Chapter 2 Getting a Grip

When I first started this chapter, I did not expect it to begin with Shubin's account of his first human dissection. Although this was interesting, I didn't understand how it related to the similarity between humans and fish. Later I realized that this was a way for him to introduce the structure of our hands before moving on to compare both structures. As I continued with the chapter, I kept wondering how and why our bone structure resembled that of a fish. Even though I was able to feel Shubin's excitement after a discovery and comprehend that the evidence was there, I was still a little skeptical about the relationship between the two mainly because humans are so different and more complex than fish. Most of the reading was easy to follow until Shubin began using the names of the different fish. Because I could barely read and remember the names of the organisms he mentioned, the information he described about them was a little hazy and confusing. I also found it funny when Shubin noted that the structure of the Tiktaalik was specialized for doing push-ups. It baffled my mind how a fish could possibly have that capability. Overall, this chapter definitely piqued my interest and I hope to find answers to my formulating questions in the chapters that follow.