Colloquium On Variation And Evolution In Plants And Microorganisms Toward A New Synthesis 50 Years After Stebbins

Annotation In 1950, Stebbins (d. 2000) published Variation and Evolution in Plants, which extended the synthetic theory of evolution or "the modern synthesis" to plants. These 17 papers are drawn from a National Academy of Sciences colloquium held in January 2000 on the 50th anniversary of the publication of Stebbins' classic. Following a Stebbins appreciation talk (originally slotted for his own words), papers branch into sections on: early evolution and the origin of cells, virus and bacterial models, protoctist models (having to do with RNA editing), population variation, and trends and patterns in plant evolution. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com).

"The present book is intended as a progress report on [the] synthetic approach to evolution as it applies to the plant kingdom." With this simple statement, G. Ledyard Stebbins formulated the objectives of Variation and Evolution in Plants, published in 1950, setting forth for plants what became known as the "synthetic theory of evolution" or "the modern synthesis." The pervading conceit of the book was the molding of Darwin's evolution by natural selection within the framework of rapidly advancing genetic knowledge. At the time, Variation and Evolution in Plants significantly extended the scope of the science of plants. Plants, with their unique genetic, physiological, and evolutionary features, had all but been left completely out of the synthesis until that point. Fifty years later, the National Academy of Sciences convened a colloquium to update the advances made by Stebbins. This collection of 17 papers marks the 50th anniversary of the publication of Stebbins' classic. Organized into five sections, the book covers: early evolution and the origin of cells, virus and bacterial models, protoctist models, population variation, and trends and patterns in plant evolution.

Biographic Memoirs Volume 85 contains the biographies of deceased members of the National Academy of Sciences and bibliographies of their published works. Each biographical essay was written by a member of the Academy familiar with the professional career of the deceased. For historical and bibliographical purposes, these volumes are worth returning to time and again.

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