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shanaqui's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
3.0
The Zoologist's Guide to the Galaxy, by Arik Kershenbaum, attempts to guess what alien life might look like by working from what we know. It seems to generally be focused on the more exciting side of things, with what alien animals might look like, and especially what alien intelligence might look like -- though I think simpler life (equivalent to bacteria and archaea) is more likely to be found in a variety of places, with multicellular life being rarer, and intelligent life rarer still. But obviously you have to go with what people are interested in, and zoology isn't known for in-depth interest in microbiology anyway.
As I've said elsewhere (and it's not too surprising), overall there weren't many surprises for me, given I have a biology degree and a pre-existing interest in astrobiology from fiction and non-fiction. I found that I didn't always agree with Kershenbaum's reasoning, but it was interesting.
As far as his reasoning went, I felt that he focused a bit too much on positive selection of beneficial traits, and it felt like he over-emphasised the idea that traits (both physical and behavioural) must be advantageous in order to be maintained through generations. Of course, that's a large part of it, but neutral traits and behaviours can come along for the ride because they're not selected against (and of course negative traits can come along because they're advantageous in narrow but important circumstances, though he does touch on this in discussing traits that demonstrate fitness).
To explain what I mean, I'd be very wary of claiming that there must be an evolutionary advantage to, say, a percentage of the population being attracted to very young children -- but that is a persistent trait of humans, unfortunately. If it has a grounds in heredity, then it must be either a trait that's neutral, evolutionarily speaking, or one which is positive under a narrow set of circumstances. I don't think it's terribly appropriate to consider paedophilia to be necessarily adaptive because it's a behaviour that exists (and persists), and likewise there are other features of appearance, behaviour and function that are complicated.
Reckoning with something so heavy is beyond the scope of the book, but hopefully that makes it clear that it's not a great idea to put all your faith in the idea that every trait must be adaptive.
My other quibbles are related: one would be that Kershenbaum spent quite a lot of words on suggesting innovative and strange forms life might take, only to conclude quickly that no, they're not likely, and most likely we'll meet lifeforms that look quite like us.
The other is the stupid "tape of life" analogy. We cannot "rewind the tape of life", so we cannot know whether things would turn out the same if we did so. (Plus a tape is a bad analogy for what they actually mean: no matter how you rewind it, it's still going to play the same content when you press play, because a tape has pre-determined content on it.) It's a thought experiment, not a truth about the world. I believe there have been some experiments that try to test the theory by sampling from a colony of bacteria at the same time and seeing whether each then develops in the same way -- but then talk about those and what they mean for your theory, don't just take "the tape of life" as read.
Obviously I'm being pretty nitpicky here, and overall I found it interesting and enjoyable (if sometimes a bit repetitive). For a layperson, it's probably a perfectly fine level of simplification.
As I've said elsewhere (and it's not too surprising), overall there weren't many surprises for me, given I have a biology degree and a pre-existing interest in astrobiology from fiction and non-fiction. I found that I didn't always agree with Kershenbaum's reasoning, but it was interesting.
As far as his reasoning went, I felt that he focused a bit too much on positive selection of beneficial traits, and it felt like he over-emphasised the idea that traits (both physical and behavioural) must be advantageous in order to be maintained through generations. Of course, that's a large part of it, but neutral traits and behaviours can come along for the ride because they're not selected against (and of course negative traits can come along because they're advantageous in narrow but important circumstances, though he does touch on this in discussing traits that demonstrate fitness).
To explain what I mean, I'd be very wary of claiming that there must be an evolutionary advantage to, say, a percentage of the population being attracted to very young children -- but that is a persistent trait of humans, unfortunately. If it has a grounds in heredity, then it must be either a trait that's neutral, evolutionarily speaking, or one which is positive under a narrow set of circumstances. I don't think it's terribly appropriate to consider paedophilia to be necessarily adaptive because it's a behaviour that exists (and persists), and likewise there are other features of appearance, behaviour and function that are complicated.
Reckoning with something so heavy is beyond the scope of the book, but hopefully that makes it clear that it's not a great idea to put all your faith in the idea that every trait must be adaptive.
My other quibbles are related: one would be that Kershenbaum spent quite a lot of words on suggesting innovative and strange forms life might take, only to conclude quickly that no, they're not likely, and most likely we'll meet lifeforms that look quite like us.
The other is the stupid "tape of life" analogy. We cannot "rewind the tape of life", so we cannot know whether things would turn out the same if we did so. (Plus a tape is a bad analogy for what they actually mean: no matter how you rewind it, it's still going to play the same content when you press play, because a tape has pre-determined content on it.) It's a thought experiment, not a truth about the world. I believe there have been some experiments that try to test the theory by sampling from a colony of bacteria at the same time and seeing whether each then develops in the same way -- but then talk about those and what they mean for your theory, don't just take "the tape of life" as read.
