Metromorphosis : evolution on the urban island
Name
769911364-MIT.pdf
Description
Full printable version
Size
1.98 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
1cd4706fb20aec2d7cdb845a8133355d
Author(s)
Vezina, Kenrick (Kenrick Freitas)
Advisor(s)
Thomas Levenson.
Alternative Title
Evolution on the urban island
Date Issued
2011
Publisher
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Abstract
Cities are very much alive. Like islands, they provide a natural testing ground for evolution. With more than half of the world's population living in urban areas now, the influence cities have on the planet's life is enormous. But can they produce species? Foxes are learning to take advantage of human handouts in London, blackbirds are adjusting their physiology to relax around humans, and two forms of mosquito are diverging in the London tube system. Cities are hotbeds of evolutionary change, and regardless of whether or not new forms of life are destined to arise, they may help shed light on the origin of species.
Description
Thesis (S.M. in Science Writing)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Humanities, Graduate Program in Science Writing, 2011.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 23-24).
Subjects
Graduate Program in Science Writing.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Graduate Program in Science Writing
MIT Program in Writing & Humanistic Studies
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reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written
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