Last week I wrote about a piece in Slate in which Brendan Borrell argued that concerns over the threat to biodiversity from global warming is overshadowing the bigger threat from habitat destruction. Brendan is back from a trip to South Africa and has left a lengthy–and well-considered–comment below. Definitely check it out. I still have some problems with his argument, but it’s so much more satisfying to discuss these issues with somebody who takes the scientific research seriously than someone who just wants to quote-mine.
About The Loom
Carl Zimmer writes about science regularly for the New York Times and magazines such as Discover, where he is a contributing editor and columnist.
He is the author of seven books, the most recent of which is The Tangled Bank: An Introduction To Evolution. His website is carlzimmer.com and his address is [ blog at carlzimmer dot com ].
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The Tangled Bank is the best written and best illustrated introduction to evolution of the Darwin centennial decade, and also the most conversant with ongoing research.--E. O. Wilson, Harvard University
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"Superb...quietly revolutionary"--Boston Globe
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"Fascinating...thrilling... Zimmer has produced a top-notch work of popular science."--Los Angeles Times
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"As thorough as it is graceful...This is as fine a book as one will find on the subject."--Scientific American
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"A book capable of changing how we see the world."--The Los Angeles Times
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"A fascinating story, which Zimmer unfolds as a tale of high-stakes scientific sleuthing."--Booklist
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- DISCOVERmagazine: Living World
- DISCOVER Blogs: Bad Astronomy
April 27th, 2009 at 3:36 pm
Great discussion.
Those of us who’re contending with giant industrial solar proposals in undeveloped desert wilderness (see my website link for some discussion) are in fact seeing environmentalists dismiss biodiversity protection in favor of working to stabilize climate. It’s rather disheartening, and Brendan’s Slate piece, whatever its flaws may have been, was a salutary antidote to some of the “bighorn sheep and desert tortoises have to take one for the team” rhetoric we’ve been hearing from the larger mainstream environmental groups.
May 20th, 2009 at 1:00 pm
[...] recent weeks I’ve been pondering the current wave of extinctions we’re causing, and so I can’t help projecting these [...]