Basic Books
Titles appearing in SciTech Book News — December 2007
Animal architects; building and the evolution of intelligence.
Gould, James L. and Carol Grant Gould.
Basic Books, ©2007 324 p. $26.95 QL756
978-0-465-02782-8
James Gould (ecology and evolutionary biology, Princeton U.) and Carol Gould, a science writer, examine in detail the structures that animals create. They aim to explain the diversity of animal artifacts and the general strategies that allow different animals to build structures that characterize their species. Details considered include decision making and planning, how construction behavior impacts behavioral evolution, and how human building differs from that of animals. The authors describe a variety of structure designs, illustrated by b&w photos, and species, such as spiders, wasps, ants, and birds. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
