Triumph of seeds : how grains, nuts, kernels, pulses, and pips conquered the plant kingdom and shaped human history / Thor Hanson.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Hanson, Thor, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Seeds.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (304 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

New York, New York : Basic Books, 2015.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

We live in a world of seeds. From our morning toast to the cotton in our clothes, they are quite literally the stuff and staff of life, supporting diets, economies, and civilizations around the globe. Just as the search for nutmeg and the humble peppercorn drove the Age of Discovery, so did coffee beans help fuel the Enlightenment, and cottonseed help spark the Industrial Revolution. And from the Fall of Rome to the Arab Spring, the fate of nations continues to hinge on the seeds of a Middle Eastern grass known as wheat. In nature and in culture, seeds are fundamental—objects of beauty, evolutionary wonder, and simple fascination. How many times has a child dropped the winged pip of a maple, marveling as it spirals its way down to the ground, or relished the way a gust of wind(or a stout breath) can send a dandelion's feathery flotilla skyward? Yet despite their importance, seeds are often seen as a commonplace, their extraordinary natural and human histories overlooked. Thanks to Thor Hanson and this stunning new book, they can be overlooked no more. What makes The Triumph of Seeds remarkable is not just that it is informative, humane, hilarious, and even moving, just as what makes seeds remarkable is not simply their fundamental importance to life. In both cases, it is their sheer vitality and the delight that we can take in their existence—the opportunity to experience, as Hanson puts it, “the simple joy of seeing something beautiful, doing what it is meant to do." Spanning the globe from the Raccoon Shack—Hanson's backyard writing hideout-cum-laboratory—to the coffee shops of Seattle, from gardens and flower patches to the spice routes of Kerala, this is a book of knowledge, adventure, and wonder, spun by an award-winning writer with both the charm of a fireside story-teller and the hard-won expertise of a field biologist. A worthy heir to

the grand tradition of Aldo Leopold and Bernd Heinrich, The Triumph of Seeds takes us on a fascinating scientific adventure through the wild and beautiful world of seeds. It is essential reading for anyone who loves to see a plant grow.

Contents:

Intro

Title Page

Copyright

Table of Contents

Dedication

Author's Note

Acknowledgments

Preface: "Heed!"

INTRODUCTION: The Fierce Energy

Seeds Nourish

CHAPTER ONE Seed for a Day

CHAPTER TWO The Staff of Life

CHAPTER THREE Sometimes You Feel Like a Nut

Seeds Unite

CHAPTER FOUR What the Spike Moss Knows

CHAPTER FIVE Mendel's Spores

Seeds Endure

CHAPTER SIX Methuselah

CHAPTER SEVEN Take It to the Bank

Seeds Defend

CHAPTER EIGHT By Tooth, Beak, and Gnaw

CHAPTER NINE The Riches of Taste

CHAPTER TEN The Cheeriest Beans

CHAPTER ELEVEN Death by Umbrella

Seeds Travel

CHAPTER TWELVE Irresistible Flesh

CHAPTER THIRTEEN By Wind and Wave

CONCLUSION The Future of Seeds

About the Author

Also by Thor Hanson

Praise for "The Triumph of Seeds

Appendix A: Common and Scientific Names

Appendix B: Seed Conservation

Glossary

Bibliography

Notes

Index.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

1-5416-1605-7

0-465-04872-2

OCLC:

905914061