jjares reviewed The Cambrian Period: The History and Legacy of the Start of Complex Life on Earth on + 3273 more book reviews
Charles Rivers Editors takes on the herculean task of explaining the Cambrian Period. First, they explain how the earth got to that point in time. It is difficult to pinpoint the time because new discoveries constantly shift the timeframe. After explaining the geology and biology leading up to the Cambrian Period, the authors take on the 'Cambrian Explosion.'
Before the explosion, there were a series of events that killed off life around the earth. However, during the Cambrian Period, the weather, sun, water, and life forces encouraged the emergence of complex creatures all over the earth. At this point, these creatures had enough vertebrae and spines to leave fossils for future study. Prior to the Cambrian Period, the creatures did not have enough structure to leave behind fossils.
I appreciated that the authors wrote this book with the assumption that readers would know nearly nothing about the subject (a very intelligent assumption) and explained unfamiliar words in the text (instead of in a glossary). This increased my understanding dramatically. Because of the elemental way the authors explained things, I came away with much more understanding than I'd expected to learn.
Before the explosion, there were a series of events that killed off life around the earth. However, during the Cambrian Period, the weather, sun, water, and life forces encouraged the emergence of complex creatures all over the earth. At this point, these creatures had enough vertebrae and spines to leave fossils for future study. Prior to the Cambrian Period, the creatures did not have enough structure to leave behind fossils.
I appreciated that the authors wrote this book with the assumption that readers would know nearly nothing about the subject (a very intelligent assumption) and explained unfamiliar words in the text (instead of in a glossary). This increased my understanding dramatically. Because of the elemental way the authors explained things, I came away with much more understanding than I'd expected to learn.
