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The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution |  | Author: Richard Dawkins
Publisher: Free Press
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Rating:  236 reviews
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 1St Edition
Pages: 480
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Dimensions (in): 9.2 x 6.5 x 1.6
ISBN: 1416594787
Dewey Decimal Number: 576.8
EAN: 9781416594789
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Product Description
In 2008, a Gallup poll showed that 44 percent of Americans believed God had created man in his present form within the last 10,000 years. In a Pew Forum poll in the same year, 42 percent believed that all life on earth has existed in its present form since the beginning of time. In 1859 Charles Darwin's masterpiece, On the Origin of Species, shook society to its core. Darwin was only too aware of the storm his theory of evolution would provoke. But he surely would have raised an incredulous eyebrow at the controversy still raging a century and a half later. Evolution is accepted as scientific fact by all reputable scientists and indeed theologians, yet millions of people continue to question its veracity. Now the author of the iconic work The God Delusion takes them to task. The Greatest Show on Earth is a stunning counterattack on advocates of "Intelligent Design," explaining the evidence for evolution while exposing the absurdities of the creationist "argument." Dawkins sifts through rich layers of scientific evidence: from living examples of natural selection to clues in the fossil record; from natural clocks that mark the vast epochs wherein evolution ran its course to the intricacies of developing embryos; from plate tectonics to molecular genetics. Combining these elements and many more, he makes the airtight case that "we find ourselves perched on one tiny twig in the midst of a blossoming and flourishing tree of life and it is no accident, but the direct consequence of evolution by non-random selection." The Greatest Show on Earth comes at a critical time: systematic opposition to the fact of evolution is menacing as never before. In American schools, and in schools around the world, insidious attempts are made to undermine the status of science in the classroom. Dawkins wields a devastating argument against this ignorance, but his unjaded passion for the natural world turns what might have been a negative argument into a positive offering to the reader: nothing less than a master's vision of life, in all its splendor.
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Showing reviews 1-5 of 236
 Evolution is a Fact and Dawkins Proves it! September 23, 2009
John W. Loftus (Indiana)
426 out of 505 found this review helpful
Usually authors will start out their writing careers making a general case on behalf of something, and then later deal with the specific objections as they arise. But not Richard Dawkins. As the leading prolific evolutionary author in our generation he finally got around to writing the book that many authors would've written first, this one. Since up until now he has not set forth the evidence for evolution as a whole, he calls this book "my missing link" in his chain of books, and it's long overdue.
Taking the title from the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, Dawkins begins by asking us to imagine what it would be like to be a European history teacher who is "continually faced with belligerent demands to give equal time" in his classes to Holocaust deniers. To him that would be what it's like to teach the scientific fact of evolution around the world, especially in America, where 40% of us deny that humans evolved from other animals and who claim instead we were all created as distinct species not more than 10,000 years ago. Just like the Holocaust deniers these people are "history-deniers" too. The antidote to that kind of ignorant thinking is this present work, which presents "the positive evidence that evolution is a fact" (p.6). Many bishops and theologians embrace evolution as a fact, even if some of them accept it begrudgingly.
Who is he trying to reach? The creationist "history-deniers" themselves, but more importantly those who find themselves inadequately prepared to argue the case for evolution (p. 8).
He claims: "Evolution is a fact. Beyond reasonable doubt, beyond serious doubt, beyond sane, informed, intelligent doubt, beyond doubt evolution is a fact. The evidence for evolution is at least as strong as the evidence for the Holocaust, even allowing for eyewitnesses to the Holocaust. It is the plain truth that we are cousins of chimpanzees, somewhat more distant cousins of monkeys, more distant cousins still of aardvarks and manatees, yet more distant cousins of bananas and turnips...continue the list as long as desired...It didn't have to be true, but it is. We know this because a rising flood of evidence supports it. Evolution is a fact, and this book will demonstrate it. No reputable scientist disputes it, and no unbiased reader will close the book doubting it." (pp. 8-9).
These are very large claims he's making. Are they justified? Yes, I think so. I challenge the creationists to place this comprehensively argued book, which is illustrated by many diagrams and glossy full colored pictures, next to what a few ancient superstitious people wrote in the Bible and see which one makes the most sense. My bet is that if believers are truly interested in the facts they will see evolution is indeed a fact.
Dawkins knows how to communicate, he knows where to begin his case with dog breeding, and he knows science. It's practically all here within the pages of this book. The reason why we don't see evolutionary change is because it takes place slowly over generations, but dog breeders can do it quickly and efficiently. "Every breed of dog," Dawkins writes, "from dachshund to Dalmatian, from boxer to borzoi, from poodle to Pekinese, from Great Dane to Chihuahua, has been caved, chiseled, kneaded, moulded, not literally as flesh and bone but in its gene pool....The relevance to natural evolution is that, although the selecting agent is man and not nature, the process is otherwise the same." (p. 34).
