Ocean State Libraries

Which came first? The chicken or the egg? A book about transformations -- from egg to chicken, seed to flower and caterpillar to butterfly. An entirely fresh and memorable presentation on the concepts of growth and creativity.

"Examines the biology, evolution, and traits of humans, exploring the anatomical and physiological attributes that makes mankind mammals and that ultimately separate people from other members of the same scientific class designation." --

"From birth to death, a lyrical exploration of the role of transformation in human life. To be alive is to be in perpetual metamorphosis: growing, healing, learning, aging. In Shapeshifters, physician and writer Gavin Francis considers the inevitable changes all of our bodies undergo-such as birth, puberty, and death, but also laughter, sleeping, and healing-and those that only some of our bodies will: like getting a tattoo, experiencing psychosis,...

Explains how cells divide and multiply, how humans develop from a single cell to an adult, and how other animals and plants grow.

"During the past ten years, there has been a revolution in our understanding of developmental biology, as scientists apply the ideas and techniques of genetics and embryology to the processes of development. In this book, John Maynard Smith gives an account of the progress that has been made in this field - in our knowledge of both the development of individuals and the evolution of the species."--Jacket.