Kosmos: You Are Here

Some of you, dear readers, have probably wondered where I have been hiding these past few days. Well, besides being busy with teaching a conservation genetics course, I was also, unexpectedly, reading another book so I could publish the review here as soon as possible. Last Monday, Darksyde, co-author of Daily Kos, asked if I wished to take a quick look at their new electronic book ("ebook"), Kosmos: You are Here by Steven Darksyde and Mark Sumner (DevilsTower) (2006), whose sales will support the annual Kos convention. Being the audacious book whore that I am, combined with having never read an ebook before, I jumped at this opportunity to become acquainted with this new technology, and I somehow managed to talk him into sending me the entire ebook. Heh, heh.

This 396-page ebook is a password-protected PDF collection of the best essays by Darksyde and DevilsTower about evolution and cosmology. It features a thought-provoking chapter by Pastor Dan that discusses religion, intellectual laziness, the power of reason and the search for intellectual truth. It also has a forward by science writer, Carl Zimmer, where he muses over the rapid technical and intellectual evolution of electronic media, from email to streaming video to blogs and, well, ebooks.

Similar to print books, this ebook has a flashy picture on the cover. Consistent with its electronic theme, the cover is graced with a PhotoPaint image, "Lunar Dawn", by graphic artist Karen Wehrstein. But, uncommon in the world of publishing, this ebook is graphics-rich. Some of you may know that satisfactorily reproducing images, especially color images, is both labor-intensive and rather expensive, and requires that the book should be printed on high-quality glossy paper. The ebook is primarily illustrated with lovely paintings and drawings by the esteemed paleoartist, Carl Buell, although several other artists contributed images as well. Additionally, this collection includes 18 high-resolution images generously donated by NASA. This ebook is so well illustrated and formatted that, to the casual eye, it has the appearance of a science textbook, but without the spacious margins. But even though the overall format and layout is easy on the eye, I was somewhat disappointed that I could not zoom in on the text when my eyes became tired from reading it on my computer screen. [NOTE: DarkSyde comment: you can enlarge the text, and display two pages at a time and other features, if the file is stored in acrobat. Not sure about other applications.]

Also similar to a textbook, this ebook is well-edited: although there are two distinct authors, the tone and voice is surprisingly consistent from one chapter to the next. However, unlike the typical science textbook, the engaging, conversational tone of the writing will be immediately recognizable to fans of DailyKos.

This ebook is divided into 20 chapters, each with enticing titles such as "A Pocket Guide to Evolution", "Evolution of the Clark Bar", "Shattered Skies", "Playing Chicken with the Apocalypse" and "Hello Doomsday, My Old Friend". Clickable links to relevant websites are sprinkled throughout the text, but I was mildly disappointed when the ebook was replaced with the referenced source instead of opening the source in a separate window, thus making it necessary and time-consuming to download the PDF and search for my place again.

Unlike any traditional book that I've ever read, this ebook includes a few reader comments, comments that serve to add richness and perspective to the information. Quotes such as this;

We are made of stars. When I was in grade school, I remember learning how all the heavier elements in the universe were produced from fusing hydrogen and helium in the fiery furnaces of giant stars that has (sic) successively collapsed in on themselves until they eventually exploded in a supernova scattering those elements across the cosmos. I remember that I didn't think "no way am I made from rocks" but "wow, I'm made of stars." We are the children of stars. And I don't know anything that could be more profoundly sublime than that - I can't think of anything more majestic than a creator that had fashioned me out of stardust.

-- goblue72

Similar to most traditional books, there are several indices at the end, listing all cited sources for the images and referenced websites that are linked throughout the text, also including the relevant page numbers in the ebook. As an added bonus, this ebook is ecologically friendly because, in the unlikely event that you might wish to dispose of this book, it does not represent a waste of paper: it is printed on 100% recycled, acid-free electrons.

But, as with all good books, it is the writing itself that will ultimately appeal to you. For those who think that science writing is tedious and convoluted, you will be pleasantly surprised to find clearly written gems sprinkled throughout this ebook, gems such as this;

A transitional fossil only means that the intermediate specimen possesses morphological characteristics (physical features) which are present in both modified (fins to limbs) and unmodified (spinal column) versions of all land vertebrates such as amphibians or mammals. This means that a transitional population can overlap descendent populations in time: wolves are transitional to dachshunds and are directly ancestral to them, but wolf populations didn't magically disappear when dachshunds came to be! [p. 97]

Hrm. This same argument can be made for print versus electronic media.

You'll also be pleased to discover a fair amount of humor mixed in with the information. I was particularly delighted with an illustration by my drinking pal, Carl Buell, depicting himself sharing a beer with an Australopithecine, an image that you will never find in any traditional textbook (p. 140). I was also amused by Mark Sumner's contribution, "The Evolution of the Clark Bar." This essay describes a real-life "survival of the fittest" scenario as revealed by the changing population frequencies of a variety of snack items available in a candy machine located down the hall from the author's office.

As an evolutionary biologist who studies birds, I was pleased to find an entire chapter devoted to my favorite topics; birds and evolution. This chapter opens with a description of a fictionalized encounter with the predatory bird, Titanis walleri, a flightless giant that lived two million years ago in Florida. A bird with hands on her feathered arms. This chapter uses this encounter to launch a compelling discussion of the current evolutionary outcome of ancient biogeographic distribution patterns, combined with the vagueries of changing climate, disease, and egg-eating predators. It speculates that, had the so-called "terror birds" arisen in the same location as ancestral humans, today's undisputed masters of planet Earth could have been clad with feathers instead of hair (and I think their voices would have been more musical, too). Indeed, it quietly chastens us against our collective arrogance by mentioning that this potential master still lurks in front of us;

Look carefully into the eyes of the hawk, the owl, even a playful sparrow or fluttering hummingbird - all sharper-visioned than early surveillance satellites. There is a mind behind those gorgeous orbs. Doesn't it almost look like they're planning something? Deep inside these gaudy feathered creatures lurks the heart of a fearsome serial killer who has feasted on mammals for 200 million years. The ancient DNA of a one-ton Utah raptor is still fresh enough to rise again, given half a chance. [p. 84]

Even though neither author is a scientist, they made a tremendous effort to safeguard scientific accuracy by consulting with several experts; their facts were checked by PZ Myers (evolution and biology), Sean Carroll (cosmology) and Robert Kopp (geology). Despite several very minor technical glitches (don't forget, this is a new technology), I enjoyed this book. The writing is engaging, the illustrations are magnificent, the cited sources are a mere click away, and the information is solid. It's a fun experience, and I think that you, dear readers, will enjoy your electronic ride through evolutionary history.