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Title details for Charles Darwin's Barnacle and David Bowie's Spider by Stephen B. Heard - Available

Charles Darwin's Barnacle and David Bowie's Spider

by Stephen B. Heard
Emily S. Damstra
ebook
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An engaging history of the surprising, poignant, and occasionally scandalous stories behind scientific names and their cultural significance
Ever since Carl Linnaeus's binomial system of scientific names was adopted in the eighteenth century, scientists have been eponymously naming organisms in ways that both honor and vilify their namesakes. This charming, informative, and accessible history examines the fascinating stories behind taxonomic nomenclature, from Linnaeus himself naming a small and unpleasant weed after a rival botanist to the recent influx of scientific names based on pop-culture icons—including David Bowie's spider, Frank Zappa's jellyfish, and Beyoncé's fly.

Exploring the naming process as an opportunity for scientists to express themselves in creative ways, Stephen B. Heard's fresh approach shows how scientific names function as a window into both the passions and foibles of the scientific community and as a more general indicator of the ways in which humans relate to, and impose order on, the natural world.

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Publisher: Yale University Press

Kindle Book

  • Release date: March 1, 2020

OverDrive Read

  • ISBN: 9780300252699
  • Release date: March 1, 2020

EPUB ebook

  • ISBN: 9780300252699
  • File size: 5330 KB
  • Release date: March 1, 2020
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Formats

Kindle Book
OverDrive Read
EPUB ebook

subjects

History Science Nonfiction

Languages

English

An engaging history of the surprising, poignant, and occasionally scandalous stories behind scientific names and their cultural significance
Ever since Carl Linnaeus's binomial system of scientific names was adopted in the eighteenth century, scientists have been eponymously naming organisms in ways that both honor and vilify their namesakes. This charming, informative, and accessible history examines the fascinating stories behind taxonomic nomenclature, from Linnaeus himself naming a small and unpleasant weed after a rival botanist to the recent influx of scientific names based on pop-culture icons—including David Bowie's spider, Frank Zappa's jellyfish, and Beyoncé's fly.

Exploring the naming process as an opportunity for scientists to express themselves in creative ways, Stephen B. Heard's fresh approach shows how scientific names function as a window into both the passions and foibles of the scientific community and as a more general indicator of the ways in which humans relate to, and impose order on, the natural world.

Expand title description text
History Science Nonfiction