Notebooks from New Guinea: Field Notes of a Tropical Biologist

ISBN-13: 9780199609642 / Angielski / Miękka / 2011 / 272 str.

Vojtech Novotny

Opis

Hailed by Edward O. Wilson as "one of the most amazing books I have ever read," this exhilarating volume offers a rare combination of first-rank science and top-notch storytelling. Vojtech Novotny, a world-class researcher and a brilliant writer, works on location in one of the toughest regions of the world--a high-risk locale rife with tropical diseases and venomous wildlife. Moreover, Novotny works closely with the indigenous peoples--natives who still hunt food with spear and arrow--involving them in his research and profiting from their deep familiarity with this rugged landscape. As a result, he has many a fascinating tale to tell, and he is a marvelous storyteller. Indeed, this is an unusual and fascinating collection of almost one hundred brief vignettes, adventurous tales, and reflections that illuminate the native culture and what the West can learn from it. Ably translated by David Short, this delightfully engaging book brings to life--with warmth and wisdom--the place, the people, and the pursuit of knowledge deep in the jungles of New Guinea.

Recenzje

Hugely entertaining and thought provoking in equal proportions.

O autorze

Vojtech Novotny is a tropical biologist. He is Professor of Ecology at the University of South Bohemia and the Head of the Department of Ecology and Conservation Biology at the Biology Center of the Czech Academy of Sciences in the Czech Republic. He is leading an international team of researchers studying relationships between plants and insects in tropical rainforests. This work has provided, among other results, the currently accepted estimate of the number of insects living on our planet. Novotny is directing the New Guinea Binatang Research Center, a research station in Papua New Guinea, recognized for its ecological research, which successfully unites western scientists and the tribal peoples of the New Guinea rainforests.