The power of life : the invention of biology and the revolutionary science of Jean-Baptiste Lamarck / Jessica Riskin.
| Author/creator | Riskin, Jessica author. |
| Format | Book |
| Publication | New York : Riverhead Books, 2026. |
| Copyright Date | ©2026 |
| Description | xiv, 482 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm |
| Subjects |
| Portion of title | Invention of biology and the revolutionary science of Jean-Baptiste Lamarck |
| Contents | Preface -- Prologue -- The garden where it all began (no, not that garden) -- Part one: Flowers and trees. The little priest -- The ersatz chevalier -- The violist, no, banker, no... -- The romantic botanist -- The traveling naturalist -- The stealth geologist -- The cross-dressing, world-traveling botanist and her lover (Lamarck was neither, but he ended up with their collection) -- Part two: Insects and worms. The reluctant zoologist -- Nemesis -- The invention of invertebrates -- A can of worms -- The composition of matter -- Animal collaborations -- Fathers and sons -- The creation of biology -- Interlude: The weather -- Part three: Birds and mammals. The zoological philosophy -- The power of life and the inner feeling of existence -- The giraffe and company -- A very branchy tree -- The natural history of animals without vertebrae -- The self-made primate -- The birds and the bees (and the kangaroos) -- Darkness -- Part four: Science and poetry. The battle of the mollusks -- The battle of the boiled broth -- Darwin's grandfather problems -- He cut off their tails (not with a carving knife) -- Inside Mammoth Cave -- The gospel according to Saint William -- The scandal of the midwife toad -- The biologist who just couldn't seem to come in from the cold -- Epilogue: The life-made world. |
| Abstract | "In the early nineteenth century, the French naturalist Jean-Baptiste Lamarck proposed the first evolutionary theory of life and, with it, a new science: biology. Yet for centuries, evolutionary theorists have endeavored to discredit Lamarck and his theory of self-transforming organisms. In this melding of biography, history, politics, and science, Jessica Riskin sets out to correct the record, telling the story of Lamarck's life and work as an intense struggle between rival forces to answer questions that remain foundational to our modern worldview: What is a living being, and what is science?"-- Provided by publisher. |
| Bibliography note | Includes bibliographical references ([397]-464) and index. |
| Issued in other form | Online version http://id.loc.gov/entities/relationships/onlineversion Riskin, Jessica Power of life New York : Riverhead Books, 2026 9780593852583 |
| Genre/form | Biographies. |
| Genre/form | Biographies. |
| LCCN | 2025049918 |
| ISBN | 9780593852576 hardcover |
| ISBN | 0593852575 hardcover |
| ISBN | electronic book |
Availability
| Library | Location | Call Number | Status | Item Actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joyner | New Books | QH31 .L2 R57 2026 | ✔ Available | Want This? |