The nature of things. impressions of life The Burgess Shale

Summary: Evolution has long been viewed as a direct and predictable climb from simple beginnings to creatures of ever greater complexity, culminating in the human species. But is this really the case? This title addresses some fascinating aspects of evolution as theory, with a focus on the Burgess Shale, a small quarry high in the Canadian Rockies where fossil remains of the earth's first animals have been preserved in exquisite detail for over 530 million years. Includes computer animation of the fossils found in the shale, as well as interviews with Stephen J. Gould and other experts in the areas of anthropology and evolutionary theory.