With regard to flowers, birds and insects make these changes rather than humans, naturally, not artificially, just like the wind did before them: "Hummingbird eyes, hawk-moth eyes, butterfly eyes, hoverfly eyes, bee eyes are critically cast over wild flowers, generation after generation, shaping them, colouring them, swelling them, patterning and stippling them, in almost exactly the same way as human eyes later did with our garden varieties; and with dogs, cows, cabbages and corn." (p. 52). And he asks us: "If so much evolutionary change can be achieved in just a few centuries or even decades, just think what might be achieved in ten or a hundred million years?" (p. 37).
To believers who object that the earth isn't old enough Dawkins marshals overwhelming evidence that it is billions of years old, along with evidence piled upon still more evidence to show evolutionary development of life on earth is indeed the greatest show on earth, and he is clearly in awe of it.
There are a few great books on evolution but this is a superior book long overdue by today's leading communicator of science. You should get it and think through it, especially if you're a "history-denier." Face the evidence and then change your beliefs. It's the intellectually honest thing to do. Then you too will thank Dawkins like so many of us have for his writing in these areas.
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I'm the author of "Why I Became an Atheist," and the edited book, "The Christian Delusion."
I THOUGHT I didn't need another book on evolution, but was WRONG! November 30, 2009
Louie's Mom (Dallas)
22 out of 23 found this review helpful
About 20 years ago I started reading Stephen Jay Gould's essay collections. Then I discovered the work of Carl Zimmer and Neil Shubin and other evolutionary biologists. When this book came out I didn't intend to buy it as I have so many books on evolution and keep up with biology news. I went ahead and ordered it thinking that if there was nothing new in it I could always give it to a friend.
What a surprise! This book is a great overview of the subject - including very recent fossil discoveries in China as well as the standard subjects - radioactive dating, fossils, DNA evidence, etc. Somewhere along the way I had forgotten how the radioactive dating clock starts and Dawkins gives a very lucid explanation that will stay with me now. He also references other good books such as Shubin's "Your Inner Fish" and Coyne's "Why Evolution is True."
If you aren't teaching biology or natural history, this is a good refresher that will doubtless have some new info that you will find intriguing. If you don't know much about evolution and natural selection this book is the best one out there for an overview.
I'll be keeping this book.
Another Excellent Explanation by Richard Dawkins September 26, 2009
S. M. Hamp (Rochester, MI)
52 out of 63 found this review helpful
Many non-scientists, like me, have wondered, why do 99% of all scientists believe in evolution? Isn't it just a Theory? an opinion? How can the vote be so unanimous? 99% is a huge number.
I have been told that there is no evidence for evolution, it is a theory just made up by people who are angry at God and that it is stupid that people came from monkeys.
If you are like me and really want to understand the evidence for evolution honestly, and objectively, this is an excellent book.
Richard Dawkins's ability to lucidly explain complicated scientific information to anyone willing to take the time to listen and understand is impressive.
Once I started reading this book, I couldn't put it down.
Based on the mountain of evidence presented in this book, I now understand that the people telling me that evolution is stupid must be completely unaware of the evidence. I am thinking of giving this book as a Christmas gift for the members of my family that believe that there is no evidence for evolution.
"The Evidence for Evolution" December 21, 2009
Ronald H. Clark (WASHINGTON, DC USA)
11 out of 11 found this review helpful
I got interested in evolution because of my study of 19th century British intellectual history, which led me to Charles Darwin and the ramifications of his "Origin." Although my focus is the 19th century, I am always on the lookout for good books on evolutionary theory (and have reviewed several on Amazon), written for the non-scientist, and this is a very good and useful one. The author has engaged extensively in the "intelligent design" wars, but one thing I liked about this book is its more positive tone: what is the evidence for evolution? Not to say that Dawkins does not, from time to time, point out a fallacy in ID arguments, but that is not the primary goal of the book. In one 450 page treatment, the author covers about every conceivable point relating to evolution. Another bonus of the book is that Dawkins writes very well for the layman when discussing scientific terms, approaches, and studies. There was only one chapter (that dealing with how the human body develops from single cells) where I got a bit lost in his discussion.
Darwins develops his evidence for evolution in an interesting fashion. First he talks about what a scientific "theory" is, since this is a frequent point of contention with those who dispute evolution. Next, he focuses on dogs and cows, and other domestic animals, to argue that the multiplicity of canine breeds (all derived from the wolf) demonstrates how man has employed evolution--the so-called "artificial evolution." Natural evolution takes place without human intervention, in nature, and is not controlled by anyone or anything. An interesting chapter is devoted to methods of dating rocks and embedded fossils. Moreover, the author contends there are such things as "living fossils (e.g., guppies).
