I just got two new books in the mail today! Both were written by Stephen Jay Gould. They are titled Ever Since Darwin, and Bully for Brontosaurus. I won't start them yet because I am concurrently reading another Gould book, Hens Teeth and Horses Toes and The Outline of History by H.G. Wells.
I like the way Gould writes. It's not too technical, but technical enough to make his arguments, or perspectives valid. And each essay is only a few pages long, so I can read one at a time, and I don't loose my train of thought if I take a break between sections. One of the great things he does (and does exceedingly well) is give perspective on a lot of scientific research that to the normal person like you and I would think is pointless. He is able to illustrate why studying land snails in the Bahamas, or why Jean Baptiste Lamarck erroneous theories of human development are important to me and you. Not only does he explain scientific phenomena and research, but he also tells you about the men and women (mostly men back int he old days) who did the science, and what the world was like while they were formulating their ideas. It's really fascinating. A lot of what I think about lately has been inspired by reading some or another essay that I have read by Gould. I highly recommend any of his books to readers interested in dipping their toes in the cool waters of natural history.
I still need to read some Gould. I also like the HG Wells namedrop. I've read a lot of random stuff by Wells, like a New World Order and a Modern Utopia. He was actually a pretty prominent socialist in his day. Are you enjoying the History? Any thoughts on it?
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