Week 4 Day 2 History of Biology Survey

Today's assignment consisted of reading chapters 6-9 and the epilogue from Farber. I am glad I purchased this book, as I have found Farber to be easy to read, extremely informative, and well organized, and I intended to read the entire volume even if it hadn't been assigned for this course. I did notice that Farber refers to the "rediscovery" of Mendel's work in 1900, I guess he hadn't read Brannigan's chapter that I did! Initially he tackles the separation of physiology or function from natural history and its deviation into its own discipline(s). Bichat's tranfusion experiments on dogs in particular got my attention. His main point here is the transition from traditional natural history collecting, naming, and grouping to more of an emphasis on experimental method, even to the point of trying to reduce biology strictly to the level of physics. It's also interesting that in this day and age of animal rights, some of the early physiology experiments seemed rather gruesome, and yet in light of the times few objected to them. He addresses the use of the word biology as we know it today and the Modern Synthesis, which interestingly helped lead to even more specialization under the umbrella of biology.

One chapter is devoted to private and public zoos, gardens, museums, and collections in what Farber calls the Victorian Golden Age of natural history. The story of Jumbo and P.T. Barnum was enlightening and amusing, even though Jumbo tragically was run over by a train, and his remains were lost in a fire. He also delves into the development of ecology or environmental science, and conservation efforts. He invokes Leopold, Thoreau, and others, but surprisingly and sadly to me he did not mention Edward Abbey, who in my opinion was just as important in this area. I was pleased to see Virchow mentioned regarding cell theory, however. Going back to the Modern Synthesis, Farber's discussion of how natural history, inheritance, and evolution came together was eye-opening for me. Juian Huxley, Dobzhansky, Morgan, and Mayr all played key roles, but of course it was Darwin's evolutionary theory that provided the backbone by "viewing all biological knowledge as the result of a long historical process". I was curious to see if Hardy and Weinberg would be mentioned in relation to the synthesis of biological thought but they were not. I always felt their mathematical treatment of variation in a gene pool was critical to an understanding of the process for my students.

E.O. Wilson's many achievements and contributions are the focus of the final chapter, from ant pheromones to the introduction of the field of sociobiology. I have a renewed appreciation for this man and his life, and am encouraged to read more of his works. Farber encapsulates the chronological perspective and continuing importance of natural history in his epilogue. I feel his book has given me a comprehensive and balanced view of the history of this discipline, and his writing style has helped me better understand some of the other readings of this course, as well as some of my own prior knowledge. I feel better equipped as a teacher to present and discuss these topics with my students and colleagues as well. We also through natural history can take advantage of younger student's innate curiosity about the world around them and help expand and build on that through the rest of their education.

Bibliographic Note:

Paul Lawrence Farber, Finding Order in Nature: The Naturalist Tradition from Linnaeus to E.O. Wilson, (Baltimore and London, The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2000).

Further Reading Note:

I would like to view some of the works by Magendie, Hooker, Huxley, Mayr, Virchow, Dobzhansky, and Wilson.