Joseph Le Conte

Here for the first time is presented in its entirety the Journal that was Professor LeConte's one contribution to literature and not science. It tells a true story--a narration of adventures, for the most part jotted down on scraps of paper in the very midst of dangers and hair-breadth 'scapes. Two wartime experiences are vividly set forth: the first, Professor LeConte's successful attempt to reach his sister's plantation below Savannah just as Sherman's army was concluding its "march to the sea"; and the second, his unsuccessful attempt to move his household treasures to safety from Columbia. As soon as he returned home, he corrected the rough draft of the Journal, transferred it to a notebook, and pasted in at the proper places the pen sketches which he had made on the spot. The original sketches, just as he drew them, have been used for the illustration of the present book. His daughter Caroline has added on an "Introductory Reminiscence," linking the older time with ours; there is an editorial preface; and the book has an index of all the persons mentioned in the Journal.

Joseph Le Conte (February 26, 1823 - July 6, 1901) was born in Liberty County, Georgia. He received an M.D. degree from the New York College of Physicians and Surgeons in 1845. After four years of practicing medicine, he entered Harvard University and studied natural history under Louis Agassiz. After graduating from Harvard, he taught at Oglethorpe University, Franklin College and South Carolina College. In 1869, Le Conte moved to the University of California, Berkeley, where he remained the rest of his life, teaching mainly in geology. In 1870 he visited Yosemite Valley and became friends with John Muir. Concerned about resource exploitation, Le Conte and Muir with others founded the Sierra Club in 1892. Le Conte died while visiting Yosemite Valley. Le Conte and his wife Caroline Nisbet, had four children.

It's the job of a science fiction writer to visualize extrapolations of the future. But there are those who go far beyond, venturing into realms of breathtaking science. That kind of cutting edge talent is as rare as a supernova--and, in its own way, just as powerful. Arthur C. Clarke had it. So did William Gibson. Now, with Evolution, Stephen Baxter delivers what is sure to be one of the most talked-about books of the year--and shows once again why he belongs among the select company of science fiction writers who matter.Stretching from the distant past into the remote future, from primordial Earth to the stars, Evolution is a soaring symphony of struggle, extinction, and survival, a dazzling epic that combines a dozen scientific disciplines and a cast of unforgettable characters to convey the grand drama of evolution in all its awesome majesty and rigorous beauty.Sixty-five million years ago, when dinosaurs ruled the Earth, lived a small mammal, a proto-primate of the species Purgatorius. From this humble beginning, Baxter traces the human lineage forward through time. The adventure that unfolds is a gripping odyssey governed by chance and competition, a perilous journey to an uncertain destination along a route beset by sudden and catastrophic upheavals. It is a route that ends, for most species, in stagnation or extinction. Why should humanity escape this fate?A generation from today, a group of concerned scientists--distant descendants of that primitive Purgatorius--gathers on a remote island to discuss this very question. The ceaseless expansion of human civilization has triggered an urgent environmental crisis that must be solved now if the Earth is to survive as a place hospitable to human life. But just when a peaceful solution seems within reach, two acts of shocking violence set in motion a cataclysmic chain of events that will expose the limitations of human intellect and adaptability in the face of the blind and implacable processes of Darwin's dangerous idea. From the Hardcover edition.

"In this timely work, Russell, philosopher, agnostic, mathematician, and renowned peace advocate, offers a brief yet insightful study of the conflicts between science and traditional religion during the last four centuries. Examining accounts in which scientific advances clashed with Christian doctrine or biblical interpretations of the day, from Galileo and the Copernican Revolution, to the medical breakthroughs of anesthesia and inoculation, Russell points to the constant upheaval and reevaluation of our systems of belief throughout history. In turn, he identifies where similar debates between modern science and the Church still exist today. Michael Ruse's new introduction brings these conflicts between science and theology up to date, focusing on issues arising after World War II."--BOOK JACKET.