Charles Darwin's Barnacle and David Bowie's Spider: How Scientific Names Celebrate Adventurers, Heroes, and Even a Few Scoundrels

by Stephen B. Heard PhD Narrated by Jonathan Todd Ross

Overview

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.

Editorial Reviews

MARCH 2021 - AudioFile

You don’t have to be a scientist to enjoy this examination of the lighter side of taxonomy, but it helps to have an interest in science. Jonathan Todd Ross offers an easygoing narration of the author’s commentary on how plants and animals are named. Ross’s voice has almost an impish quality when he recounts stories like the ones about how the cartoonist Gary Larson ended up the namesake of a louse and Jerry Garcia’s name was given to a roach. There are more serious chapters, such as the history of and controversies surrounding naming, and Ross handles those in a more appropriate straightforward manner. R.C.G. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine

MARCH 2021 - AudioFile

You don’t have to be a scientist to enjoy this examination of the lighter side of taxonomy, but it helps to have an interest in science. Jonathan Todd Ross offers an easygoing narration of the author’s commentary on how plants and animals are named. Ross’s voice has almost an impish quality when he recounts stories like the ones about how the cartoonist Gary Larson ended up the namesake of a louse and Jerry Garcia’s name was given to a roach. There are more serious chapters, such as the history of and controversies surrounding naming, and Ross handles those in a more appropriate straightforward manner. R.C.G. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine

Product Details

BN ID:	2940178990162
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Publication date:	03/17/2020
Edition description:	Unabridged

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