Used widely in non-majors biology classes this is the first textbook about evolution intended for the general reader Zimmer an award-winning science writer takes readers on a fascinating journey into the latest discoveries about evolution In the Canadian Arctic paleontologists unearth fossils documenting the move of our ancestors from sea to land In the outback of Australia a zoologist tracks some of the world's deadliest snakes to decipher the 100-million-year evolution of venom molecules In Africa geneticists are gathering DNA to probe the origin of our species In clear non-technical language Zimmer explains the central concepts essential for understanding new advances in evolution including natural selection genetic drift & sexual selection He demonstrates how vital evolution is to all branches of modern biology-from the fight against deadly antibiotic-resistant bacteria to the analysis of the human genome