Dawkins rejects any suggestions that the fossil record is incomplete. In fact, he says we don't even need fossils to verify evolution; in any regard, more are being discoved all the time. Nor is there a human "missing" link, as he discusses the extensive human fossil record--quite a thorough but compact discussion with superb illustrations. The importance of tectonic plates and isolation is the subject of another chapter. Two later chapters I found particularly interesting: one on the vestiges of prior evolutionary stages left in animal and human bodies; the second on what Dawkins refers to as the "arms race"--how animals are in competition to survive and develop biologic weapons as part of the "survival of the fittest." The book includes extensive illustrations, including 32 pages of helpful full color illustrations: 6 pages of notes; and a 7-page bibliography (some of which sources are discussed in the text). An extremely helpful discussion of the topic by one of the best informed scientific students of evolution.
Make this one of your top five to read this year. November 24, 2009
David Wolf (U.S.)
12 out of 13 found this review helpful
It is very sad that another book has to be written about such a subject, and yet I plan to read Jerry Coyne's book by the title "Why Evolution Is True," not just for the praise Dawkins gives it in this book, but because Coyne gets at least as much, if not more, praise for his effort on the same front. It is a tragedy that it is still difficult to convince people of the power of evolution by natural selection, but it is only so because so many people never bother to understand what is being propounded.
I know...I was once one of the fundamentalist Christians that rejected it. All I had to go on was the canned anti-intellectual responses of the religious right. I see many of my former compatriots giving one-star reviews to this book without even reading it, but that is the way it is with that group. I realize that most people that accept it do so without understanding it, as well. That was something I could not do, so I did read "On the Origin of Species" by Darwin, and many other books and articles on the subject since then. The real tragedy is that most people, accepting the science or not, never even care to try to understand the amazing way we developed into so many species out of likely only one.
Aside from having one of the most beautiful jackets I have ever seen, and some extraordinary color picture sections added for clarity, this book contains the following sections:
1. Only a theory?
2. Dogs, cows, and cabbages
3. The primrose path to macro-evolution
4. Silence and slow time
5. Before our very eyes
6. Missing link? What do you mean, 'missing'?
7. Missing persons? Missing no longer
8. You did it yourself in nine months
9. The ark of the continents
10. The tree of cousinship
11. History written all over us
12. Arms races and 'evolutionary theodicy'
13. There is grandeur in this view of life
Appendix: The history-deniers
The appendix could be read before or after the book, and is a general overview of polls that have been taken in the U.S. and Europe regarding the beliefs of the general population with regard to evolution and creationism. Needless to say, it is depressing, but what do you expect when you're talking about polls of the general population? As he points out, about 20% of the general population think the earth goes around the sun in a month, clearly having no idea what a year is. I'm sure a percentage would still think the earth was flat if the question was put forward.
I think most of the chapter headings speak for themselves. Chapter one discusses the nature of scientific theory, hypothesis, etc, because of the claim of so many that evolution is only a theory, forgetting all about little things such as gravitational theory, germ theory, etc. Chapter two and three slowly take us into the world of evolutionary change with examples we cannot deny. Chapter four discusses how we measure the age of the earth, strata, and fossils by means of geological clocks. Chapter five gives examples we can see in our lifetime, rather than just depending on the fossils of ages. Chapter six discusses the logical fallacy of missing links, while chapter seven goes specifically into transitional fossils within the human species. Chapter eight goes into the crucial subject of embryology, where most of the evolutionary changes to genes have the greatest effect. Chapter nine explains plate tectonics, formerly known as continental drift, and its importance to the spread of various early forms. Chapter ten discusses the common ancestry of all species, with many examples given of homologous structures. Chapter eleven covers the traces of historical evolutionary steps that can be seen in the modern forms that exist, such as vestigial organs. Chapter twelve talks about the pain and suffering inherent in the evolutionary view, and the problem that presents for many. Chapter thirteen goes deeply into Charles Darwin's famous quote at the end of "On the Origin of Species" and discusses it at length, breaking it up line by line.
Here is that quote, which is one of the most beautiful quotes concerning life:
"Thus, from the war of nature, from famine and death, the most exalted object which we are capable of conceiving, namely, the production of the higher animals, directly follows. There is grandeur in this view of life, with its several powers, having been originally breathed into a few forms or into one; and that, whilst this planet has gone cycling on according to the fixed law of gravity, from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being, evolved."
There is another quote I would like to put down in this review, from the book being reviewed.
"Information on how to handle the present so as to survive into the future is necessarily gleaned from the past." -- Richard Dawkins, The Greatest Show on Earth, 2009, pg 406.
I think this book should have been more carefully argued, and in much more detail, which is why I still think "On the Origin of Species," first edition, is one of the best books one can read, since Darwin was such a careful and precise thinker -- but for a modern perspective, one cannot do much better than combining Darwin's work with Dawkins' work.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 236
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