Inner Fish: Chapter 1

To be frank, I was not thrilled to read this book at all. On top of having tons of SAT tutor homework, summer homework from other classes, and my dance recital coming up, my schedule has not allowed me to have much free time for myself. Plus, the fact that I had to squeeze in time to read this book during my free time did not give me a good first impression of the book before I even read it. Like many of my other classmates, the book took me by surprise. It really IS interesting and intriguing. Also, the book is not dense. The vocabulary is easily comprehended and the author did not throw in scientific jargin to confuse me. Shubin's diagrams and pictures were also helpful in grasping his ideas and concepts. What really surprised me was that the author made me smile. He said, "This all sounds very logical, but let's not forget serendipity." After he said this, he goes on to talk about the different struggles and personal experiences in the Artic. Then he said, " It took us four expeditions to Ellesmere Island over six years to find our needle. So much for serendipity." His sarcastic remark humored me. :)

The downside is that I still don't understand a couple things. I guess it's because of my limited knowledge about evolution, but how does Tiktaalik show us about who we are? Yes, it has a completely free head from the shoulder and other parts are similar, but I am still skeptical about how humans can be related to fish. I hope the rest of the chapters can unveil the answers to my questions. I will be anticipating to read chapter 2.