Obviously I'm being pretty nitpicky here, and overall I found it interesting and enjoyable (if sometimes a bit repetitive). For a layperson, it's probably a perfectly fine level of simplification.
dammitjennit's review against another edition
It's puzzling to me how this book managed to bore me with two of the things I like the most: Animals and aliens. Alas.
Arik is just yapping and yapping and he is right and it's informative but I was under the illusion this would still read like something meant to be read by your own free will and curiosity in your down-time not like mandated Uni literature.
Like no, you don't get it, I was on an eight hour train ride from Berlin with low battery on my phone, no internet and all I had was this book and still it managed to be the less engaging option to closing my eyes and trying so hard to nap for hours straight.
But maybe I'm not very smart and other people will enjoy this more than I did. All the best.
Arik is just yapping and yapping and he is right and it's informative but I was under the illusion this would still read like something meant to be read by your own free will and curiosity in your down-time not like mandated Uni literature.
Like no, you don't get it, I was on an eight hour train ride from Berlin with low battery on my phone, no internet and all I had was this book and still it managed to be the less engaging option to closing my eyes and trying so hard to nap for hours straight.
But maybe I'm not very smart and other people will enjoy this more than I did. All the best.
starstuff's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
librarianleah's review
4.0
The Zoologist's Guide to the Galaxy is a fascinating and thought provoking look at how, theoretically, "aliens" (aka life in other areas of the galaxy/ in other galaxies) would have evolved and what similarities or differences they could have to inhabitants of Earth. If you're looking for supernatural speculation, or if you have an advanced understanding of evolution and natural selection, this book will probably bore you. However, if you grew up learning that the Earth was only 2000 years old, Charles Darwin was Voldemort, and evolution was a swear word, and you're still catching up on all the scientific knowledge you were sheltered from, this book is for you.
Kershenbaum basically takes the concept of natural selection and applies it to address some of our most burning questions: is there life on other planets? Is it even possible? And what would it look like? While you won't get any definitive answers from this book (because we just don't know!), you will get a lot of scientifically backed hypotheses to ponder. The bottom line is that all life on Earth has adapted to best suit its environment. Therefore, if there is life elsewhere in the universe, it has done the same thing. If it has evolved to be far more advanced than humans, perhaps it does have advanced technology and could visit or communicate with us. If it hasn't evolved to be anywhere near as advanced as humans or even developed consciousness, there is no way it's flying over to visit Earth within our lifetime.
It's mesmerizing to think about other planets having a whole slew of unique creatures that will probably never be seen by us Earthlings. But with an incomprehensibly vast universe filled with stars, planets, and galaxies we have yet to even discover, why would extraterrestrial life come visit little old Earth? However, I for one think intelligent life is out there, and maybe, just maybe, it will make its way to us... or maybe it already has.
Kershenbaum basically takes the concept of natural selection and applies it to address some of our most burning questions: is there life on other planets? Is it even possible? And what would it look like? While you won't get any definitive answers from this book (because we just don't know!), you will get a lot of scientifically backed hypotheses to ponder. The bottom line is that all life on Earth has adapted to best suit its environment. Therefore, if there is life elsewhere in the universe, it has done the same thing. If it has evolved to be far more advanced than humans, perhaps it does have advanced technology and could visit or communicate with us. If it hasn't evolved to be anywhere near as advanced as humans or even developed consciousness, there is no way it's flying over to visit Earth within our lifetime.
It's mesmerizing to think about other planets having a whole slew of unique creatures that will probably never be seen by us Earthlings. But with an incomprehensibly vast universe filled with stars, planets, and galaxies we have yet to even discover, why would extraterrestrial life come visit little old Earth? However, I for one think intelligent life is out there, and maybe, just maybe, it will make its way to us... or maybe it already has.
thoughton98's review against another edition
5.0
A fascinating book about what extraterrestrial life might be like, in relation to what life is like on Earth. Kershenbaum explores motion, communication, evolution, intelligence and humanity, breaking down life on our planet and exploring the conditions needed on other planets for nature to similarly flourish. The book combines science and humour in equal measure and makes for an incredibly engaging read if you’re interested in this subject matter. For scientists, zoologists and exoplanet-enthusiasts etc, this is a definite reading requirement for 2022.
avialia's review
informative
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Ok first, what is up with me only reading good books latley? I mean great for me but this is strange.
Now, the actual book review.
I mean this book was great. The way it mixed the knowledge we have about animals and how evolution works. But also the idea and reimaging of how anials are and can be out there in the universe.
Well, it was simply amazing in my opinion. There is not much more to say
Now, the actual book review.
I mean this book was great. The way it mixed the knowledge we have about animals and how evolution works. But also the idea and reimaging of how anials are and can be out there in the universe.
Well, it was simply amazing in my opinion. There is not much more to say
bayleemoyer's review
informative
medium-paced
3.75
This book took me longer to finish than I’d like to admit… it was super well written and explored some interesting concepts, but as someone with a background in zoology I found a lot of the chapters to be repetitive which made it difficult at times for me to enjoy/get into. I am glad I followed through and finished it though!