Abominable Science!: Origins of the Yeti, Nessie, and Other Famous Cryptids ISBN: 9780231526814 Platform/Publisher: Oxford Academic / Columbia University Press Digital rights:Users: Unlimited; Printing: Unlimited; Download: Unlimited Subjects: History of Science and Technology;
Loxton and Prothero (Reality Check) stake out the world's best-known (if never observed) cryptids and-unsurprisingly-come up with zilch. But that doesn't mean the hunt isn't an interesting one. In their breakdown of cryptozoology, the skeptical duo (Loxton is the editor of Junior Skeptic magazine) covers a vast swath of territory, from biology, geology, paleontology, and genetics, to anthropology, sociology, and folklore. Classic cryptids like Bigfoot, the Yeti, the Loch Ness Monster, and sea serpents, as well as the lesser known Mokele Mbembe, an Apatosaurous-like dinosaur supposedly rampaging through the Congo, each get their due (and are duly dismissed as myths) in chapter-long entries. Loxton and Prothero ultimately conclude that "there is no solid evidence that any of the cryptids discussed in this book exist and much evidence that their existence is extremely unlikely." So why the obsession with these fanciful beasts? And what of the weird world of amateur cryptozoologists? The authors address these questions and others in the illuminating final pages, where they rail against the dangers of pseudoscience and provocatively tie cryptozoology to the politics of creationism. This work is as valuable for its analysis of the hunted as it is for the light it shines on the still-hopeful hunters. 88 illus. and photos. (Aug. 6) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Shermer Michael :
Michael Shermer (Ph.D. in the history of science from Claremont Graduate School) is a teaching fellow at Chapman University, founder of Skeptic Magazine , and a monthly columnist for Scientific American .He is the author of Why People Believe Weird Things , How We Believe , and The Science of Good and Evi l, published by Henry Holt/Times Books.Daniel Loxton is the editor of Junior Skeptic and a staff writer for Skeptic , for which he specializes in critical scholarship regarding claims of legendary animals. Known for his even-handed approach--and for his lifelong personal love of monster mysteries--Loxton is one of the most widely respected skeptical critics of cryptozoology. He is the author and primary illustrator of Evolution: How We and All Living Things Came to Be (winner of the 2010 Lane Anderson Award as Canada's best science book for young readers) and of the photorealistic paleofiction storybooks Pterosaur Trouble and Ankylosaur Attack , the first two books in the series Tales of Prehistoric Life.
Donald R. Prothero is one of the leading scientists and authors working in paleontology and evolution. He is a former professor of geology at Occidental College and lecturer in geobiology at Caltech. He is presently a research associate in the Department of Vertebrate Paleontology at the Los Angeles County Natural History Museum and is the author of more than 30 books and 250 scientific papers published in leading scholarly journals. He received his Ph.D. from Columbia University and is a fellow of the Geological Society of America, the Paleontological Society, and the Linnean Society of London. In 1991, he received the award for "Outstanding Paleontologist Under the Age of 40," and was awarded the 2013 James Shea Award by the National Association of Geoscience Teachers for outstanding writing and editing in the geosciences.
