mouse and selfish genes
The second collection of Gould's articles from Natural History continues to explore Darwin's themes and the resultant ideas since. Read more

Published on December 19, 2002 by Glen Engel Cox

5.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable but dated
An entertaining and elegantly written collection of discursive essays on natural history and evolution. Read more

Published on September 9, 2002 by D. P. Birkett

5.0 out of 5 stars The Panda's Thumb: More Reflections in Natural History
The Panda's Thumb: More Reflections in Natural History by Stephen Jay Gould is classic Gould with a more open and approachable style. Read more

Published on July 14, 2002 by Joe Zika

5.0 out of 5 stars That's my story and I'm sticking to it
When it comes to evolution, the interesting "leit-motiv" of Stephen Jay Gould seems to be: "I ain't got a witness, and I can't prove it, but that's my story and I'm sticking to... Read more

Published on July 8, 2001 by J�natas Machado

4.0 out of 5 stars Clear thinking
This volume is a collection of Gould's earlier essays for the New York Museum of Natural History. They reflect his marvelous insight into the heart of current arguments in... Read more

Published on March 8, 2001 by Atheen M. Wilson

5.0 out of 5 stars Good as Gould
I'll be short, there are plenty of other good reviews. My main point is that this book, although written over 20 years ago, retains its readability and accuracy because many of... Read more

Published on April 22, 2000 by Roger McEvilly

5.0 out of 5 stars Nice insight into geology and biology.
I bought this book for a class several years ago. I still read it sometimes, because it has many great historical essays. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys science.

Published on March 24, 2000 by Oskar Norlander

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