Richard Dawkins Libri

L'evoluzione, sostiene Richard Dawkins in questo saggio ricco di sense of humour, è cieca: non vede dinanzi a sé, non pianifica nulla, non si pone alcun fine. Eppure, come un maestro orologiaio, ha prodotto risultati di straordinaria efficacia e precisione, organi perfetti e funzioni raffinate in un crescendo di complessità che distingue nettamente gli esseri viventi dagli oggetti della fisica. L'orologiaio cieco è un libro originale, ricco di informazioni, paradossi, osservazioni inaspettate e costituisce la più completa e chiara spiegazione della teoria dell'evoluzione e della selezione naturale, oltre che una circostanziata difesa del darwinismo dai numerosi attacchi di cui oggi è fatto segno.

Un saggio scientifico incentrato sulla stupefacente verità che si rivela a chi si interroga sull'universo, l'immortalità e il posto dell'uomo nell'universo. Noi siamo macchine da sopravvivenza, robot semoventi programmati ciecamente per conservare quelle molecole egoiste note col nome di geni. Un libro pensato per stimolare con ironia l'immaginazione del lettore - dello studente come dell'esperto e critico severo, o del profano - che riesce a semplificare e rendere comprensibili sottili e complicati concetti scientifici in un linguaggio non matematico, senza che ne vada perduta la sorprendente essenza.

The human eye is so complex and works so precisely that surely, one might believe, its current shape and function must be the product of design. How could such an intricate object have come about by chance? Tackling this subject in writing that the New York Times called "a masterpiece" Richard Dawkins builds a carefully reasoned and lovingly illustrated argument for evolutionary adaptation as the mechanism for life on earth.The metaphor of Mount Improbable represents the combination of perfection and improbability that is epitomized in the seemingly "designed" complexity of living things. Dawkins skillfully guides the reader on a breathtaking journey through the mountain's passes and up its many peaks to demonstrate that following the improbable path to perfection takes time. Evocative illustrations accompany Dawkins's eloquent descriptions of extraordinary adaptations such as the teeming populations of figs, the intricate silken world of spiders, and the evolution of wings on the bodies of flightless animals. And through it all runs the thread of DNA, the molecule of life, responsible for its own destiny on an unending pilgrimage through time. Climbing Mount Improbable is a book of great impact and skill, written by the most prominent Darwinian of our age.

Ze srovnání slovníků Collins, Chambers a Penguin vychází The New Penguin English Dictionary jako ta nejlepší volba" Literární příloha The Times Toto druhé vydání nejrozsáhlejšího anglického výkladového slovníku nakladatelského domu Penguin dokonale a do hloubky pokrává všechny aspekty současného anglického jazyka. Jde o aktualizované vydání, které připravili přední angličtí lexikografové. Srozumitelné a detailní definice, se zvláštním důrazem na složitější významy a použití Najdeme zde nejen slova z tzv. "standard English", ale i technické a vědecké výrazy, slang a tvary z historické angličtiny. Stovky nových slov, žargon a módníslova reflektující nejnovější přírůstky do slovní zásoby, např. barista, cyberstalking, foodmiles, proximity talks, SMS aj. Gramatické vazby, příklady správného užití, výslovnost a interpunkce Příklady užití slov také z děl slavných spisovatelů, od Shakespeara po Jane Austenovou a od P. G. Wodehouse až po Salmana Rushdieho Příspěvky od významných britských odborníků, např. Richarda Dawkinse o evoluci, Geofreyho Robertsona o svobodě, Heleny Kennedyové o lidských právech a Vernona Bogdanora o devoluci.

Exploring the extensive timeline of evolutionary history, this work delves into the insights it provides about life on Earth. The author, a renowned science writer and biologist, examines key events and transformations that have shaped the diversity of life, offering a profound understanding of our biological heritage and the interconnectedness of all living organisms. Through engaging narratives and scientific analysis, the book invites readers to reflect on the significance of evolution in understanding existence.

Professor Richard Dawkins has teamed up with renowned illustrator Dave McKean to take you on an amazing journey from atoms to animals, pollination to paranoia, the big bang to the bigger picture. See the wonder of science come alive in this beautifully illustrated guide to the greatest questions on earth - and some of the answers to them.

THE ANCESTOR'S TALE is a pilgrimage back through time; a journey on which we meet up with fellow pilgrims as we and they converge on our common ancestors. Chimpanzees join us at about 6 million years in the past, gorillas at 7 million years, orang utans at 14 million years, as we stride on together, a growing band. The journey provides the setting for a collection of some 40 tales. Each explores an aspect of evolutionary biology through the stories of characters met along the way or glimpsed from afar - the Elephant Bird's Tale, the Marsupial Mole's Tale, the Lungfish's Tale. Together they give a deep understanding of the processes that have shaped life on Earth: convergent evolution, the isolation of populations, continental drift, the great extinctions. The tales are interspersed with prologues detailing the journey, route maps showing joining lineages, and life-like reconstructions of our common ancestors. THE ANCESTOR'S TALE represents a pilgrimage on an unimaginable scale: our goal is four billion years away, and the number of pilgrims joining us grows vast - ultimately encompassing all living creatures. At the end of the journey lies something remarkable in its simplicity and transformative power: the first, humble, replicating molecules.

Richard Dawkins explores the wonder of flight. A book for ages 8-80 about flying - from the mythical Icarus, to the sadly extinct but magnificent bird Argentavis magnificens, to the British Airways pilots of today.